Art and the Twilight Tourmobile

21 July::..
The National Gallery of Art is the one place I had to go when we were in DC. The last time I was at the Gallery, there was a Mary Cassatt exhibit. I fell in love with what is by far one of my favorite pieces of art. It is of a mother and child in bed. The mother is laying down and the child is sitting on the side of the bed with a teacup on the nightstand nearby. I have never fallen in love with a piece as quickly as I did with this one. Unfortunately, the Mary Cassatt exhibit was a traveling exhibit and was long gone when we got there. However, Dustin loved seeing the Van Gough's, especially his self portrait. We love how beautiful the National Gallery of Art building is. It has huge marble columns, wonderful woodwork, and amazing artwork which culminate in an amazing experience

It was SO HOT that we had not seen any of the major landmarks, Monuments, or Memorials, so we got tickets for the Twilight Tourmobile. The Tourmobile is an open air bus that goes to all the major sites in DC and has a tour guide that tells you facts and history about what you are seeing. The Twilight Tour started at 7:00 and went to all of the Monuments and Memorials in the DC area. The tour lasted about three and half hours and was a really neat experience. We learned things that we would not have learned if we would have seen the sights on our own. The tour started and drove by the Capitol, the National Gallery of Art, the Natural History Museum, The Washington Monument and stopped at the Jefferson Memorial. We enjoyed about twenty minutes to walk around the Jefferson, take pictures, and appreciate the beauty of our surroundings. We got back on the bus and headed to the Franklin D. Roosevelt Monument. The Roosevelt Monument has four chambers, each representing a different term in his presidency. Each chamber focuses on something significant that he was known for. The first chamber had sculptures depicting the depression, my favorite of which is a piece depicting five men in a bread line. The second chamber was focused on the civil programs and services President Roosevelt worked to establish. The third chamber depicted his International relations and war, and the fourth was dedicated to his family, and his death. We absolutely loved the Roosevelt Monument and the time and effort that was put into making such a wonderful place for people to visit. We headed back to the bus and went to the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and the Korean War Veterans Memorial. The sun was setting and it seemed to make the Korean War Veterans Memorial come to life. The soldiers really seemed to be on patrol and I felt like I was walking with them keeping my eyes out for the enemy. Our last stop was the World War II Memorial. The sun had set by now and it was a really amazing experience to see the fountains, wreaths, and stars at night. On our way back to Union Station where the tour originated, Dustin and I felt blessed and grateful to have seen such wonderful Monuments and Memorials erected to honor those who have made our nation great.