Day 30 – July 18, 2019

We all got a restful night sleeping in the nicest hotel room we have occupied during Big Trip 4. The complimentary breakfast was filling and yummy.

The weather report was not good. There was an excessive heat warning due to the skyrocketing humidity combined with the high temperature. Al Roker said to expect the temperature to feel like 110. I must admit, I was concerned about our health as we planned our day in Washington, D.C.

We packed our lunch and made sure to bring a lot of water.

We drove south for about an hour. Our destination was the Metro station in New Carrollton, Maryland.

We arrived at the station to find a parking garage we couldn’t fit in thanks to the large shell perched upon our roof. There was also a surface lot, but it was full.

Luckily, we located another lot nearby that was half empty.

Our stop was at the end of the line and a train was waiting for us when we arrived. Best of all, it was air conditioned.

The train dropped us off one short block away from Ford’s Theater, the place where President Lincoln was shot.

Timed tickets are required to visit the the theater. And there is a long line of people sweltering outside the building waiting to be let in.

We entered the gloriously air conditioned lobby at 12:29 and got our free tickets for 12:30. It seems our timing on this day was impeccable. The huge line entered the building and started down the stairs to the basement museum. Without having to step back into the miserable heat, we simply followed the crowd.

Our plan was to spend an hour here and return later for a 2:45 ranger talk in the theater.

The basement to Ford’s Theater houses exhibits about Lincoln’s life in Washington, from the time he was sworn in as our 16th president his tragic assassination.

Armed with her Jr. Ranger booklet, Ashley went to work.

Generally, the booklets require kids to complete a certain number of sections based upon their age. This one was the same but with an added bonus of a patch for completing additional sections.

The museum followed the story of Lincoln’s presidential years chronologically using video and boards.

Most fascinating were the events leading to his assassination and the conspiracy plot to take down the heads of the government. The hope was to reinvigorate the Confederates who had conceded defeat just days earlier.

As we rounded a corner, we stood before the very pistol the John Wilkes Booth used to murder the president.

We headed up the stairs which led to the actual theater.

We sat in the theater seats, soaking up more air conditioning. We were actually getting cold. Ashley continued to complete her booklet until she finished the last challenge.

When we took our seats, Ford’s Theater was basically empty. We noticed it was now filling up. A check of the phone revealed it was time for the 2:45 ranger talk. We had spent over two hours here. Ashley said it didn’t feel like it. It just felt cold.

The ranger stepped on the stage dressed as a union soldier. He performed a one man show playing the part of the man who shot and killed Booth. It was riviting.

During the 25 minute performance, the play covered the murder of Lincoln, the manhunt for Booth, and the sad life of Boston Corbett, the heroic Union soldier that ended Booth’s life.

We have enjoyed many great ranger talks on this trip. None could top this one.

We finally emerged from the theater back into the lobby where Ashley received her badge, number eight, and the coveted patch.

The brutal heat felt good against our freezing skin as we made our way across the street to the Petersen house. The place where Lincoln died.

Earlier, the line to get in was pretty long. Now we just walked right in.

We stood in the exact room where our greatest president passed away.

By now, we were starving. There is another wonderful museum that is connected to the Petersen house, but the pangs of hunger wouldn’t allow us to hang around.

Back on the sidewalk, we devoured our lunch and headed for the mall.

We arrived at the Smithsonian American History Museum around 4:30. We had one hour before closing. It was the perfect amount of time.

No trip to the Nation’s Capital is complete until you see the shoes.

Yes, those are Dorothy’s ruby slippers.

All of the museums close at 5:30, so we were left to the elements. It seemed the humidity just continued to climb. Thankfully, we had plenty of water to drink. But the weather was very brutal. It felt like a beat down.

We visited many of the monuments on west side of the mall.

Ashley almost stabbed herself with the Washington Monument.

Enough talking. Let’s look at some pictures.

The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is always sobering. The Wall of black granite is highly reflective and radiates heat. There are more than 58,000 names on it. We saw many people here searching for the name of a friend, or family member, or loved one. Very sad.

It was starting to get late and it was a long walk to the Metro station.

As we descended down the escalator, our train pulled up and whisked us away.

We arrived back at the van around 9, had a quick meal at Wendy’s, checked into the hotel, crashed, and finally burned.

The best part of the day? The fresh baked chocolate chip cookie the Doubletree Hotel give their hotel guests at check-in.