So what to do? Google has been my friend in locating tourism web pages, and I quickly realized that I could spend the next five years alone trying to do everything in DC. I decided to narrow it down to a few options and split my choices up over a few days. I was off work today, so I decided to visit the National Archives and Ford's Theatre (I also went to Arlington Cemetery, but since that's technically in Virginia, you'll have to wait for that write up!).
THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES
OK, so I sorta broke my own rule here. I've been to the National Archives before (only once!) and saw the Declaration of Independence and the Magna Carta (which is sadly not on display at the moment for conservation) on a lunch break sometime last year. TODAY I actually went into the exhibit areas. The 'Public Vaults' that pretty much describe the importance of documenting/researching family history. There's also a ton of info about the Presidents and their personal belongings and all sorts of documents. I especially enjoyed the brief film that showed (often humorous) quotes from presidents ranging from FDR to Bill Clinton (There are Obama pieces on display, but I'm assuming the History Channel video loop was made before even President George W.) My favorite quotes were from Harry Truman and (shockingly) Richard Nixon, who looked like he was made out of melting plastic on the screen, but whose words about looking at personal budgets as well as the Federal budget seemed timeless.
The exhibit that caught my eye, however, was called 'What's Cooking Uncle Sam?' which gave a history of the government's role in American health and nutrition. While overall it was neat to see how far we have come from a time when ingredients weren't even listed on canned goods (and you probably didn't want to know what WAS in there anyway) and Americans were encouraged to grow new "exotic" items like turnips in their gardens and farms, I gotta admit I was a bit disappointed. LOVED the history aspect (you'll learn I am a HUGE history nerd) but I think that they missed the mark slightly.
For one, there were no fewer than three large books of US food laws on display- and the angles they were resting at and weird lighting made some of them difficult to read. Besides, if I see an exhibit that is about food history, law books aren't exactly what I'm looking for- even though I understand why they were there. I would have been more interested to see how some of the foods we eat today have changed over the years based on US policies on food and nutrition- or foods that were once 'staples' that today would be laughable or crazy. The last "food pyramid" in the exhibit was from 1992- and I'm both old and young enough to know it's changed at least twice since then, but no mention of that.
I also would have liked to have seen recipe cards. Yes, I'm the nerd that would have tried to make some WWII era "apple" pie or even experimented with the President and First Lady recipes and menus that were on display. However, a strict no photography policy prevented me from even taking a picture of the recipe, and I was far too lazy to walk down the hallway and back to write them down- not when Google (and a White House cookbook sold at my job!) exist, but I'm sure I'm not the only person who would have been interested in them.
Overall it was an OK exhibit. I love learning about the "everyday" histories people take for granted, I just wish it would have gone a little bit further on the pop culture/ culinary aspect of things.
FORD'S THEATRE
For anyone that doesn't know what this place is, it's the place President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. It is still in use as a theater today, and now has a museum, an "official" gift shop, and is a part of the National Parks Service. It's totally free to go to, but you do have to request timed tickets before hand. Today, it sits next to Hard Rock Cafe, and the house Lincoln died in (which is across the street) has also been converted into a museum, but as of August 16, 2011 it was closed to the public for renovations. (For those of you interested, the Mary Surratt House- the place where the conspirators met and plotted- is located not too far away on H Street NW and is a very cheesy and roach-infested Chinese restaurant. Yes, I've eaten there...before I knew about their infestation problem *frown*)
The entire process took about an hour. After entering and getting my ticket scanned, my group was hustled down a narrow staircase that led into the museum, or more accurately, led us past signs and info that I didn't really have time to read because people were being very pushy and we walked past a statue that looked like a really strangely dressed person that we were later told represented how President Lincoln had to sneak into Washington after his election. We then had 25 minutes on our own to walk around and learn about Lincoln's Presidency and political career. There was even a suggested route map, but no one was really following it, so I just tried to fit in where I saw the fewest amount of people until I got through most of it. After the 25 minutes had elapsed, the entry to the theater was opened, and we went up a narrow hallway that documented how both Lincoln and Booth spent their days before the assassination. Again, it would have been nice to read the signs and compare each man's day, but there were very impatient and pushy people behind me. Then we got into the theater, and a Park Ranger came out and told the story of how Lincoln was murdered. And that was it. Just enough info to educate in a short enough time that no one would get bored. I thoroughly enjoyed myself!
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| Presidential Box where Lincoln was shot. |
Up next will be Washington, DC Part II, and don't forget, I've already started on Virginia, and have a lot more travel on my agenda in the next few months. Who knows where I'll end up next!
