03/30/2026
Spring Break Day 2
After a good nightās rest, we were up and out the door by 7:00am starting our chilly morning by visiting the Jefferson Memorial. Thomas Jefferson, without him, we wouldnāt have our Declaration of Independence or the freedoms we have today.
Our next stop that morning was one of Miss Kimās favorite memorials to visit, after all, FDR is her favorite president! Did you know FDR is our longest running termed president of 4 terms (16 years) or that he suffered from polio, was partially blind or that his entire memorial is written in braille? His wife Elenor was a major advocate and activist for womenās rights, education and healthcare for all citizens of our great nation. This memorial is a tribute to them and their accomplishments and is located just a short walk away along the cherry blossomed trees that line the shores to our next stopā¦.the Martin Luther King memorial.
Did you know thereās a rule in Washington DC that statesā¦no statue can be more than 19 feet tall? They also must be made of copper, bronze or marble. This rule was ļæ¼invoked in the 1800ās when the statue was placed a top the capitol building and since then, all statues created have abided by that rule, all except Martin Luther King who stands 36 feet tall. His statue remains unfinished which Issy and I think symbolizes his vision of a unified country and his work being unfinished. This man believed in equal rights for all, no matter the color of your skin, and he is rightā¦.we all deserve to be treated equally, we all deserve kindness, we all deserve respect.
After our brisk morning outdoors, we headed to our next location, the Capitol Building. We started by taking the iconic 8th grade trip photo in front of the building, then headed inside for lunch in the visitors center. Fun fact: our capitol has burned down twice in its existence, one of those times was during the Revolutionary War. Our congressional library was once stored in the Capitol and was lost during one of these fires. Thomas Jefferson sold his personal library of over 20,000 books to rebuild the library of which more than 200 of his personal books are still stored at the Library of Congress today (located directly across the street from the Capitol) Another fun fact: the mural painted on the top of the Capitol Building is the size of a NBA basketball court š³ or that every state submits 2 statues of their choosing to be displayed in Washington DC.
After touring the Capitol, we headed to another fun stopā¦The Smithsonian. The Smithsonian is an incredible location filled with over 30 different types of museums getting to see things from all parts of history. Miss Kim was hoping to stop in at the Air and Space Museum but all reservations had been booked that day but we still had fun at the American History Museum and the Museum of National History. We saw dinosaur bones from the Jurassic period, massive shark teeth and taxidermy animals. Issy took some beautiful pictures of the infamous Hope Diamond necklace (not pictured yet) while Miss Kimās phone recharged after taking so many pictures. The Gemstone and Geodes was a fantastic exhibit to explore! We also learned that Issy is not as long as a swordfish š
After the Smithsonian, it was time for dinner at a Mexican restaurant that to us just wasnāt the same as the Mexican food weāre used to, still edible but just not our standards. After dinner, we took another cold, evening stroll through the Vietnam and World War II memorials. Did you Miss Kim and Issy have family that have fought (and survived) in both these wars? Once they were done walking through those memorials, we headed to the Lincoln Memorial (Issyās phone has those pictures) and saw the reflecting pool which reflects the Washington Monument. Did you know that the Washington Monument can be seen from anywhere in Washington DC or that all roads in DC lead back to the Capitol?
So many historical and fun facts weāve learned about our nations Capitol in just 2 amazing days. Tomorrow we say goodbye to DC and start our 5 hour bus ride into the Big Apple!
