Came back for a rest and a pizza, and I went back alone. Went for a wander towards the Capitol Building. Jeez I wish these people would learn to spell!
There’s a lot going on down the mall. Interestingly, a big chunk is taken up by the Hari Krishnas. Didn’t bother trying to get inside the Capitol. Too many people there, so I headed down Constitution Ave towards the other end of the mall. When we did our walk earlier, we tried to get to the Lincoln Memorial, but it was blocked off down the middle. In fact, the reflecting pool isn’t even there any more. It’s been ripped up to be replaced. It appears that it was leaking, really, really badly. It was built on landfill, and was settling. What you can see now is a series of posts peeking out of the dirt.
They have been driven down to bedrock, and the new pool will be built on top of them. It will also have the water circulated from the river, and filtered like a swimming pool. It will be about a year before the new reflecting pool is done. So, as a park ranger told me, it was a cement pond, it will now be a swimming pool. It amused me to hear the term “cement pond” outside of The Beverley Hillbillies. Worse, the pronunciation was exactly the same as used by the Clampetts. Tee Hee.
The WW2 memorial is between the Washington Monument and the once-reflecting pool.
On my second attempt, I went down Constitution Ave, the only way to get to see Lincoln today. It was worth the effort.
A very impressive building, overshadowed by the imposing presence of the man inside. It’s an odd feeling, climbing the steps with that massive sculpture looking down at me. I can feel in the worn depressions of every marble step I take, the gravitas and solemnity of the place. I can’t even imagine what these steps have witnessed over the years. For one thing, the “I have a dream” speech happened right here. This is the one place I wanted to see in DC, and I’m glad I did it.
Made it back to Sarah unscathed and we had a quick dinner. Up to the room, we watched the Independence Day concert on TV. Yes, I know, it’s going on downstairs in front of the Capitol Building, and we are watching it on TV. Sarah doesn’t do crowds, and I don’t disagree with her. Getting out of CHC after a public event is a bitch, so something on this scale would be too scary for words.
The reason we chose this hotel, is because we wanted something within sight of the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building. And that’s what we got. From our balcony, we had the perfect view of the fireworks. So in that regard, we got exactly what we wanted.
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