On The Journey

Sometimes when driving far,
On a day like today,
I just want to keep cruising,
And leave it all behind.

Nothing but me in my car,
And music in the air,
Melting the cares away.

6AM in Chicago O'Hare

Barely do my legs remember how to work after the flight from Honolulu, not to mention dizzy from lack of any good sleep, and here I am right back on another plane hopping to Kansas City. Almost home...

Last Day in Hawaii

After a morning spent browsing the bazaar and spending my last remaining hours in Waikiki at the beach, I wandered over to my airport pickup location and got to sit shotgun in the shuttle as I was once again singular in company. The shuttle driver was very nice and regaled me with local trivia and tales of living in Hawaii, as well as gave me a last opportunity to get a photo of the capitol building and eternal flame in Honolulu while he was taking care of a short bit of personal business for his girlfriend.

Inexorably though, I wound up at the airport. It was fortunately fast and easy to check in and get through security, after which my remaining time in Hawaii has been spent browsing the duty-free shops. Now I sit and await boarding for my flight, 8 hours to Chicago first, and counting the reasons to stay ;-)

Ah-well. Mahalo and aloha, Hawai'i. May we meet again soon.

Samoan Fire Knife Dance

Oh yah, I almost forgot, even after fighting to get it to upload to YouTube through my anemic bandwidth on this cellular modem... here is footage of the Samoan fire knife dance that topped off last night's luau.  A small taste of something you really must experience first-hand!

Polynesian Sunset Dinner Cruise

If I were doing this all over again, I think I would take the cruise before participating in the luau.  While the entertainment on the cruise was still enjoyable, the single musician and pair of dancers on the Starlet could not compare to the spectacle of last night.  This, touched with the inevitable melancholy of an adventure coming to a close, left me feeling bittersweet most of the evening.  The three-course dinner with an entree of steak and chicken was passable, nothing stood out to me there either.  However, the view from out in the ocean was definitely the highlight of the evening.  Heavy clouds loomed purple and shadowy over the mountains and coastline, and once the sun began to set the colors in the sky and water became ever-fascinating.  I believe this is the first time I have watched and witnessed the full progression as the sun slips down below an ocean horizon, dwindling from a brilliant golden orb to the merest pinprick of light before all that remains is a faint yellow aura of its existence beyond the curve.  Truly breath-taking.

With half of the cruise ship's tables empty, it was hard for the emcee to drum up a party as seemed typical for the agenda, but after our hula dancers went through the various island styles, the evening came to a close with part of the crowd out on the dance floor doing the Love Train, YMCA, Macarena, and the Electric Slide.  Yes, folks, it was certainly a sight to behold ;-)

In the end, I go to bed tonight content.  I came to Hawaii to experience something new, and I have certainly achieved that goal many times over.  Life is a journey of discovery, about oneself, the world around us, and the world beyond what we can imagine.  I have learned much in each of these regards during my brief Polynesian sojourn, and look forward to the day I can return for more.

Aerial Glider Ride in Haleiwa

OK, so THIS is now officially the best and most exhilerating experience I have had in Hawaii so far :-)

It took an hour of driving to get to Haleiwa where the glider air field is located, but that gave me the opportunity to take in some of the inland scenery. We took the highway straight through both of the mountain ranges on Oahu, giving me excellent views of the ridges.

Upon arriving and checking in with the very personable (and attractive) receptionist, I got a pleasant surprise: since I had booked a 30 minute excursion but there are really only enough sights for 20 minutes, as part of the same cost they threw in some hands-on flight training! Ten minutes later I met my pilot/instructor Scott and we got towed into the air in an orange and yellow glider dubbed the Bird of Paradise. After pointing out the major landmarks, including the highest peak on Oahu, Scott turned the controls over to me (sans rudder) and with only minor instruction I spent the next twenty minutes banking and leveling my way along the coast and mountain ridge. Scott complimented me on my smooth maneuvering and even suggested I look into getting my glider license :-)

Yes, Nate, this time I avoided trying to pull an Immelman Turn, after our last experience stuck upside down in the flight simulator in Seattle ;-)

I am definitely glad I chose the glider instead of the helicopter, besides getting to pilot the craft it was incredibly peaceful up there, and you really felt the tangible reality of soaring on a cushion on air. Certainly a recommended experience for anyone looking to have a little additional adventure on their island getaway.

On the long road back to Waikiki now, just lunch and more relaxation on the beach before my Polynesian sunset dinner cruise tonight.

Facebook <-> Blogger

This morning while waiting for YouTube to upload I decided to see if I could improve the confluence of my online presence and hook my blog into Facebook. So now, whenever I write in my blog, Facebook monitors it each hour and posts a corresponding Note in my profile. Isn't technology grand?

Waikiki Starlight Luau

My sister's fiancee's parents said, when I met them the weekend before last, not to miss a luau on my trip to Hawaii... and boy were they right! For a whim choice when I found the flyer in my hotel room, I am truly glad I took the opportunity to experience the Hilton Hawaiian's Waikiki Starlight Luau, in fact it may be my favorite experience in Hawaii yet!

All the participants met at a designated spot in the resort, where they were greeted by a Polynesian dancer and escorted up to the convention center rooftop plaza. While awaiting the traditional Polynesian buffet to be ready for our grazing, we were encouraged to wander around and explore the various booths where native woodcarving, hula implement demonstrations, and sundry other craft-work were being displayed. Then, our enigmatic host took the stage and gave us all a quick lesson in hula dancing and divided us into "villages" from which a chief was picked to compete in a humorous conch shell blowing competition. Soon after, the buffet lines were opened for our dining pleasure. Three styles of Polynesian cooking were at hand, and although I can't remember all their names I do remember the most important: kalua, which uses an underground oven to cook very tender meat, usually a pig. I can attest to its excellent flavor and texture.

