WASHINGTON, D.C. • THE U.S. CAPITAL • MAY 2022

White House Backside
Washington Monument
African American Museum
National Monument

It’s a great mistake for presidents and other leading executivces of organizations having branches throughout the country to chain themselves to their desks at headquarters and send out rigid instructions to those in charge of distant branches and offices. Because a man sits in a palatial office in New York or Chicago or Philadelphia or Detroit and draws a big salary, it does not necessary follow that he knows better than the man on the spot what ought to be done…Paul, Caesar, and Napoleon did not merely sit at home and issue long-range instruction. – B.C.Forbes –

"Đây là một sai lầm lớn cho Chủ tịch các Quốc gia và các nhà lãnh đạo của các tổ chức có chi nhánh trên toàn quốc những ai thích ngồi tại bàn giấy ở các trụ sở chính và chỉ đạo việc thực hiện kế hoạch được đặt ra cho các nhà lãnh đạo ở xa. Bởi vì một người lãnh đạo ngồi trong một văn phòng nguy nga ở New York hoặc Chicago hoặc Philadelphia hoặc Detroit với một mức lương lớn, không nhất thiết là ông ta biết tường tận những gì cần phải làm rõ hơn những người nhân viên ở tại chỗ… Paul, Caesar và Napoléon đả không ngồi tại văn phòng để chỉ huy." – B.C.Forbes –

The Lockkeeper's House
Andrew Jackson Statue
General Andrew Jackson
Arlington Memorial Bridge

You can tour the National Mall on Foot, Bike, or Segway. We visited the Capital in the last week of April and the weather was nothing like Texas. It was below 74F during the day and 40F at night. It was sunny and perfect for walking and we walked 5-6 miles per day for a whole week.

Washington, DC. It is one of the most visited cities in the U.S. Over 68 square miles made up the District of Columbia is known for its stunning architecture, museums, monuments, and memorials. Washington, D.C. is the capital city and is the home of the American federal government and a hub of international power. The District of Columbia is the federal district of the United State and is home to 20 colleges and universities. The city was named after George Washington, a Founding Father and the first president of the United States, and the federal district is named after Columbia, a female personification of the United States. It's a world-class city whose every brick, every stone is steeped in culture, history, and politics. It's been invented and reinvented, over and over again, to meet the needs of a changing community and a changing nation. The History of Washington, DC.

Army General John Pershing
Art of War Sculpture
Black History Museum
Taiwanese Bubble Tea in D.C.

Pierre Charles L’Enfant, (born August 2, 1754, Paris, France — died June 14, 1825, Prince George's County, Maryland, U.S.), French engineer and architect, and urban designer who designed the basic plan for Washington D.C., the capital city of the United States. National Mall is one of the city's most recognized landmarks with about 24 million people visiting it every year. It's a 146-acre green space stretching east to west between Constitution and Independence Ave, from Capital Hill to the Potomac River. It demonstrates how L’Enfant envisioned the promise of America.

Thomas Lincoln Casey Sr. (1831 — 1896). The 556-foot obelisk monument was the design of Lt. Thomas L. Casey. It took 40 years to complete the Washington Monument. Today, you can see the point where construction halted for 2 decades. The Washington Monument officially was dedicated on February 21, 1885. The bottom part of the monument is a lighter color than the top.

View from Lincoln Memorial
Corcoran Gallery of Art
D.C. Street Vendor
Eleanor Roosevelt Statue

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Vietnamese Cuisine & Specialties
Le Bledo Eatery – Sandwiches
Caphe Banh Mi in Old Town
Alexandria Red Lobster

‹•› Enjoy local favorite-home cooking in a family-friendly atmosphere. If you are visiting Washington D.C., these are the places locals eat you should check out. They serve the best inexpensive lunch and dinner that locals love. Most of them are within a short drive distance next to Washington D.C. Center.

• Eden Center on 6751-6799 Wilson Blvd, Falls Church, VA 22044. The largest Vietnamese commercial center on the East Coast, and the largest Asian-themed mall on the east coast of North America. It's the place to go if you're looking for real, Vietnamese bánh mi, phở, mì, hủ tiếu, cơm sườn, bánh xèo, gỏi cuốn, hot pot, Korean BBQ, and Boba milk tea.

• Le Bledo Eatery (703) 866-8911 on 6416 Brandon Ave Springfield, VA 22150 is a Vietnamese Banh-Mi Sandwiches, Soups and Snacks. Excellent Pho, Bun Bo Hue (Spicy Beef and Pork), Bun Rieu/Bun Oc (Crab and Pork bone or Snail Meatballs), Mi Quang (Shrimp and Pork), Bo Kho (Beef Stew) and Bun Mang Vit (Duck and Bamboo). Everything is done in-house with fresh French baguettes are baked daily.

• Caphe Banh Mi (703) 549-0800 407 Cameron St, Alexandria, VA 22314 is the Classic Vietnamese lunch that serves pho noodle soups and banh mi sandwiches while you are in Old Town. It's a small locally owned family-run business with great efficient employees. Service was friendly and it didn't take long to receive our order.

