PTA VI Day 8: Friday August 1, 2014: Newseum, Washington Monument and Final Monument Viewing, before heading home...

Well, this is it!  Cierzan's last day in DC.  This was clearly Guy's "Workation."  (If you have seen the movie RV with Robin Williams, you should be able to appreciate the experience as much as we have.  This is one of our families favorite movies!)   To those of you that haven't figured it out yet, Guy travels to Washington DC a lot for work.  This was our vacation week for our family, however, Guy still had a lot on his plate, after months of coaching a championship baseball team and running very busy accounts at work.  Sleep is something we hope he can catch up on this fall.  

We decided to save one of the best for last, the Newseum!  Seriously, ALL of us LOVED this one.  The catch is, it is one of the few museum's that have a fee to get in.  However, it is certainly worth it! Honestly, I would consider it a must see.  Here are some of our highlights:

Portion of the actual Berlin Wall--view from the east

View of the Berlin Wall from the west

Leah standing next to one of Grandma's favorite Comics!  

Communication Tower from one of the Twin Towers

They had a rather stunning exhibit telling the story of 9/11 and how the stories were shared around the world.  As you can see in the picture, they have some actual artifacts, the stories shared will certainly leave you touched, and there are few people that are able to step away from this area with dry eyes.  Even Leah, someone who wasn't even born at the time this happened, she doesn't even realize how much has changed in our world since 9/11, was clearly touched.  They had an electronic book where people could record their thoughts, memories, wishes, etc..., to be permanently recorded.  I looked over and this is what I saw...

"Love and Hope to New York.  Leah Cierzan, Minneapolis, MN"

 Wow!  Is all I could think...then I took the picture.  She's certain to be someone important someday, she clearly gets the tragedy.  Proud Momma!

Noah was able to test out the desk and camera.  Clearly he is a natural and certain to be in this line of business somewhere sometime! 

Does the set look familiar?  Can you say..."Anchorman"

Guy got up really early today, and waited in a SUPER long line and scored us tickets to get to the top of the Washington Monument.  The last time we were here, the monument was closed as it had suffered some structural damage after the Earthquake.  It was all fixed and ready to go now.  We really enjoyed getting to experience this!

View of Washington Monument from the ground.

Noah and Leah looking out from the top-"Awesome!"

Looking out toward the Lincoln Memorial and WWII Memorial

Thanks, Dad!  The wait was worth it!

As we should have expected our flight was 2+ hours delayed, so we decided to take in a few additional sights nearby. The WWII Memorial was our next stop.

We found our way to the Vietnam Memorial next, it was becoming increasingly more challenging to explain to the kids why we were involved in all of these wars.

The Lincoln Memorial was next, we even were able to see where Martin Luther King, gave his famous speech, "I have a Dream."  It was actually kind of chilling to stand in the same spot, which is marked in the marble, look out and imagine seeing what Dr. King saw and think about what he was saying.  Wow!

This is near the top of the stairs to the Lincoln Memorial, note the inscription in the stone. 

FREEDOM IS NOT FREE...Finally, we were able to see the Korean War Memorial.  Leah was especially interested in this memorial, as it is believed that the memorial shows the men positioned in such a way, that they could view everyone and everything in 360 degrees. 

The last stop was the Albert Einstein Memorial, it is one of the few statutes in Washington, where people are encouraged to climb on it.  In fact, it is believed if you rub his nose it will bring you good luck.  The kids were not going to miss this opportunity!

Noah and Leah rubbing the nose for good luck!

Well that is all folks!  We did it, three states, two ball parks, too many historical sites to count and so many memories to share. 

Thanks DAD!

Souvenir Tally:
Guy: 2
Penny:3
Noah: 5
Leah: 18

PTA VI Day 7: Thursday July 31, 2014: Mount Vernon and Nationals Game...

We had decided to experience everything DC has to offer in terms of public transportation today.  We headed out and jumped on the Metro to get as close as we could to Mount Vernon.  George Washington's home was a destination all of us were looking forward to experiencing.  Then we were able to catch a bus that brought us right to the Visitor's Center.  However, it wasn't as quick as we had hoped.  We were a little late for our Mansion Tour, and had missed our National Treasure Tour, which Noah's friend Jack Knapp had HIGHLY recommended.  However, Guy being the fixer that he has come to be known as, was able to switch our tours around, so that we didn't miss a thing.  The only unfortunate part was that we should have planned to spend an entire day at Mount Vernon, as there is so much to see and experience.  We'll know better for next time.  However, we did enjoy our visit.  George Washington, was certainly a very generous man, with a big heart and it is easy to understand how he became the first President!  Did you know, his two favorite activities were:  1.  Fox Hunting and 2.  Dancing.

