Blogs from Washington D.C., District of Columbia, United States, North America - page 4

Ok to break with tradition this will be a short update blog…yeah OK we will see…. Well we got out of New York OK and decided that we would break with tradition completely and utilise the GPS in the car to get out from Newark airport and onto the motorway and south towards Philadelphia….yes you did I hear it right I used a GPS …so sue me!!! I always like to use a map but sometimes needs (and too many streets) must!! Headed south and made good time on the freeway and arrived in Philadelphia and looked for a car park near the visitors centre and think we did Ok because when we came up the stairs the sign read “ visitors centre car park” and we walked straight into the visitors centre…Gee wiz these GPS ... read more

A very sad day, as we have heard (no thanks to the American media) that Brucie has died. Well at least there is some cheer as yet another member of Donald Trump's dysfunctional all inner-circle has gone. On top of all the Charlottesville controversy, are we here to see the beginning of the end of the Trump presidency? There were a few final things to wrap-up in Washington before we left to drive to Philadelphia. My wife, son and daughter had not seen the Franklin D Roosevelt Memorial, so we drove there first. We all collectively agreed that this is our favourite of all the memorials. Whist we were taking a photo of our kid's standing alongside some statues in a queue, a guide told us that that was a very popular (i.e. unoriginal) picture and ... read more

It was a foggy start to the day, but that soon cleared and it turned into the hottest day since we arrived. Hot and humid. We were booked on to a tour of the Capitol Building today and it was advised that we leave 45 minutes to clear security, so it was quite an early start to the day. When we got there, the security was in fact quite quick so we had loads of time to mill around and enjoy the air conditioning in the Visitors' Centre, which is huge and very impressive. With time to kill, my daughter tried to find a passing Senator or Congressman to ask him what the wifi password was. The security around Capitol Hill is absolutely nothing compared to the White House. Traffic is restricted, but there are no ... read more

I was still on UK time so I was up early and went out for another sunrise, this time to the Lincoln Memorial. For a second time, I was not disappointed and got a fantastic sunrise featuring the Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool. Again there was me and a few other photography geeks, and, despite the hour, lots and lots of runners. When not photographing the sunrise I went up to the memorial itself for a photo of the statue of Abraham Lincoln. There were some police up there so I asked if it was ok for me to use my tripod. "Technically no, but you can go ahead". It was nice to enjoy the peace and quiet without all the crowds from when I was there the day before. Our daughter was planning on ... read more

As my body-clock was still on UK time (five hours ahead) I was awake early so I decided to go for a walk to The National Mall with my camera. And it was worth it. Come sunrise I was near the Capitol Building and it was stunning. Despite it being 4.30am, the streets on the way to The Mall were surprisingly busy - cars and people. I was wondering why so many people would be up and about so early on a Sunday, then it occurred to me that everyone was still out from the Saturday evening. No one seemed drunk, which is probably more of a statement on the UK than it is on America. The Mall was a lot quieter. Just me and some other sad photographers, all overjoyed at the fantastic sunrise. A ... read more