One Day in D.C.
WASHINGTON D.C.
On the Saturday evening of Fall Break we got the bus from NYC to Washington DC! It was roughly a 4 hour journey and we arrived at about 10pm and headed straight to the Hostel we were staying in. The next morning we ate endless pancakes and then left at 8.30am to make the most of our one day in D.C.
First we walked to the White House- which was so much smaller than I was expecting! It really is such a beautiful building though- at least I think so- and I really wish we had done a tour inside, maybe next time! The White House was also quite heavily guarded, and there was a security fence roughly 4m from the main fence- it's not like Buckingham Palace where you can go right up to the gate!
The White House.
We then walked around the side of the White House, where we had a glimpse of the back- which was arguably even more beautiful than the front- and then walked up to the Washington Monument. It was absolutely huge!!! From far away it just looked very tall, but when we walked right up close to it you could really get a feeling for just how wide it was on its base! From this point you could see the entire stretch up to the Capitol Building, and down to the Lincoln Memorial. Washington really is so stunning and photogenic.
The Washington Monument.
No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get an up close photo with the whole monument!
Beautiful view to the World War 2 memorial and Lincoln Memorial.
From the Washington Monument we walked to the World War 2 memorial, which I thought was a really lovely memorial, and the view from here to the Lincoln Memorial was incredible. On a map everything in D.C looks quite far apart, but it was so quick and easy to walk from one monument to the next. We did consider doing a bus tour, but as we only had one day to explore as much as we can we decided not to- looking back now I do think it would have been beneficial, because honestly, I know very little of the history behind these incredible monuments- we've never really studied any American history in school. However, we could never have realistically done as much as we did in the time we had, so I am glad we chose to walk. I'll just have to sit down one day and do the research myself! We were also so lucky that it was a really beautiful warm day which made the day even more fab.
World War 2 Memorial.
Again, I was so surprised by the size of the Lincoln Memorial- it's not until you get up close until you see how huge they really are. The view from this point towards the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building was probably my most favourite of them all- it was so magnificent.
Lincoln Memorial.
Next we walked to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial, which was no surprise, again enormous. The statue was so spectacular, but so simple at the same time, and it was surrounded by some of his most famous quotes which I thought was a really nice touch.
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.
We had done all of the above by 11am- how crazy is that! It really shows how much you can fit in a short space of time. The United States Holocaust Museum was something which was towards the top of my list, so we visited for about 2 hours and it was a very good museum. I have previously visited Auschwitz and the Anne Frank House, and therefore I did have a particular interest in visiting. Although it was quite sad- as you might expect- it was very informative and at the same time respectful, and I'm really glad I had the chance to go.
By 1pm we were really quite peckish, so we got some Hot Dogs and Pretzels and then sat outside surrounded by the amazing architecture and scenery. After a quick break we went to the Natural History Museum- it was so busy so we just had a quick look around, the jewels were my personal favourite!
As the weather was so nice we decided to take a bit of a rest from our jam packed day, and got some ice cream and sat outside again on the National Mall. It was a really cool atmosphere, there were so many food trucks, and it felt like it was summer again! Then we walked up to the Capitol Building, which was soo beautiful. I know I've used that word far too much in this post, but everything about Washington D.C. honestly just was so beautiful. I would love to have toured the inside- as a keen politics student of course haha- but it was closed because it was a Sunday. I really love the design behind the National Mall- how the monuments are set out in one long stretch. From this point you could see all the way back down to the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial which was such a fantastic view.
The United States Capitol.
At this point it was time to head back to the bus station to get the 5.30pm bus back to NYC. I loved everything about D.C; although NYC is obviously fab too, Washington D.C felt like it just had so much culture and history and I wish we had more time to spend there! We didn't get chance to visit the Smithsonian Institute and I would love to have toured Congress and the White House.
I'm so happy with how the photos I took turned out- they really show how magnificent D.C was, but it was definitely even more so in real life! Washington D.C is one of those places I have always seen in movies, tv shows, pictures etc, and it felt so surreal to actually be there.
Hope you loved the pictures!
xoxo Elsie
Instagram: @elsiecussons
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