Gloriously, Friday morning we didn't have to be up and out early. We enjoyed a slightly less hectic morning, before making our way to the Air and Space Museum.
This is the most popular Smithsonian in terms of attendance, but our students weren't overly impressed; their favorite part was the extensive gift shop!
Our group splintered at this point, with smaller groups heading off to museums best matching their personal interests. Our now much smaller crew made our way across the National Mall for another quick visit to the Museum of Natural History.
This time around we had a little more time to explore. One of the highlights was the epidemiology section where the kids got try a simulation in which they attempted to stop the spread of disease.
We ate packed lunches at the Museum Cafe then made our way to the National Archives to meet back up with the whole group. No pictures were allowed in the Archives, but we got to see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and many other priceless documents. I was surprised at how faded the documents have become, but also impressed with the efforts taken to preserve them.
After the Archives we trekked over to the US History Smithsonian. I LOVE this museum! Our history teacher had a few specific items/areas she wanted to show everyone, but then the kids paired up and were allowed to explore the museum on their own.
Aubree and Audrey buddied up and had a great time taking funny pictures of themselves interacting with the different exhibits.
We gave the kids specific instructions of where and when to meet back. "Do NOT be late!" we emphasized. Turns out, every single group of kids made it back before the parents. Why? We moms found a volunteer docent giving a tour and were fascinated by his stories. We followed him around the museum asking question after question. Our kids started texting us counting down the minutes, then the seconds until we were "late" for our designated meeting time. We sprinted down the stairs and made it just in the nick of time.
That evening we had a scheduled monument bus tour. The tour left from Union Station, which was about 1.6 miles from the US History museum. Again, our group split into factions. Half the group decided to take the Metro over to station, and the other half of us (led by Tallie who couldn't stand the idea of heading back into the crowded Metro areas) decided to walk.
By this time, the rain had turned to a sleet/snow mixture. Our feet, already tired, sore, and in some cases severely blistered from days of walking, were not pleased, but we walked and laughed, had sleet pelting our faces, and finally made it to Union Station AHEAD of the Metro traveling group!
We were rewarded for our efforts with dinner at Shake Shack.
Then it was time to crowd onto the tour bus. Unfortunately, our tour bus had plastic, roll-up windows. In normal weather that wouldn't be a problem, but in the cold and rain, they quickly fogged up and we couldn't see anything. The solution was to roll up a few of the panels. That left us plenty cold, but at least we had a great view.
It was a long, late evening. We drove past oodles of monuments and had time to stop at four. Jamie was our personal tour guide. Everywhere we stopped she told us all the history and stories we needed. When she explained about Eleanor Roosevelt, the girls asked, "Can we go hug her!?"
I'd never been the the Martin Luther King, Jr. monument. We thought it was powerful, and we wish we'd had more time to ponder on his quotes written on the surrounding walls.
Of course, the Lincoln Memorial was a huge highlight of the tour.
We couldn't resist the photo op with the Washington Monument in the background. Seeing the monuments at night was such a treat.
By the end of the tour, some of our younger students started to lose it. They were just so tired. We considered getting off the bus in Arlington, since that was closer to our hotel than heading back to DC, but amazingly, our tour bus driver offered to drop us all off at our hotel. How's that for going the extra mile?!
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