After we feasted to our palate's content, the real fun began, embodied in a tour of Polynesian island dances, featuring the very lovely hula girls and their four male counterparts. I must take a moment to speak my heart about the one they called Ilikeani, who is unequivocally the most beautiful wahine I've ever had the fortune to witness, perhaps even the most beautiful woman anywhere. I am certain I am not the first man to believe he needs to move to Hawaii, in hopes of meeting such a woman some day :-)

At one point in the evening I even found myself whisked onto the stage by one of these entrancing women to participate in a brief tonga dance lesson and competition. Yes, somewhere out there I am sure there is a photo or home video footage of me shaking my hips in Polynesian style ;-)

The most impressive dance came at the end of the luau, when four Samoan fire knife dancers came onto stage. I managed to capture most of the exciting exhibition of whirling flames and tribal music with my camera's video recorder, just before the battery gave the day's last gasp. I hope it turns out OK, it is definitely amazing; however, nothing will ever beat experiencing the fire knife dance live and in person.

Today has been a long day, nearly 16 hours, so my eyelids are drooping and I feel certain I will sleep well tonight. Tomorrow I wrap up the planned events of my trip with a morning aerial glider tour of the island, and an evening Polynesian dinner cruise. Perhaps there will be another fire dancing exhibition!

Bus Tour of Punchbowl Crater and Honolulu

The remainder of the tour took us through the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Punchbowl Crater, where we saw Ernie Pyle's grave marker among others of special significance (though all buried there are significant). Then we made our way through the city of Honolulu, where we were presented with buildings of historic and civic significance: the Governor's house, the Capitol building, and Iolani Palace built by the last king of Hawaii. Along the way we also passed a statue of King Kamehameha I who united the Hawaiian islands under one ruler (himself). Although only a driving tour without any opportunities to stop and get out for pictures, the history and tales regaled by our driver made up for it. I do want to go and explore that palace sometime though!

Leaving Ford Island, Pearl Harbor

Although still being an active military base makes Pearl Harbor less conducive to free roaming, I definitely want to return on my next trip to Hawaii and take in some of the additional history my brief sojourn today didn't allow for. In particular I wish I had had the opportunity to explore the USS Misouri, the last "battleship" as far as we know manufactured by any nation's Navy. So farewell for now, Pearl Harbor, but I hope to return.

Pacific Aviation Museum

Taking a ride over the Pearl Harbor bridge, upon which our bus driver cautioned that camera use is strictly verboten, the singular me stepped off the bus at the Pacific Aviation Museum. I was invited to sit and wait for the introductory film inside a large theater, and would have been the only audience member except for a French couple who entered at the last moment. After the film, mostly a rehash of what I saw at the USS Arizona memorial only without as much authenticism. Afterward I met my tour guide Fred, who led me on a personable history lesson through the exhibits, including a huge floor map of the Pacific region upon which he narrated key battle points. We parted ways amicably at the end of the tour and I went back through to read a few of the descriptions in greater depth and take some more photos.

Now I am eating a quick lunch at the museum diner before I meet the tour bus again.

USS Arizona Memorial

Upon arriving at the Visitor Center, I had an opportunity before my scheduled film and water shuttle to explore the small memorial museum and gift shop. At 8:30 my group was ushered into the theater, where we watched a short film on the Battle of Pearl Harbor that featured 20 minutes of authentic historical footage taken before, during, and after the attack. It certainly served to instill a somber respect for the impending launch over to the USS Arizona, sunken watery tomb for thousands of brave and unsuspecting sailors... the Arizona was struck with an armor-piercing bomb which ignited the ammunition magazine, ripping the ship apart in a thunderous explosion and swiftly sinking the vessel with nearly all hands. According to our tour guide, the Arizona continued to burn underwater for nearly two and a half days, cremating many of those fallen, and so burning the remainder that not even dental records could identify them. Truly tragic.

At the memorial itself, a pristine white structure arches over the sunken remains of the battleship, and oil leaking from the wreckage still slicks the surface of the water above. Very little of the structure breaches the surface, though you can just make out the vessel submerged through the murky water.

Next on my tour is the Pacific Aviation Museum across the harbor bridge; as our driver is very conscientious to continually remember, I am the only member on the bus headed on this branch. Everyone else is headed to the USS Missouri.

Pearl Harbor Tour Bus

Garfield, our driver (and despite the name is actually a native Hawaiian) regaled us with local and personal history both, on our drive to Pearl Harbor. As he tells it, his father at 8 years old followed the low-flying Zeros that passed over his house, and for four hours witnessed the attacks on Pearl Harbor and the other two military bases that were targeted. He also explained the reason for his name, that for 100 years up to 1967, due to missionary influence it was against the law for Hawaiians to give their children native names due to their difficulty.

A very entertaining and interesting man.

Cool Car Sighting

We just passed an orange Lotus Elise parked in one of the hotel lots. Sweet!

Tuesday in Oahu

Early morning today, on my way to Pearl Harbor. The tour bus driver informs me I'm special! ;-) In that, I'm the only one taking the Pacific Aviation Museum / USS Arizona tour... everyone else is on a different sort of tour. Perhaps that means I will get to roam at my own pace :-)

Bali By The Sea

A tad on the expensive side, but you only live once. The courteous and engaging service, presentation of items, and impressive panoramic view of the dying sun as it cast a deep purple hue over the ocean were definitely worth the splurge.

I opted for the Sunset Dinner Special, a three-course meal featuring an excellent creamy Maui Onion soup as the starter, choice of Thai-reminiscent chicken or fish entree, and culminating in a molded chocolate truffle dessert presented over a bed of dry ice... certainly an attention-getter as it steamed its way over to my table!

Pauhanani, the hostess, also complimented my fern-patterned Aloha shirt... that makes twice today, I'm glad I spied it in the shop :-)

Evening At The Beach

Finally back at my hotel after opting into the free Maui Divers Jewelry factory sales pitc... err, tour, after my submarine ride (part of what I skipped this morning in fact). Unlike an unfortunate couple on the shuttle bus fretting to get back to their hotel before 4:30 to take their next tour, I have nothing more on the agenda today... except beach time and swimming in the Pacific :-) Dinner at sunset then sleep, as I have quite an early morning tomorrow for the Pearl Harbor tour.

Atlantis Submarine Tour

Now I can say I have been 100 feet underwater in the world's largest passenger submarine ;-) The tour guide was very good, and although it seemed I was perpetually on the wrong side of the sub for maximum viewing potential, it was a very cool dive.

Waikiki Beach Walk

Taking the local Expedia expert's advice from yesterday I skipped the free welcome breakfast and orientation, having already an activity agenda defined. After exploring the half of the resort I missed yesterday, instead I took a barefoot sojourn down Waikiki Beach all morning. Parts of it were a bit pebbly, but there really is nothing like soft sand beneath your feet and foamy surf rushing through your toes to wash the cares away. I did a little beachcombing along the way, and although this beach seems fair devoid of shells I did spy an interesting bit of flotsam in the waves: a little arrowhead-shaped rock with a tuft of green moss atop it, like a carefree crop of hair. After salvaging the naturally-occurring troll-doll artifact (perhaps a menehune of local legend?) and snapping a few macro photos of the cheeky surfer dude, I let him continue on his way in the great ocean. One day maybe we'll meet again, on this beach or another.


My wandering took me all the way to a neighbouring pier down the beach, where I climbed to the very end along the volcanic rock outcropping to get a more immersive oceanic perspective. In the infinity of the watery horizon, sailboats and parasails made their way, and white waves rolled lazily beside. I washed my feet free of sand in the surf caressing the rocky pier before slipping my sandals back on and strolling back to the hotel.


Now for some lunch before I take a submarine tour of a reef!

Monday Morning in Waikiki

Penguins, flamingos, and macaws oh my!

Sunday in Oahu

After getting all my activity reservations in order, except the Waikiki Starlight Luau which I have to get tickets for while the desk is open tomorrow, I have thoroughly wandered the resort taking my usual complement of touristy photos. The Hilton Hawaiian Village is indeed that, self-enclosed with shops and restaurants and its own private access to Waikiki Beach (which I quickly found, seeking sight and sound of the ocean like a drowning man seeks the surface of the same). It is very peaceful here, the bustle just enough to reflect good cheer and the sands stretching along infinity are not crowded at all. Surfers dotted the distance, either paddling in the waves or running along a rocky pier extending out into the bay. Although, it was the beginning of the evening and that could be a factor in the population, we shall see how it looks tomorrow. I have picked up a pair of board shorts and a traditional Hawaiian shirt; anxious to try the beach bum outfit out :-)


The live band's island music beckoned me toward the Tropics Bar and Grill as I explored dinner options, but I needed more substantial fare... all I have had to eat today was a sandwich and chips bought on the plane! I am surprised I'm still standing, with the lack of food and the extra five hours in today (it is almost midnight in my usual timezone). I expect I shall crash soon, but first I have settled on fueling myself at Hatsuhana, a Japanese restaurant in the Rainbow Bazaar, where the Hawaiian glazed pork (with fresh pineapple juice and slices) is truly a treat.

Aloha!

Landing safe and sound, if a bit stiff from the lo-o-ong flight, I am now on the island of Oahu and in transit to the resort, after meeting the Diamond Head Vacations greeter and getting my lei of fresh strung orchids right off the plane :-)


Aside from the hotter weather (90 degrees today, just right) and tropical plants, so far the strongest first impression I have of this little Pacific paradise is its scent: floral mixed with the faint tang of volcanic ash. The clouds loom low over the mountainous island terrain as well, giving it a blanket of white and gray atop the verdant green of the land.


I look forward to exploring :-)

Hawaii Bound!

I find it supremely funny that my gateway to a tropical island should be the starkly opposite environ of Denver, Colorado, but it should serve to reinforce the contrasting escapism of this trip even more. Soon I shall be 5 hours off Central Time and enjoying it immensely :-) A few days ago the weather forecast for Honolulu showed a good chance of rain each day, which would have put a slight damper on beach time, but this morning the Weather Channel shows mostly clear and sunny skies all week, hooray!

Just gotta get that 9.5 hour flight out of the way... it will be the longest flight for me probably even including my return from England when I was very young... which I scarcely remember anyways.

More later, from the island of Oahu!

30

Today I became 30, and it was good. Thank you to all my friends who helped make it so :-)

Washington DC 2009 Photo Collection

All photos and video from our week in the District of Columbia have now been uploaded:

2009 Washington DC Trip, Day Seven

View photos from this day

Tonight will be our last night in our nation's capitol, punctuated after the conference by "Night at the Newseum," a social event for all attendees held at the new Smithsonian museum dedicated to the public media. We began with an open buffet in three themes for dinner, that had something to offer for everyone, especially desserts. Afterward our group began to wander the exhibits, beginning with the largest sections of the Berlin Wall on exhibit, and moving on to the FBI exhibit. We also discovered that the sixth floor terrace offered a view that was simply breathtaking, with Philadelphia Avenue stretched out in unfettered view to either direction, and the Capitol Building at one end illuminated in brilliant contrast to the dusky sky. After taking many pictures, we wandered on, to the 9/11 exhibit with its twisted girder centerpiece and expansive wall of front page paper clippings from the day of the attack. Quite a somber counterpoint to the lively music and dancing just a floor below.

After having our fill of the memorabilia and memorium, as well as the party noise, we now await our two other companions' return at the hotel for a nightcap before bed. Our flight leaves around noon tomorrow, and I shall truly regret bidding the District of Columbia a fond adieu...

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Pictures Taken: 218

2009 Washington DC Trip, Days Five and Six

View photos from day five

Yesterday began the JAM conference that was ostensibly the main reason for our being in DC, and we spent the morning switching hotels to the Gaylord National Convention Center in National Harbor. The rest of the afternoon was occupied with the keynote and a couple of sessions, until around 5:30 that evening. I have to say that I really enjoyed the keynote speaker, who discussed the impact of the Internet and especially the advent of social networking on the political landscape in the past decade... very smart and funny, despite being interrupted by an aborted hotel fire alarm and microphone problems.

Almost immediately after being released from the conference, we went out in search of adventure again, bringing with us another friend who was also attending the conference. The goal for the night was the Vietnam Memorial, which we reached by way of a long bus ride to the Southern Street metro station and a long walk up the Mall from the Smithsonian station. The Washington Monument, seemingly ever-present in our field of view no matter where we are in DC, once again became a magnet for our camera lenses along the way. It was about 7:30 in the evening by the time we arrived at the expansive obsidian wall marking the memorial of soldiers killed or missing in action from the Vietnam War, and the sun was low enough in the horizon to give everything the barest hint of golden aura... quite a sight. Countless names lay engraved upon every inch of the surface of the wall, smooth as glass and so reflective as to defy our cameras from capturing it in substance. After perusing the wall in reverence to its significance, we stopped by a statue of three Vietnam soldiers, and discovered an artifact of reality in these oft-surreal environs: someone had left at some time in the past a medal and ribbon pinned to dog tags dangling from the statue's machine gun. In the next statue, a red rose had been cupped in the open hand of the statuary, adding a touch of human emotion to the monument. These little touches of post-concept reality from the visitors, more than just the images and words depicted in marble and metal, evoke a sense of the connection between past and present for me.

Later that evening we ate a truly excellent dinner at the place recommended earlier to us, Clyde's, but in Chinatown. I chose the blackened swordfish, which I had never tasted before, and it was quite excellent especially with the lime butter sauce. Our senses and stomachs sated once again, we made our way back to the metro stop from which we would board a bus back to the hotel. That is, we would have boarded the bus if the last bus hadn't come and gone long before our 11PM arrival at the station... uh oh! After debating for a bit whether we wanted to walk back or try to get somewhat closer via another bus, our fatigue won out and we opted for a taxi ride back to the hotel. A very late night!

View photos from day six

Today, after sleeping in to recover from the previous night's escapade and getting through more of the conference sessions, our original trio of travelers paired up with two other friends from another school to go and visit the last of our monumental goals: the Jefferson Memorial. We did a bit better this time, making it back from our jaunt in time for the last bus to National Harbor. The memorial itself, in typical fashion for DC, was a marvel of Neoclassical architecture and immenseness... it is quite an experience, standing beneath the cavernous dome and looking up at the great man looming in the center, dwarfing you in both sense of accomplishment and sense of scale. After getting back to National Harbor, we perused the restaurants for a late dinner selection, settling on the Public House after noticing that our first choice for bar and grill was apparently under annex by the local police... presumably a bar fight. I had the grilled sirloin, which came with roasted new potatoes that were very tasty. The steak was done just right as well. However, we spent about 30 minutes getting the bill straightened out, to adhere to our employers' rules for accounting of travel expenditure...

Another late night, and time for bed. Tomorrow will be our last day at the conference, with a special event at the Smithsonian Newseum afterward. Should be fun!

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Pictures Taken: 203 and 1 video

Fallout 3 Locations Found: Jefferson Memorial

Fallout 3 Items Found: None

2009 Washington DC Trip, Day Four

View photos from this day

Each day we spend in DC seems to be even more enjoyable than the last!

It was a bit drizzly today, but that didn't dampen our spirits as we headed out from the hotel this morning, intent on reaching the first goal of the day: the National Air and Space Museum. The cooler weather was n fact a welcome change from the stifling heat of the previous weekend. Once again the metro provided easy passage for us, and I can't think how I will return to Kansas City without the ability to drop down below the city and pop back up again a few minutes later almost exactly where I want to be. Truly, DC has a model of public transportation efficiency that should be the guide for other cities around the nation... except, perhaps, the perpetually frozen escalators ;-)

The Air and Space Museum, which had featured heavily in the movie we'd seen just last night, proved to be just as fascinating as the other three Smithsonian museums we had toured prior. Aircraft of every kind lined the floors, walls, and ceilings... my favorite sections being the World War I and World War II exhibits; those were truly intrepid days of flight, although the future-looking "Orient Express" aerospace place exhibit was very cool as well. Much of this museum reminded me of the Boeing museum that I and a two friends had toured out in Seattle a couple of years ago... more immense, perhaps, but without the SR-71 Blackbird on display. Not that there weren't plenty of other equally awesome sights to be seen, like SpaceShip One, or the Apollo II command module, or the Lunar Lander... and that's just in the foyer! I actually took so many pictures in this museum that I ran through both camera batteries I had with me, and had to conserve for later sights and switch to my phone cameras for casual pictures. Yes, I am definitely a shutterbug.

After soaking in all the aerodynamic forms of past and present that we could handle, and grabbing a quick lunch in the museum food court (McDonalds, and halfway decent at that) before heading toward the Capitol Building. Along the way we popped briefly into the new National Museum of American Indians, which is a very architecturally stylish building, and saw a fine selection of canoes from various native cultures. Upon approaching the Capitol Building, we spotted the great glass arboretum of the National Botanical Gardens, and even though we hadn't planned on visiting it, since it was on the way we gave it a thorough tour as well. The jungle room featured a high overhead walkway, quite awesome to explore, and we found a number of odd-shaped flora I personally never knew existed... cacti that appeared literally to be a large mass of cat tails, a tree that seemed composed of a million tiny little leaves all clustered in rows, and Gina found a flowering plant within called "Regina Red" which brought much hilarity with its similarity to her own name.

After having our fill of the gardens, we made our way over to the Capitol Reflecting Pool and marveled at the monument to Grant located at its edge, before heading straight toward the Capitol Building itself. We were able to get right up to the steps, which were barricaded, but the front courtyard and its magnificent view of the grand columned structure was close enough. The architecture of this building was simply amazing up-close, and at last, the three of us could truly say we had visited our nation's capitol.

Next on our list of sights to see was the National Archives, which we approached after getting directions from a nice Capitol policeman, and wound up at the rear of the building. Along the way though, we encountered the United States Court House, a statue of Meade, the Canadian embassy, and the Federal Trade Commission. Doing our own walking tour was proving to be quite advantageous in uncovering areas we hadn't planned on! Once we finally got to the front of the National Archives, we discovered a line stretching from the entrance to the sidewalk, but we'd made it this far, and settled in to wait for our turn at the interior.

A half hour later, it was most definitely worth it! The National Archives has far fewer exhibits than any of the other Smithsonian buildings we'd seen, but the authenticity and grandeur of the exhibits more than accounted for making this one of the most amazing locations to visit in DC. The culmination of our tour of the Archives was the Rotunda, a huge mural-flanked dome beneath which lay those great documents of our American history, in authentic historic repose: the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. I have never been much of an American history buff or even felt a great sense of patriotism most times, but standing a mere foot away from the ink and parchment embodying the resolute words of men from such a time long ago, carried a great gravity to itself and left me in awe of where I was and what I was seeing. Truly, the National Archives was the penultimate experience at the Smithsonian.

Feeling quite accomplished in our sightseeing already, we raced off to the last of the day's planned locations: the Iwo Jima Memorial. I had been told by my friend David Chesher that while in DC, if possible, I should see the US Marine Corps Silent Drill Platoon. I had checked earlier online and found something hinting that they held a regular drill in front of the Iwo Jima Memorial every Tuesday at 7PM, thus we were hoping to get there in time to see it. On our way, we passed by the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building, and through the Navy Memorial; two more locations we had seen but had not expected to find!

We took the metro from L'Enfante Plaza down past Arlington Cemetery and the Pentagon to the Rosslyn Station, where Gina got jilted by a bus driver who either didn't see and hear her banging on the door or didn't care. We finally got someone's attention to ask for the quickest route to the memorial, and after some garbled directions, finally spotted signs that led us toward our goal. We walked all four or five blocks from the station, getting to the memorial park just before 7PM... unfortunately, after checking online again to verify what I'd read earlier, I was disappointed to learn that the platoon was in France this week. France? On Memorial Day weekend? Oh well. The monument itself was quite a sight, one of the largest bronze statues we'd seen on our trip yet, and I felt quite satisfied in the day's activities.

I am sure Brad wished we'd taken it a bit slower on our hike to Iwo Jima however, and I have to thank him for being such a trooper as I go haring off to look at this or that interesting thing ;-) Which I did again shortly after, spying a large towering structure not far from the monument, and while Brad rested Gina and I hiked just a bit further and discovered the Netherlands Carillon tower, commemorating the liberation of the Netherlands during World War II. The hill where it stood also had a particularly nice view of the National Mall in the distance, blurred by mist, and we could see all the area between the Washington Monument and the Museum of Natural History.

Our cameras and energy spent, we hiked back to the metro station and headed to DuPont Circle for dinner and a return to the hotel. Tomorrow is the start of the conference for Brad and I, and we are switching hotels so need to be up a bit earlier to gather everything together and drag our luggage through the metro again. We finished up the day with a very excellent meal of sushi at a restaurant near DuPont Circle called Thai Chef, whose Volcano Rolls are exquisite.

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Pictures Taken: 745 and 1 video
Fallout 3 Locations Found: Capitol Building, National Archives
Fallout 3 Items Found: Transmitter Dish, Declaration of Independence, Constitution, Bill of Rights, Emancipation Proclamation

2009 Washington DC Trip, Day Three

Monday, May 25th 2009 (Memorial Day)

View photos from this day

Ah, back at the hotel at last... this is turning out to be one workout of a vacation!

This morning we rose a bit early, cursed having to take cold showers due to a maintenance problem in the hotel, and took the metro down to Arlington National Cemetery where we planned to spend most of the day. We had heard that President Obama was going to be participating in a wreath-laying ceremony and giving a speech at the ampi-theater afterward, although not precisely at what time. When we got to the cemetery entrance, though, we were told all seating at the ampi-theater was now unavailable and foot traffic was blocked off for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier until 1PM. It still worked out though, because we arrived pretty much just in time to be standing right at the edge of the road for the Presidential motorcade bearing Barack Obama into the cemetery grounds! I definitely made sure to get that on video.

Video of Presidential Motorcade

After the crowd dispersed somewhat, we made our way into the visitor center, which was of some interest in itself but mainly to pick up a map and plan our walking route through the memorials. We then walked as far as we could toward the Tomb, to see if maybe we could spot the President at the ceremony from a distance. No such luck. We did find a color guard bearing flags for all 50 states, from every branch of military service, preparing to march at one of the intersections. We waited around for about half an hour but they never did do anything but look sharp and shiny for the cameras, so we eventually wandered over to John F. Kennedy's tomb. Quite a somber sight, although the respectful silence was broken on occasion... not by the crowd of visitors so much as the guard who kept yelling at the visitors to keep quiet (even though there was barely a whisper heard among them anyways).