• Red Lobster 271 (703) 370-9422 on 555 S. Van Dorn Street Alexandria, VA 22304 is a great place to enjoy the best seafood in town. Great menu with delicious lobster, shrimp, and crab. Ordered a Lobster Lover's Dream and a Seafarer's Feast. Dinner for 2 was less than $100 including tips. Not all Red Lobster service was great and the food was delicious like this place. We had a wonderful meal and experience here.

The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum and research complex, with nineteen museums with over 137 million objects, and nine research centers across the globe. It was founded in 1846, and in 1845, its headquarters, otherwise known as the Smithsonian Castle, became the first building on the Mall. President Millard Fillmore hired renowned New York landscape architect Andrew Jackson Downing (1815 — 1852) to redesign the mall and the Smithsonian Pleasure Gardens were established, an area of flowering plants, tall trees, evergreens, and winding pathways. The Enid A. Haupt Garden was also built next to the castle. The urn in the center of the garden is a memorial to Downing. The Smithsonian History.

D.C Federal Building
Franklin Cultural Landscape
Franklin Memorial Waterfalls
Franklin Roosevelt Statue

It's less crowded here at night. The Lincoln Memorial was built in 1914 (Lincoln's 105th birthday) to honor the 16th president of the United States, Abraham Lincoln, and was completed in 1922. Henry Bacon (1866 — 1924) from New York designed the monument after the Parthenon of Athens. The high, coffered ceiling and straight lines of simple Doric columns lead the eye toward the 19-foot-tall presidential statue, resting on a 10-foot-tall pedestal, inside. On the walls to the left and right of the statue, are excerpts from two of Lincoln's most memorable speeches: The Gettysburg Address on the south wall, and Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address on the north. Above them are a pair of murals, entitled "Emancipation" and "Unity." Another inscription is just above the statue. It reads: "In this temple, as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the Union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever." The statue itself was designed by sculptor Daniel Chester French (1850 — 1931) from Massachusetts. Lincoln's statue's right hand is open with compassion, the other is clenched in determination. This is a president who has guided his country through a terrible war and paid a great price.

General Andrew Jackson
General Rochambeau Statue
Gold Winged Victory Statue
Holocaust Memorial Museum

Presidential Palace or The White House. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue it's almost a quarter of a million square feet, and about the size of the Roman Colosseum. Andrew Ellicott (1754 — 1820) was the city planner and James Hoban (1758 — 1841) was the designer of the White House. His designs would have three floors and more than 100 rooms and would have the largest residence in the United States. The original White House took about eight years to complete and cost about $230,000. The main structure was brick, with a facade of Virginia sandstone, which was whitewashed to help seal the porous material. And, that's how the White House came to be white. John Adams was the first president to occupy the palace. It was called "The President's Mansion" for 100 years. In August of 1814, British forces landed at the mouth of the Patuxent River in Maryland and they marched on to Washington, DC., they burned the capital to the ground. A copy of Gilbert Stuart's life-size "Lansdowne portrait" of George Washington is the only object from the original White House that is known to have survived the burning. The painting is on the wall of the East room today. To visit the White House U.S. citizens will need to submit a tour request through your member of Congress between 3 weeks and three months in advance of your trip. Tours are first-come, first-serve, and available Tuesday through Saturday mornings. Purse and Backpack are not allowed. Still-photography is allowed, but no video recording.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial
John J Pershing Memorial
Korean Veterans Memorial
Lincoln Memorial

Theodore Roosevelt (1858 — 1919) expands the building (the West Wing) and officially established "The White House" as its name. William Howard Taft (1857 — 1930), expanded the wing and created an oval-shaped office that mimicked the central rooms on the south side of the residence. This was the first Oval Office. The White House, as we know it today, was completed at the end of World War II. If you come to visit the White House, you'll enter the building through the East Wing Lobby. This leads into the Garden Room, including the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden. From the Garden Room, visitors travel along the enclosed East Colonnade. The colonnade leads to the visitor's foyer and from there into the Residence and the East Room (Public Reception Room). Gilbert Stuart's life-size "Lansdowne portrait" of George Washington is found here in this room. From the East Room, visitors enter the Cross Hall. The walls are adorned by presidential portraits, and the hanging glass chandeliers that were added during President Truman's term of office, are antiques made around the year 1775. The last room open to the public is the State Dining Room. It seats up to 140 guests, and a portrait of Lincoln over the fireplace has hung here since 1939. It was painted by George Healy in 1860, from a sitting in 1864. There are four copies of this painting; another one is found in the National Portrait Gallery.

