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Published: April 22nd 2008
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Sunday - Baltimore
Since we arrived on Saturday we were lucky enough to spend a whole day with Monica and Dan before they had to go back to work on Monday. They took us around Baltimore laughing the entire time at what places they would show us. Since the Mariners were playing the Orioles we were interested in at least seeing the stadium, we both really want to catch a game but that morning it was raining pretty hard and it would have been a bit too soggy. (Baltimore needs a roof like Safeco) So we drove by and took some snap shots of the infamous Camden Yards. We also toured around the places that Monica lived, convent, no she was/is not a nun, but lived amongst them. We also went to a Westminster Graveyard on Fayette Street in downtown Baltimore to see the gravesite of Edgar Allen Poe. Since I teach his work I thought I should go and pay my respects. I of course in the spirit of my grandfather thought about the poem "Annabel Lee". The cemetery was so old, it was very quiet and no one else was around, I did not see the reported ghost of
Poe, however, I am too superstitious to hang out there at night.
While out and around we went to the most amazing grocery store I have ever been in Wegmens. Both Chris and I wished we weren’t hungry, between the numerous olive, humus, and sushi bars, it could have been a nightmare. We were pretty focused on getting something for dinner and not sampling everything in sight. If you are ever back east and see one of these markets, its not an average run of the mill place, it is quite unique.
Monday- Washington DC
We had planned to take the early train out to DC, which would require us to get up at 6. We woke up 30 minutes late, which is not like us at all, but made it to the MARC train in time to buy tickets for the week and hop on. We were both so excited to see all that DC had to offer us, places we had only seen in the movies. We decided to walk from Union Station to the Mall and walk around the monuments since it was around 8 and none of the museums would open for a few
more hours. We walked straight towards the Mall and stopped for our first DC picture outside of the Capitol. This is where I started to realize how large everything is. You see the museums and monuments in the movies, but they are so much larger in real life. We then walked the 2 miles to the Lincoln Memorial and that is where we both paused in sheer amazement of this memorial. The first day there were tons of students on field trips all throughout the Capitol area. It was so interesting because we both became completely absorbed in the moment and lost track of the hundreds of kids running around and were taken in by the moving words on the engraved in the wall and the history behind Lincoln’s presidency.
WWII Memorial and Vietnam Memorial - The one feeling that came over me when I first saw the Vietnam memorial is loss, so many people lost a son, father, husband, brother or friend. It was so incredibly moving and sad. So many names, you see the memorials in movies and documentaries, but when you are there it is so touching and awe inspiring to see the names, and to
know that they are more than just names.
Next stop was my absolute favorite, most memorable stop of our trip. The Holocaust Memorial Museum. As we arrived there were already many people in line to get in, once we got into the museum, we found out that they only allow a certain amount of people in at a time and that we would have to wait a while before it was our turn to go into the main exhibit. As we waited to get into the main exhibit one of the docents was explaining how intentional the design of the entire museum is. Before we entered the elevator we each took a card that had the name and the story of a person who was a victim of the Holocaust. The entire exhibit was so moving at certain points we found our mouths hanging open and others tears streaming down our cheeks. It was so moving. This is so much more than a memorial or a museum it was an amazing experience that I will take with me, it truly did make a huge impact on me. After years of teaching Night by Elie Wiesel I felt as though
I knew a lot about the Holocaust and after leaving the museum I realized that I had a lot to learn.
We got some lunch at this little deli in the sculpture garden of the National Gallery of Art, I believe it was called the Metropolitan. It was a pretty good place where they had pre-made sandwiches along with an area where you could order what you wanted specifically. Although it was spring break in Washington it was not in DC. The school buses poured in which meant we had to wait in line to get into the National Archives. It had been raining earlier in the day and thankfully as we waited in the line it did not rain on us. We had to wait in line once we were inside but were so excited it didn’t even matter. I had no idea that the lighting was so dim inside the archives, but considering they house the original documents our country is founded on it makes sense to do all possible to keep them for posterity. We were able to take some pictures of the documents. After walking all over the mall we decided to head back to
Union Station and get ready to catch our train at 5 back to Baltimore.
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Bridget Newlands
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Hello, I would like to use this photo for a school project and I need to know if you took this photo because my work needs to be sited. If you did not take his photo, please tell me where you got it. Thanks!