8th graders recount a busy, exciting, and sometimes wet week

Lena Friedman and Caroline Zhao
Lena Friedman '15 and Caroline Zhao '15

Despite a close call with a government shutdown, pouring rain, and a blackout at the Lincoln Memorial, the eighth grade persevered and had a great DC Trip 2011.
After a 6:30 a.m. flight on Monday morning, we hit the road and started touring. The highlight of the day was Arlington Cemetery and the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Tuesday was a day of puddles and soggy socks, but also a lot of fun. After visiting several (very wet) memorials, we spent the afternoon in the Capitol Building, the National Archives, and the Library of Congress. We got a tour of the Capitol from a guide who spoke nearly fifty languages and witnessed the House of Representatives in session. Later in the day we made our panda stop at the National Zoo. Whether due to the rain or the news of our imminent arrival, we don’t know – but, regardless of the reason, we had the whole zoo to ourselves.

Early Wednesday morning we met our Tennessee Representative, Jim Cooper, and then headed to the National Cathedral. There, we learned about things like the Space Window, the architecture, and why a church is not a cathedral. We took a quick tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, where U.S. currency is made, and then headed to the Holocaust Museum. Despite a two-hour stop, most of us barely finished with the main exhibit, and many people intend to return if possible. That night we enjoyed our formal dinner at Sequoia where we learned that fancy clothes are not warm clothes. Later that night we toured around the Lincoln Memorial and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, including a bird’s eye view of Washington from the terrace.

On Thursday, after visiting the Vietnam Memorial and taking a picture for Mr. Burton at the Einstein Statue, we were given free rein of the Smithsonian museums. Seven hours and seventy-seven tired but excited 8th graders later, everyone met at the Air and Space Museum. Friday – our last day – was heralded by a very early wake-up call. It was a day on the road: Mt. Vernon, Fort McHenry, and finally the Baltimore Aquarium. There, we received some good news and some bad news. Bad: the dolphin show was canceled. Good: the reason was that one of the dolphins had just given birth.

The last exciting event of the trip happened when the plane stopped mid-takeoff (really!) due to a cargo-door malfunction. Forty minutes later we were finally in the air and on our way home. Though parents reported that we looked like the walking dead getting off the plane, everyone had a great time and brought back enough souvenirs and memories to last a very long time.
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