Sunday, August 24, 2008

Our Honeymoon: Part 2: Washington DC: August 19-24

PHOTO CAPTIONS: 1-2. Train ride from PA to DC, 3. The Capitol Buildling, 4. The National Museum of the American Indian, 5-6. Washington Monument, 7. George Bush's house, 8. WWII Memorial, 9-10. Dinner at my aunt and uncle's, 11. Three Bronstein women: cousin Hilde, me and my Aunt Joan, 12-13. Arlington Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, 14. Chelsea at Lincoln Memorial, 15. Haitian stamp of Lincoln, 16. The Korean War Memorial, 17. The Vietnam War Memorial, 18-20. on a bike ride with Leslie Kefauver, 21. Joking around at the FDR Memorial.





















The 8-hour train ride from Pittsburgh, PA to Washington, DC on August 19 was scenic and relaxing. We spent most of the time in the observation car and had lunch in the dining car. My Aunt Joan and Uncle Art picked us up at Union Station. They're 82 years old, but you'd never know it -- especially if you watched them play tennis. They also love to cook, so we've enjoyed several excellent meals at their house, including lobster, pork adobo, and steak.

We've been staying at my cousin Julie's in Chevy Chase, Maryland, just a few miles away from her parents' condo. Gannon just left for college in upstate NY, so we've been sleeping in her room and getting to know brother Martin better. He's a computer whiz who started working at a computer store at age 14. They're sad to lose him now that he graduated from high school and is heading off to study computers at Penn State in the spring. Soon Julie will have this big, beautiful colonial house all to herself. But as a senior partner in a law firm, she's rarely at home anyway.

There are so many sights to see in DC. I think I wore Andre out, running around The Mall every day. There's no way to see everything, but we did visit the Capitol Building, Washington Monument, the White House, the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum, the National Museum of the American Indian, the Holocaust Museum, Arlington Cemetery, the WWII Memorial, the Korean War Memorial and the Vietnam Memorial.

Mostly we got around by metro and on foot, but one day we made a bike trip with Leslie Kefauver, mother of Santa Cruz friend Karen. Under Leslie's expert guidance, we took the bikes down to the Mall via the metro, then rode around the Potomac, visiting the FDR and Jefferson Memorials. Fortunately, we've had nothing but gorgeous weather the entire honeymoon. Summer on the east coast can be hot and muggy and prone to thunderstorms, but we've been lucky....so far.

We haven't gotten to do any sports, except some tennis and swimming, biking and canoeing. But with my thumb still on the mend, I haven't been able to do as much as usual anyway. Tomorrow (Aug. 25) we take the train to New Jersey to visit my cousins on my dad's side.

No comments: