In Washington - 3

August 28, 2005 (Sunday)
Wyndham City Center
1143 New Hampshire Avenue
Washington DC
11:58 p.m.

I walked for more than nine hours from the hotel to the White House then to the Lincoln Memorial and the whole stretch of The Mall all the way to the Capitol building.

I started at 12 noon and came back to the hotel at 9:30 p.m. I again took a short walk to the Dupont Circle for dinner.

My legs are aching and I feel tired right now. But the experience was worth all the effort. The museums are awesome. I encountered people from all over the world. There were Asians, including Filipinos, Latinos, Americans and Europeans.

The weather was hot and humid. It was like Manila without the pollution.

I spent most of my time inside the various Smithsonian museums – the American history museum and the Museum of Natural History. I have to go back to visit the other attractions like the National Archives and the Library of Congress, which I saw from outside but failed to visit because of lack of time.

It was an overwhelming experience because I did it on my own on foot.

There were a lot of things I wanted to buy – books, music CDs, memorabilia and souvenirs. The cost, however, is prohibitive for my budget. But it was enough for me to see it and dream about coming back for it in the future. At least I will be bringing a lot of stories when I go back to the Philippines.

I have to rest now. Tomorrow will be a long day with all the briefings and the meetings. I look forward to seeing more sights in the coming days.