“Travel has a way of stretching the mind.” -Ralph Crawshaw
On our second day we figured out how to use the Metro and that made it a little easier on our legs. We spent our morning at the International Spy Museum. It's an independent history museum which documents the tradecraft, history and contemporary role of espionage. It houses more than 7,000 artifacts with around 1,000 on public display. The permanent collection traces the complete history of espionage, from the Ancient Greeks and the Roman Empire through present day. We started our visit in the briefing room where we received our undercover mission badge and our cover identity. From there we were given the chance to learn the tricks of the trade in interactive exhibits that test our powers of observation.
Waiting for our ride.
International Spy Museum
That afternoon we relaxed...enjoying the park and our beautiful home. After all the walking we'd done it was nice to play and paint. On the third morning we went to the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. The museum maintains the largest collection of historic air and spacecraft in the world. The National Mall building has hundreds of artifacts on display, including the original Wright 1903 Flyer, The Apollo 11 Command Module and old commercial aircraft.
We had to reserve tickets to enter the museum. These pictures were taken while we waited to go in.
The main hall of the museum.
We ate lunch in the cafeteria at the museum so we could spend more time seeing all the exhibits. Our next stop on this day was the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. This museum opened in 1910. Its green dome and immense size (comparable to 18 football fields) are signatures, as well as the 140 million-plus natural science specimens and cultural artifacts that the museum contains. It's the world's most popular natural history museum and is dedicated to understanding the natural world and our place in it. It includes the Hall of Human Origins, National Fossil Hall and the Ocean Hall. Exhibits such as the Hope Diamond, Egyptian mummies and gemstones are just a few of the things you can see.
It was impossible to get a nice picture of the museum so I borrowed this one from the Internet.
The entry hall of the museum.
Ocean Hall
The Hope Diamond is one of history’s most famous diamonds. This 45.52 carat fancy deep grayish-blue diamond has an incomparable history and an extraordinary combination of physical properties. During its long history, it has intersected with the French monarchy, Kings Louis XIV through XVI, and likely the British monarch King George IV. It has been owned by wealthy merchants and some of the most well-known individuals within the jewelry world, including Pierre Cartier and Harry Winston. The Hope Diamond got its name from one of its first documented owners, Henry Philip Hope, It was donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 1958.
Fun Facts about the National Mall:
- There are 100 unique monuments and memorials on the mall.
- More than 25 million people visit the National Mall each year. That’s more visitors than Yellowstone, Yosemite and Grand Canyon National Parks combined.
- 8 million visitors are brought to and from the National Mall by an estimated 200,000 tour buses each year.
- Every weekday, over 440,000 vehicles travel along or through the National Mall on Constitution and Independence Avenues.
- The National Mall is home to more than 26 miles of pedestrian sidewalks and 8 miles of bike trails.
- 10 tons of grass seed and nearly 3,000 yards of sod and turf are installed and planted on the National Mall annually.
- Over 9,000 trees are located on the National Mall.
- Three to four tons of trash are collected and removed from the National Mall daily.
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