View of Lincoln Memorial
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
National Mall of Washington DC
Washington Monument

Andrew Jackson Statue, Lafayette Park. Andrew Jackson's statue weighs 15 tons and was commissioned in 1847 by Congress to honor Jackson as a General for his commanding of US troops during the Battle of New Orleans in the War of 1812. The statue was erected in 1853 before the Civil War brought an end to slavery. The Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial was constructed between 1938 and 1943. It was designed by Russell Pope (1874 — 1937), who also designed the National Gallery of Art. Unlike others, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial is round, and the statue is bronze, instead of marble. The Declaration of Independence and the Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom in Virginia inscriptions are displayed here.

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) Memorial was designed like a statuary garden in early 1970 by landscape architect Lawrence Halprin (1916 — 2009) and was completed in the 1990s. A winding path through seven and a half acres of statues, fountains, and inscriptions. It's divided into four areas, one for each of Franklin Roosevelt's terms in office, starting with 1933 and the Great Depression, through to 1945, World War II.

The Vietnam War Veterans Memorial is a black granite V-shaped wall inscribed with the names of the approximately 58,000 men and women who were killed or missing in action during the Vietnam War. It was designed by American architect and sculptor Maya Lin (1959). The memorial consists of three separate parts: The Three Soldiers statue, the Vietnam Women’s Memorial, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall, also known as The Wall That Heals, which is the most popular feature.

Vietnam War Memorial Wall
National Red Cross Headquaters
World War II Veteran Memorial
American Expeditionary Forces

WORDS OF ADVICE WHEN TRAVEL TO A BIG CITY

Allegiant Air. If you’re flying, avoid Allegiant Air at all costs. The tickets might look cheap when we booked the trip but we ended up paying an extra $100 more than if we would fly other airlines. To compete with other airlines, Allegiant Air excluded all other fees until we got to the gate. Allegiant Air charged $50 for a carry-on because she has a purse and a backpack with wheels. We were told a backpack with wheels is considered a carry-on. Any things that don’t fit under the seat are a carry-on. A small suitcase that goes in the overhead compartment is a carry-on. Allegiant’s personal item is the one item that you can tuck under your seat. Once it’s in the air Allegiant charged $3 for a soda, and we got a coke. Another problem was Allegiant Air in Austin, TX has its own terminal on the Southside of the airport and there weren’t any instructions or signs of where their departure terminal would be. We got off at the Departure terminal, went inside, and found out that we would have to take a 20 minutes shuttle bus to the South terminal to fly Allegiant Air. We would miss our flight if we didn’t arrive 3 hours early. That’s the end of Allegiant Air for us.

‹•› Enterprise Car Rental & at Dulles International Airport. Currently, there are no toll roads in the District of Columbia. We didn’t need to pay any tolls to use any of the roads or bridges within the District of Columbia. But we weren’t told about it at Enterprise Car Rental and Enterprise Car Rental got the $19 prepaid for the toll roads. It’s another ripoff.

‹•› Location & Parking in DC: Ronald Reagan Building Parking on 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20004. This is the best parking garage in D.C. It’s safe and close to all the museums and monuments for $25 per day. We parked here for 4 days and loved it. Ideally, you'd come to Washington DC for a week. If that isn't possible to do, and you want to hit the ground and run to get a brief view we suggest that you need at least 3 days in Washington DC. There is enough in Washington DC to keep your days busy with attractions, museums, tours, and national parks as well as great food and shopping.

‹•› Holiday Inn National Airport/Crystal City. Most of the big brand name hotels near the National Mall and Museums in D.C will charge $200-$400 a night plus a 30-40 dollars parking fee per day. The hotel parking is either in the basement or across the street which is very inconvenient if you need to use the car throughout the day. The parking floors are very small and the spaces are compact with spiral narrow rams which are not easy to get in and out of at the busiest times. Also, the trapped air is so staunched once you’re inside the hotel. It made us cancel our 1-night stay after we went to the room. The $200 per night room didn’t look like anything on their website. We asked for a King bed and got two Full-size beds. A crook (no name tag) at the Lobby told us there will be a cancellation charge of $187.37 if we don’t take the room. We contacted the bank about the fraud charged and were told a new card will be mailed. It shows on the new card statement so we had to close the account. Please help if anybody knows how to sue this hotel and have it close for good. Never again with Holiday Inn for us. Cheap and friendly hotels in Alexandria along Richmond HWY are where you wanted to spend the night while visiting Washington DC. Most of the hotels are near Old Downtown Alexandria, National Harbor, and Crystal City. The White House, Pentagon, Arlington National Cemetery, Georgetown, Fort Belvoir, and Mt. Vernon are all within 10 miles of Alexandria.

‹•› Museum Foods and Souvenirs. We shared a burger, a classic salad, a slice of cheesecake, and a Monster energy drink at the American History Museum’s cafeteria. We are in D.C. so $47 for all that wasn’t bad. If you must have, the museum’s printed shirts and sweaters are from $25-$50 each. Any other quality souvenirs with United State Seals, Washington, and DC’s printed on them are dirt cheap from street vendors. Drinks and snacks food like hotdogs, bagels, ice-creams, and pretzels are also available for a few dollars along the sides of the street.