Washington DC

We were pleasantly surprised to see our friends Ralph and Doris when we arrived at Cherry Hill RV Park .in Washington DC.  Its fun getting to spend more time with our good friends.  The campground was lovely, lots of amenities and fabulous fall foliage in late October.  

The Colors are still with us 

 WOW

We went to Gettysburg National  Military Park .  The largest battle ever fought on US soil, 51,000 men were killed, captured or injured during this 3 day battle.  The confederate army suffered the greatest loses and this was a turning point in the civil war.  We watched a film and then went into the Cyclorama Theater.  20 artists worked on this in 1883-1884. It’s 42 foot tall painting and depicts battles in the Civil War in the round.  It’s been restored and it has light affects and sounds of guns and canons. .It’s really done well.  We then boarded a bus for a tour of the battlefield.  It covers 25 square miles. We had a great guide.  You felt you could see the battle taking place before your eyes.  They also have a museum with over 1 million historic artifacts. A very good day site seeing.    

 Gettysburg

We also saw the National Memorial for Fallen Fire Fighters.

 Fireman Al
 at National Memorial for Fallen Fire Fighters

We had a full day{ 8-5}of touring Washington DC. We took a trolley tour of DC.  We saw the White House, US Capitol, and Supreme Court.  The Washington Monument divides the National mall.  On one side is the Capitol and 10 Smithsonian Museums.  On the other side is the Korean War Memorial, Vietnam, World War II and the Lincoln Memorial with a reflecting pool. 

Sheryl and her Buddy Abe

White House

Our Capital

The Washington  Memorial was started in 1848.  They ran out of money and finished it in 1884.  Its two different colors because they couldn’t match the stone.  It’s 555 feet tall and is surrounded by 50 flags.

Washington Monument

 The Lincoln Memorial is aligned with the Washington Monument and the US Capitol.  It has 36 colums one for each state in existence at Lincolns death.  The statue was done by Daniel Chester French.  We visited his home and studio when we were in Vermont.  The monument is so impressive The Vietnam, Korean and World War II were all very moving.

Lincoln Memorial

We went to the Ford theater where Lincoln was fatally shot.  Its been renovated and now contains a nice museum with many historical artifacts..  Well worth a visit.

Where Lincoln Was Shot

We rode down Embassy row then into Georgetown.  Both were very nice areas.  Georgetown had some cute shops, restaurants, and is home to Georgetown University..

The National Cathedral is the 6^th largest in the world.  It took 83 years of construction and was completed in 1990.

National Cathedral

Arlington National Cemetery was touching.  440,000 people are buried here.

Arlington National Cemetery

 We saw the eternal flame that lights up President Kennedy’s gravesite.

Kennedys Eternal Flame

We saw the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  They guard  the tomb 24 hours a day.

Changing of the Guards

The last day in DC we needed a day off.  We did laundry, cleaned the RV and worked on the blog.  It rained most of the day.  We had thunder and lightning and had the air conditioner on because it was so warm.. 

We drove through Virginia and N. Carolina and still had some beautiful foliage and nice highways.  The center medium was nicely landscaped with flowers and trees. 

Beautiful Settings

We spent the night at the Fayetteville, NC Elks Lodge # 104.  They had s nice campground with 4 hookup sites.  We got our first drink for free and a free lodge pin.  They have 170 members.  There were 6 guys at the bar all very friendly.

Another long day on the road.  We drove thru South Carolina and into Georgia.  We stopped at Pearl Fryar’s Topiary garden.  He was featured on the travel channel.  With no topiary experience he started on his garden.

 South Carolina had more billboards along the highway than any state I have ever seen, some up 40 feet tall.  When we entered into Georgia I loved the sign.  “Welcome to Georgia thank you for having Georgia on your mind.”