After reflecting upon the Kennedy monument, we went back toward where the color guard had been standing, to find they had finally got their marching order... and we'd missed it. Ah-well. The road took us toward Arlington House, where we climbed a flight of stairs and found the massively pillared mansion as well as some very good vantage points of the cemetery grounds and the city off in the distance. The museum out behind the kitchen garden area, kind of hidden away, was interesting too. We declined to tour the interior of the main house though, as the line looked quite long, and we were anxious to see if the path to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier had been opened yet.

Walking that direction, we came across one of the wreaths set by the President himself, at a monument for the Unknown Civil War Dead. This path also led us to the Old Ampi-theater, a grand structure, and a plinth where we surmised many a Presidential statesman had stood and spoken in times past. Eventually, at last, we reached the Main Ampi-theater, just in time to witness the ceremonial changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It occurs every half hour in the summer, and lasted about ten minutes, all the incredible precision and formality of which I captured on video. Truly a unique and inspiring experience.

Video of Honor Guard at the Tomb

Video of the Changing of the Guard

There were a few more spots I wanted to scout out along the way around the west side of the cemetery, such as the Rough Riders and Battle of the Bulge memorials, so we headed out to hike around McPherson Drive... and what a hike it turned out to be. Before we got too far along we encountered the mast and anchor of the USS Maine, and explored that site a bit as well as the Challenger and Columbia memorials, before making our way around to the very western edge of the cemetery and the immense bronze-statued Confederate Monument. By the end of it had I dragged poor foot-sore Brad and Gina all the way out to the Argonne Cross. Hey, we were here and not likely to return any time soon, so we had to make the most of it! It was starting to sprinkle by then, though, so I spared them from continuing all the way around the grounds to the Columbarium in the east. We made our way down Grant Drive back toward the main entrance, and wound up walking all the way down Porter Drive and through the center of the cemetery, when it began raining in earnest. Wet and tired, we slogged our way back to the visitor center and passed out for a bit on the huge stone benches before hitting the metro again.

Our next destination, being so near anyways, was the Pentagon. There actually wasn't much here to see, since we hadn't gotten into a tour, just the massive building looming over us as we exited the metro station. We backed off toward the road in order to grab a few quick photos of whatever seemed interesting, and headed back into the metro to get a late lunch. Our destination was Chinatown, which was immediately impressive as soon as we exited the metro escalators. A huge Oriental gate greeted us to our left, and several selections of Chinese, Japanese, and Mongolian restaurants enticed us down the road to the right. All of the signs were also in dual languages throughout this area of the city; certainly what I expected a place called Chinatown to feel like. After discovering that free refills on drinks seemed to be unheard of in most restaurants in DC, we settled our choice on Chinatown Garden. It was a good choice.

After lunch we metro'd over to the Smithsonian again to kill some time before our movie started, winding up in the Freer Gallery of Art right next to the Smithsonian Castle. We lost ourselves amongst the varieties of Islamic, Japanese, Buddhist, and Egyptian art and artifacts until we were shooed out of the museum at the 5:30 closing time. From there we went over to the Museum of Natural History where our IMAX show was going to be in a few hours, and shared a table with a nice couple from Maryland while we indulged in some refreshments. We got into the IMAX theater waiting area 30 minutes before the start, and were just getting comfortable when some fool decided to line up in front of the doorway, prompting everyone else in the room with herd mentality to do the same. We felt obliged to secure our place in the throng as well, but after walking all over half of Arlington Cemetery and through the metro and streets of DC, that was the most excruciatingly long 30 minutes of standing and waiting I have experienced in some time-- hot, tired, sweaty, foot-sore, and pressed up against a dozen more people all probably feeling the same way. We were eventually herded into the theater (not unlike cattle) and grabbed some rather nicely-distanced seats. The movie, Night At The Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, was very entertaining... especially seen at the Smithsonian itself, on a massive 66-foot IMAX screen!

Pretty well spent from all the walking we'd done today and the two days before, we made our way back to DuPont Circle, idly considering something light to eat before bed since our late lunch had sated us fairly well. We ended up getting some burgers to go from a pretty neat little 40's style diner near our hotel, called Johnny Rockets, which claimed to be "the original hamburger." I am not sure if this is an accurate claim or just advertising, but in my sunburnt achy state of existence right now, it is the best damn hamburger I ever tasted...

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Pictures Taken: 157 and 3 videos
Fallout 3 Locations Found: Arlington Cemetery, Arlington House, Pentagon (The Citadel)
Fallout 3 Items Found: None

2009 Washington DC Trip, Day Two

View photos from this day

Today was a very full day!

After sleeping in a bit, our trio of travelers met in the hotel lobby to begin the day's adventures. We stopped for a quick breakfast in the Subway we chanced upon along the street, as we were walking toward the subway. We took the metro to Farragut North, which gave us a good starting point to walk past the White House on our way to the Lincoln Memorial. On our hike toward the White House we passed by the entrance to the Chamber of Commerce, and encountered the bronze monuments of Lafayette Square, getting some good composition shots of the Jefferson statue with the White House and Washington Monument in the background. We were able to get right up to the fence at the front of the White House, and took a few photos of its face before continuing our journey around the Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building and toward "The Ellipse." We were captivated by the ornate architecture in this area of DC... Gina alone must have taken at least ten shots of the Executive Building before she was satisfied! Along our way down 17th Street we spotted the FDIC Building, a pair of bronze lions guarding the entrance to the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and eye-catching red and white floral beds framing the American Red Cross building. Unfortunately the First Division Memorial located just across from the Gallery of Art was closed to the public, but I was able to snap a photo of the gleaming gold statue atop its spire from street level, in good contrast to the blue sky above. Crossing over into The Ellipse, we spied a golden flaming sword, and headed that way to check it out, discovering the Second Division Memorial of World War I. Quite a lot of sights for such a short trip so far!

