The original plan was to fly standby to Boston early in the morning and come back that evening. However, flights filled up and we had to go with Plan B – Washington, D.C. I took two daughters and one of their friends with me on this trip.
We got up early and landed at Reagan Airport around 7 a.m. We just had one backpack between the four of us, so we headed straight to the airport’s metro station and went to Pentagon City (2 stops away) to find breakfast. We found Origin’s Coffee and enjoyed some gourmet breakfast sandwiches, pancakes and coffee.
After that, we got back on the metro to go one stop to Arlington Cemetery. It was a very hot day, so we took the trolley and it was worth paying for it. It’s a hop on and off and the first stop was at the JFK Jr. eternal flame gravesite. Jackie and their two infant children who died are buried by him. The next stop was the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We saw the changing of the guard on the side where you can see the guard being inspected. The last stop was at Arlington House. It’s the site of the gazebo where Decoration Day (precursor to Memorial Day) first started. It’s also General Lee’s old family home. There’s a great view of the Pentagon from that location. The trolley guides did a great job of pointing out significant tombs along the way as we were riding from stop to stop.
From Arlington Cemetery, we went to go find lunch. Our aim was Gordon Ramsay Burgers. We found the restaurant that said Ramsay Street Pizza and were slightly confused as another glass pane said Ramsay Street Burgers. Inside, we found out that the pizza restaurant is on the main floor and the burger restaurant is in the basement. You have to tell the hostess what restaurant you want. We choose burgers. There’s free pool, arcade games and a photo booth in the burger restaurant. It was a delicious meal!
We then went to Ford’s Theater, which is free, but you do need to get a timed ticket. First you walk through a museum, which has a lot of interesting items, and then you enter Ford’s Theater. It’s still a working theater but no one enters the booth where Lincoln was shot.
We then wandered nearby to look at stores and get gelato. I also stopped in an old Catholic Church that we walked by – “erected about 1792.” Then headed to the airport to catch the late afternoon flight home. We were tired at that point from the heat. There was a later flight if we wanted, but we had filled our day.
If you’ve seen all the monuments and just have a day in D.C., Arlington Cemetery and Ford’s Theater are good places to visit.