Grand view of the Mansion at Mount Vernon

George Washington was right, he said there was not a better place for one to live.  It had it all!  The back side of the mansion had stunning views of the river, and ample space to view what was going on around him.

Guy, Noah and Leah standing on the porch looking out from the back side of the Mansion.

Noah, Leah and I were able to hang around and check out more of the grounds.  He really had a village on his land.  In addition, the Museum and movies were very authentic in telling the story of how George Washington became one of the most admired leaders of our country.

Finally, as some of you may not know, we are fans of National Treasure the fictional movie that investigates many mysteries about US History.  Specifically, National Treasure: Book of Secrets had significant scenes filmed on site.  We can't tell you everything...but does this look like the door to the secret tunnel?

Did you know...It was really George Washington's Ice House?

This is also an estate that is still working as it did when George was alive.  This is evidenced by the fact that the farm animals are still around, the gardens, etc....  It is also, the home to the final resting place of George and Martha Washington and many members of their family.  George had apparently requested to be buried at Mount Vernon.

George Washington's Final Resting Place

We made it back to our hotel easily after getting back to the Metro.  Leah thinks she is the master of the DC Metro system now.  In fact, she told Noah and I, if she got lost, she would just take the red to the green, get off at Dupont Circle and walk two blocks to the left to our hotel.  I smirked, because she was right on!  So, we let her lead the the way back to the hotel.

Guy had one final treat in order for Noah, a trip to the National's ballpark, to see them play the Phillies.  If you haven't figured it out yet, our PTA's trips typically include a major league ballpark, this trip was no exception, except, we lucked out and visited two!  However, Guy still had work until after dinner.  So, he met us at the ballpark.  It was a great game, however, the Phillies dominated the game.  The ballpark was a special treat for all of us.

Noah taking the archival shot of him at yet another national ballpark!

Kids enjoying the game!

It was quite amazing how many former Twins players we were able to see at both games we went to during this trip.  Noah can summarize the list of players, but it is safe to say there were 8+ former Twins Favorites.

Remember him?  ...Ben Revere

After the game, Leah led us back to the Metro on our journey back to our hotel.  Again, she was right on.

Souvenir Tally:
Guy:  1
Penny: 3
Noah: 4
Leah: 14

PTA VI Day 6: Wednesday, July 30, 2014: Dupont Circle, Bike Ride, White House, American History Museum...

Leah was fairly disappointed that there wasn't a pool where we were staying, so Dad stayed up late, researched it and found us a new hotel convenient for all of us AND had a pool!  So, we got up, packed our bags and headed to Dupont Circle to stay at The Palomar Hotel.  It was a really nice boutique hotel in a more residential neighborhood, right in Dupont Circle AND it had a pool!  We thought we should grab a bite to eat before we all went on our way.  There was a great restaurant up the block, Le Pain.  It would certainly be a favorite of mine to meet for coffee if I lived in the DC area!  However, I knew it was trouble when Guy ordered his "coffee", "Diet Coke, Please."  To which they replied, "I'm sorry, we don't serve any soda."  The good news, the food and jams were delicious, however, the oatmeal didn't hold a candle to Zumbros in Minneapolis.

After breakfast, we headed back to the hotel.  They also had bikes for us to borrow, so Dad headed off to work and we borrowed some bikes and headed out to check out the sites.

Leah especially enjoyed biking in the street, with all of the traffic.  She did GREAT!  Noah felt right at home, something he loves to do-BIKE!  We biked over to The White House, seems so weird to be able to bike to the front of the gates of The White House, you can't drive in front anymore, but biking, galking and protesting is allowed!  However, the law enforcement presence is significant, you certainly can tell how things have changed since 9/11.  We decided to bike down to the American History Museum.  We had been there before, but the exhibits change from time to time.  The famous Ruby Slippers were back, while Kermit was taking a break and Miss Piggy had stepped in to show off her historical markings.  Another cool highlight, was the Star Spangled Banner.  It is an amazing flag that was recently restored, with the help of Ralph Lauren.  They hope that the restoration process and it's new dimly lit home will help it last another 100 years.

A pair of Dorthy's famous Ruby Slippers from The Wizard of Oz

Yes, this is Miss Piggy!

Gloves signed by Ali!