Our goal still the Lincoln Memorial, we made our way down Constitution Avenue toward the Constitution Gardens, where we discovered a wooden bridge crossing over to a neat little island monument dedicated to the 56 signers of the Declaration of Independence. An array of granite blocks, bearing the signatures of each men engraved in gold, stood in a half circle facing the large pond in the center of the garden. We got a few photos of the signatures we most recognized, including good old Button Gwinnett, before moving on. Skipping past the Federal Reserve Bank and around the Vietnam Memorial, we finally spotted the immense pillars of our morning goal, the Lincoln Memorial! I definitely will make it a point to return to visit the Vietnam Memorial, however.

The Lincoln Memorial is... well, huge, in the awe-inspiring magnitude that steals away your breath. Just walking up the steps toward the great man sitting in his chair in the shadowed depths of the monument, gives you a shiver. The artists who sculpted Lincoln's face did such an excellent job of conveying both gravity and gentleness. After saying our hellos to that giant among men and exploring the interior a bit, Brad and Gina and I made our way around to the rear of the monument to sit on the cool marble ledges and dangle our feet. As we did so, we watched a motorcycle rally pass by in front of the immense golden pegasus statues across the road, and I took the opportunity to stretch out and let the heat-absorbing mass of stone soak some of the aches out of my body. We had hiked quite a bit already, and the day was just beginning. Soon enough we were on our way again, into the little visitor center beneath the memorial, and down to the edge of the vast reflecting pool that stretches between the Lincoln and Washington edifices, where a veteran's benefits concert was ramping up. Our first non-photographic souvenir of the trip came from the free handouts of Humana Veterans Benefits biker head-wraps...

Our next intriguing tourist stop as we walked down this side of the Mall, was the World War II Memorial... twin fountains flanked by stone gazebos dedicated to the Atlantic and Pacific arenas, respectively. The cool breeze coming from the fountains as we crossed along the outside of the memorial was very refreshing, and finding the Missouri entry along the outer wall, we stopped to get our picture taken next to it. I also spied a somewhat hidden engraving of "Kilroy Was Here." After absorbing the atmosphere of the monument for a while, and waiting around for the milling crowds to give me a clear shot of the wall of stars along the interior, we made our way toward what was quickly becoming the most awesome sight in our field of view... to say that the Washington Monument towers above all else, is understating it a bit! From the World War II memorial, it was a straight shot across the lawn toward the great stonework spike, which became more and more massively awesome the nearer we got. At last, we were at its base, and under the full effect of its dizzying height... I lay on my back in order to get a good angle for my camera, and meanwhile Gina got a good angle of my ridiculous position with her own camera.

Our morning tour of the monuments at the western end of the National Mall carried us directly back to the Smithsonian area, and we decided today to take in the National Museum of American History. First, though, we refueled with a quick bite to eat from the refreshment stand, although most of Gina's sandwich went to feeding the sparrows and pigeons that dotted the walkway. Just before entering the museum, Brad spied a Ben and Jerry's ice cream cart, and came back with a Cherry Garcia cone to enjoy while we made our tour. There is entirely too much interesting detail to delve into when writing about the experiences in any one of these Smithsonian museums, but I would have to say of all the exhibits in the American History Museum, my favorite was the top-floor collection of military history artifacts covering every era of war the United States has been involved in, and the naval history exhibit on the floor below. Sad to say, we did not find Lincoln's Repeater rifle among the artifacts, but we did come across a diorama of a fallout shelter looking much like something out of a Vault-Tec brochure! It even had the tinned canister of mac and cheese. Later, we spotted an incongruously placed Fallout Shelter placard, that made me wonder...

Exiting the museum around 5PM, we could feel our bodies telling us the day's exertions were becoming too much, but we still made time to check out the Smithsonian Castle we had spotted yesterday. It turned out to be a good decision, particularly the Commons Room, which highlighted a neat selection of artifacts while being quite an awesome architectural sight in its own right. After making our way through the interior of this historical building, we meandered through the small gardens out back (which I discovered was actually a rooftop garden for the underground museum below), eventually encountering a grand old circus merry-go-round beyond the rose garden. Muscles and camera batteries both spent, at this point all we could think about was dinner. We hopped the metro back to DuPont Circle, to eat at a sandwich shop Brad had spotted near our hotel, called Potbelly Sandwich Works. The place was full of character, and the food full of flavor. Next we stopped in a little ice cream parlor next door, situated just below street level, called Larry's, which also featured cupcakes. I had two scoops of the Key West Chocolate, which was quite good.

After dinner we stopped off at the hotel to drop off souvenirs and download the pictures we'd taken, with the thought that we would see a showing of "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" at 9PM in the Smithsonian IMAX. What better place? After racing our way back over to the Mall, finding the front entrance closed and hurrying around to the Constitution Street entrance, piling into the elevator to the first floor, and rushing up to the ticket counter... we discovered the show had been sold out! Oh well, we still bought tickets for tomorrow night, and then wearily made our way through the metro tunnels back to the hotel to call it a night. Our wait for the bus to the last stop before our hotel became interminable, and in our weary state Gina and I had a very detailed conversation about which cars were "innies" after an Audi passed by. Yes, we were that tired, it was that funny.

Tomorrow's plans include the Arlington Cemetery where we hope to watch President Obama delivering a Memorial Day speech, but most certainly I want to witness the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and perhaps a quick trip down to the Pentagon. Who knows what else we will fit in before our 7PM show-time...

Good night, and Happy Memorial Day!

