Washington DC

---

Kayla and I are currently taking Washington DC by storm, or we would be if it didn't require so much godamn walking. I thought I walked a lot in New York.... No DC wins the award for putting all tourist attractions as far about as possible with nice windy gravel paths linking them all together making you walk the longest route possible.



Our first stop was the national mall, and the monuments. The Washington monument is really just a big phallic symbol, what that has to do with George washington I was unable to ascertain and neither was Kayla. The world war 2 memorial was strangely beautiful all states accounted for, and water cascading down into a small pool. The only blemish being the fact the memorial stated ww2 1941-1945 America once again proving their narrow world perspective on international conflicts. The Lincoln memorial was simply awe-inspiring with its faux roman/Grecian style and imposing statute of a world weary Lincoln. The quote above Lincoln reads "in this temple as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the union the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever." Lincoln almost embodies a god like presence in American sub culture. I stood on the spot Martin Luther king Jr gave his famous " I have a dream" speech. Most people walked over the spot in almost insignificance, but to me that was the most awe-inspiring part of the memorial. The civil rights movement was defined in that moment, and I can't help but feel that the push for equality is still ongoing, though it lacks the artistry and passion of the past, it's now deemed just political correctness, evidenced by people just ignoring the small plaque commemorating MLKj's speech.



The memorials look even more poignant at night when they are lit up, especially the martin Luther king memorial, in which a carving of his bust into a stone, is overshadowed by his quotes carved in stone surrounding the area. Reminding you of the tyranny of the past and the changes he actually brought about.



The smithsonian was very interesting and a step up from the Benjamin franklin institute in Philadelphia. Though the museum of American history was slightly bias in its approach to the revolution... But that could be because I'm part of the tyrannical British empire their words not mine... It was glaringly obvious that America is a young country with a lot of the exhibits being about the 20th century but also the grasping at straws approach to historical reflection when they don't have the thousand year history of England. It allowed me to be quite haughty and proud of my own heritage.



The museum of art was amazing because they had an exhibit on the art of gaming. It was like merging two of my favourite things together, I was a kid in a candy shop wandering around the exhibit they had a c64, snes, nes, sega mega drive the only glaring omission was the lack of a spectrum, but beggars can't be choosers. I left with my brand new snes controller belt buckle and an art of gaming t shirt my geekiness complete.



The museum of crime and punishment was the highlight of my trip to Washington dc, it was informative and interactive, and well worth the entry fee (the smithsonians were free). There was also random quizzes around the museum including a section on serial killers.... Which I aced of course. It chronicled the criminal process from medieval to modern, and the influence of Europe on the American justice system. There was even FBI training videos including a shooting exercise which I proudly beat Kayla on! Who missed all seven of her shots.... It was a real decommissioned gun, which means I have now handled 3 guns since being in america, and they wonder why they have such high gun crime?? But the legal side of me loved the museum.



No trip to DC would be complete without a visit to Ben's chilli bowl, a DC institution. It has been on U street since 1958 survived the race riots of the 1960's and the tough economic times of the 80's. It is a much hyped place, barack Obama and bill Cosby being frequent customers. Reviews on trip advisor said it was all talk, and the food wasn't that great, and that that it was more the ambience of the place than the food, and it had become increasingly more commercial, (they now have as gift shop). I walked in and it is like stepping back in time, they have got the same decor as in the 1950's the only difference is the flat screen tv over the entrance which is linked to the Bens chilli bowl app in which you can take your photo while your there and it will flash upon the screen the point of this I'm really not sure.......



But I sat at the bar waiting for my 5 dollar chilli cheeseburger, a very reasonable price for DC... They don't appear to have cashed in on their fame on the food prices. I was lucky as well as I just missed the lunch rush as after I sat down a massive queue formed nearly leaving the place. I got my food in less than 8 minutes. It's not gourmet its a burger and chips, and by chips I mean crisps..... But I shared chill fries with Kayla....

Now this burger was amazing.... The chilli was incredible. Just thinking about this burger makes me hungry. The bun was steamed not toasted, it was so soft, and the mayo was perfect it didn't take away the kick of the chilli.... Anybody who knows me, knows my love of chilli... But this was the best chilli burger I have ever had.... I want to go back to dc to just eat there again. Man vs food was right!



Before leaving dc, we made our way to the air and space museum, to see the "Enola gay" and other such aviation treasures. My secret love of airplanes came out as I saw the progression of planes though the world wars to the cold war period. It also reminded me to revisit duxford when I return to England. It was impressive. I loved DC.

---

Comments

[Gary R]

slightly jealous again...
ok as jealous as i am of your whole trip, i'm slightly more jealous of this part in particular (well atleast until you reach the west coast haha) lol. Just reinforces my desire to add this as a must to my next holiday over there. whole experience sounds awesome, keep making me jealous lol x