We then headed back to our hotel, we decided to bike down past the back side of The White House, again, it was a stunning view, that included the famous new garden that Ms. Obama introduced to the property when she moved in.  We WERE able to take a picture of the garden.

White House Kitchen Garden

Back side of The White House

Leah was determined to get back to the hotel in time to swim a bit before dinner.  We were successful in making that happen!  The hotel also had a FREE happy hour for its guest in their lobby from 5-6 p.m., which I figured would be a great opportunity to grab a glass of wine and sit by the pool.  So after visiting the pool, I decided to head down to grab a glass of wine (in my swimsuit, with a cover up on of course).  Ugh...imagine my shock when I entered the lobby to find 60+ professionals, dressed nicely, lingering around with their plate of olives and sipping their vino!  Ugh...suddenly, I totally felt like Randy Quaid in National Lampoons Vacation.  However, like Randy, I totally acted like it was no big deal and approached the bar and picked up a glass of wine.  Certain, to not do that again!

Souvenir Tally:
Guy:  1
Penny: 2
Noah: 3
Leah: 10

PTA VI Day 5: Tuesday, July 29, 2014: Madame Tussauds, The Ford Theatre, Baltimore...

Today, again was a busy one.  We decided to head out to take in some DC sights, while Guy was working.  We did something, we have never considered before--a tour of Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.  It is rather amazing how real some of the figures look, while others...didn't really make the grade.  You decide...

Noah and Bruce Springsteen?

A lot of political leaders.  Here are some of our favorites...

Noah and Abe Lincoln in the Ford Theatre

Noah and Leah with the President and First Lady

Leah's personal favorite...Katy Perry!

After visiting the Museum, we decided to take a quick tour of the Ford Theatre.  This is something, Leah really wanted to do, and something we had never done before.  I didn't realize that they actually did tours for FREE in the theatre.  It is so amazing to hear the history of the theatre and how President Lincoln was shot.  We were even able to take pictures in the theatre. 

This is where President Lincoln was sitting when he was shot.

As you can see the stage is very grand, beautiful and still used today.

After our tour of the city, we were able to catch a train, via Amtrak to Baltimore, Maryland, so we can knock yet another state and ballpark off of our family adventures list.

Heading to Baltimore...

Dad as always, knows the best way to make it to the train station with seconds to spare.  Lets just say, we ran into Union Station and arrived at our Train, 30 seconds before it was going to depart--Wow!  Then 30 minutes later, we arrived at one of the Great American Train Stations, Pennsylvania Station, in Baltimore Maryland.

We jumped into a cab and headed toward the harbor, as Harbor Place, Camden Fields, etc...were on our list.  We were reminded by the cab driver to stay close to the harbor as "the city isn't really safe."  Clearly the show The Wire, was telling the real story of Baltimore and the story that we didn't care to experience. We headed over to Little Italy for a quick bite, Noah had located a place online that had received rave reviews:  Isabella's Brick Oven.  We all liked it a lot!  Four thumbs up, but all agreed, Pizzeria Lola in Minneapolis has the best!  We then headed back to Harbor Place while Dad did some work, it wasn't as I remembered, a pretty rough crowd and apparently a lot of turn over of businesses.  While Leah begged to go through Ripley's Believe It or Not, I couldn't bring myself to do it.  The Wax museum was enough for one day.
 
We decided to stay close to the harbor as recommended by our cab driver.  We had tickets to the Oriole's game, so we headed toward Camden Field, and visited the Babe Ruth Birthplace and Museum.  It was a really neat historical area, where we could walk all around.  I think everyone enjoyed the visit.

Dad, Noah and Leah outside of Historic Camden Field

Camden Field before the game...

Noah and Leah on the steps of Babe Ruth's Birthplace

Yes, this is a signed Babe Ruth Baseball-Leah wasn't able to buy it for Noah!

We were able to watch the Oriole's play the Angels, it was a great game, full of some of our favorite former Twins, i.e., Denard Span!

We had to leave before the end unfortunately, as our train would be leaving Baltimore and head backto DC without us.  It ended up going into extra innings with the Oriole's winning with a walk off homerun.  Noah did stay tuned during the train ride home, we all enjoyed our trip to Baltimore, but decided we likely wouldn't be back for a while.  Tired and weary we headed back to our hotel to catch some zzz's to see what day 6 would bring.

Souvenir Tally:
Guy:  1 (He finally bought a hat!)
Penny:  0
Noah: 3  (He always buys a hat from the fields he visits.)
Leah:10