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Pictures Taken: 587
Fallout 3 Locations Found: Executive Office Building, Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, Museum of American History
Fallout 3 Items Found: Firehose Nozzle, Button Gwinnett, Gettysburg Address, "Blamco" Mac and Cheese

2009 Washington DC Trip, Day One

(Actually Saturday May 23rd, 2009)

View photos from this day

5:30AM... I woke up with a start at the sound of the alarm, fatigued at the early hour but with that innate excited energy of a traveler about to embark for places unseen. Our flight was scheduled to depart at 7:35AM, to give us plenty of time in the afternoon for some sight-seeing, and although I cursed the insane hour at the time, by tonight I feel it paid off.

After landing in Reagan International and collecting our bags, my friends and I headed straight for the metro station to find our hotel. We got off to a bumpy start with our plan to capitalize upon public transportation, this trip, as the ticketing kiosks were nearly all out of order and we were short on cash (yes, yes, a rookie travel mistake, but our brains were not fully on even after a bit of rest on the flight). It turned out well though, since as I was feeding my fiver into one of the only functional kiosks for a ticket out of there, Brad had disappeared on a quest of his own, returning shortly with enough fare for the rest of our intrepid party to make our way into the city. Gina, meanwhile, had been dumped with our baggage in a corner of the station, wondering no doubt whether we guys would ever figure this ticket thing out.

A couple of quick hops between metro lines later, we finally arrived a DuPont Circle, the nearest stop to our hotel... the metro was looking marvelously efficient! Getting up to street level, however, seemed to be more difficult. The escalator to the street was inoperable, and carrying our luggage up the lo-o-ng tunnel and many stair-steps under our own power wasn't a pleasant prospect. Thankfully, just a few minutes after pondering our fate and mustering the fortitude to start the climb, the attendant got the central unit operational again and we were thankfully borne upward mechanically. This, however, was not to be the last of our encounters with the perpetually frozen metro escalators in DC... just, no longer would we be lugging around all the extra weight!

Scrounging together exact change somehow, we grabbed a bus to our hotel and dumped our baggage in the rooms, and I at least took the opportunity to cool down a bit and flop on the bed for a short rest before we started our sight-seeing for the evening. By then it was after 1PM, and my stomach was telling me the granola bar I had on the plane wasn't going to cut it for much longer. Our trio met up again and tramped down to the street, taking the recommendation of a fellow bus passenger to look for food down 18th Street, near our hotel. We didn't find any of the places she'd named, but wound up in a little hole-in-the-wall quasi-Mediterranean deli called either El Khartoum or Pizzeria Trattoria (possibly both). I ordered a slice of pepperoni pizza that proved to be about the size of a small kite, flopping out over the edges of the plate, and no less than three bottles of water since it was a pretty warm day to be walking around everywhere and hydration was becoming paramount. Brad finished off nearly an entire 2-liter of Diet Coke himself, in the short time we ate there! The pizza was excellent especially for the price, and my friends similarly complimented the cheese-steak subs they had ordered. Dining choice #1, approved.

Our first order of tourist business became a trip to the Smithsonian to visit one of the many museums we had planned to see on our itinerary. Once again, the metro got us where we wanted to be in short order, and we exited out into "The Mall," a great strip of open area connecting all of the central hot-spots of the District of Columbia between the Washington Monument and the Capitol Building. After taking in the exhilarating views of both ends to our right and left from our vantage point in the middle, we crossed over to the Museum of Natural History and began the first of what should be many enjoyable Smithsonian excursions. We actually managed to make our way through every room in the 5 hours we spent there, seeing everything from intricately assembled prehistoric fossil skeletons to cross-sections of the layers of soil from each of the United States to infinitely fascinating geological artifacts. To sum up the experience, I don't think any one area of the natural world was excluded and all were awesomely collected together. My Canon's battery gave up the ghost with one room remaining though! An extreme disappointment until I remembered the iPhone at my hip had a camera as well, albeit a far inferior one. After the last of the rooms, which was devoted to precious gems included a view of the famous Hope Diamond, my feet were quite sore but my mind was quite pleased.

Exiting the museum, we crossed back over the Mall to a castle-like structure Gina had spied as we had made our way across earlier, which proved indeed to be the Smithsonian Institute Castle, and I think the original building of the complex. It was quite architecturally engaging, and I managed a few more photos before we headed off to find Georgetown and a place to eat dinner. The Castle and its environs would have to wait until tomorrow... We took the metro to Foggy Bottom Station, which an attendant had informed us would bring us to Georgetown, and I placed a quick call to another good friend who had recommended this borough for our Saturday evening experience. Unfortunately the two locations for good food that he recommended were a bit out of our walking radius rom the Foggy Bottom metro station (especially after our legging it through the Natural History Museum pretty much non-stop), so we put a pin in those ideas for later on in the week and took a quick survey of closer opportunities. We wound up in a very good Thai restaurant not far away from the Fairfax Hotel, called Thai Kitchen. Once again Brad and I were in desperate need of liquid refreshment, and drank three full glasses of beverage each before they even got the order for our food placed (the curry I had was excellent, by the way). Gina informed us it was 86 degrees today, but that the rest of the week would be cooler. Thank God! I don't mind walking around especially in a new city with lots of urban flavor to offer, and using the metro transportation only enhances the Washington DC experience in my mind, but I definitely think we will need to invest in more hydration opportunities tomorrow or wind up getting sick.

All in all, our first day in the nation's capitol has been an awesome and fun experience. I look forward to tomorrow and the rest of the week!

Poor Gina, though, as she has to put up with Brad and I making this trip into a scavenger hunt for locations we recognize from playing Fallout 3 ;-)

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Pictures Taken: 423
Fallout 3 Locations Found: L'Enfant Plaza, Metro Center, DuPont Circle, The National Mall, Museum of Natural History (Underworld), Foggy Bottom Station, Georgetown
Fallout 3 Items Found: Metro Ticket

Photo Selection

One of my photos of the Okahoma City National Monument got selected for inclusion in an online city guide! Check it out...