Welcome to Washington D.C.

The next day we had to wake up nearly in the middle of the night (6.30am), so that we could grab some breakfast and check out the amazing Kimpton, to get to the train station of Charlottesville. We took the AMTRAK to the Capital of the United States: Washington D.C.
The train ride was very enjoyable, but longer than I expected. It took us nearly 2,5hrs, the train wasn't very fast. It was old, though, so maybe that had something to do with it. When we arrived at Union Station in DC, we were kinda disappointed at first, as it looked like a normal station, not interesting at all. But then we got to the entrance hall and that was beautifully designed. It looked old but very fancy. We hopped onto our bus and drove straight to our next destination: Unlimited Biking. As the name suggests, we got some bikes there and went on a tour around all the different Memorials and Monuments DC has to offer. And there are loads. I haven't had lots of expectations, but I definitely haven't thought that DC was so big and green and accessible by bike and foot. The National Mall was yet again not a shopping center but a huge kind of park along Pennsylvania Street, that started at the Capitol and went on up to the Abraham Lincoln Memorial. These buildings were all so impressive! And you can see them all for free as well. DC was a planned city, which used land from Maryland and Virginia to be created. It was basically only marsh land before the founding fathers decided to dry it completely. They started to build the Washington Monument in 1848 without any funding and thought that the money would come, once people realized how cool of a project it is. However, that didn't work out, so that they had to stop...and for 26 years the unfinished obelisk was an eyesore. When money was eventually raised, the slaves in DC finished the project in 1884, and was for five years the tallest building in the world. Then came the Eiffeltower of course, but the Monument remained a very impressive structure and until now the tallest building in the world that is only built with bricks. It's hollow inside with stairs and an elevator to get up to a visitors platform. The first elevator took 11 minutes to get up to 555 feet, can you imagine? It's enough time to have three panic attacks and two calm downs. Until 1976, people could use the 896 steps up, however they closed it down since, as they were sick of rescuing people half way up. We saw the Vietnam War Memorial which was the first War Memorial in DC. The founding fathers originally wrote down that they didn't want to ever have any war memorials in DC, as they feared that this could somehow seem as if they'd glorify war. After the Vietnam War though, hundreds of veterans petitioned to get a memorial for their lost comrades and finally got one. The one they've built has actually lots of architectural meaning behind it. It's dug into the Earth, so to show the deep wound the war has left. They also have engraved all the lost soldier's names chronologically and clockwise, so that they meet back in the middle, back to back which symbolizes that they all come back together in the end. Thousands of people have since left gifts for their loved ones and as the National Park Service (who manages the memorial) thought that these things can't be thrown away or stolen, so that they started to collect them. After all those years, millions of little things came together and space tight. So now they have to decide what to keep and what to throw away. They wanted to show them to the public by building a museum next to the memorial, however funding is still not enough. After they built the Vietnam War Memorial, other War Memorials followed, like e.g. the World War II Memorial from 2004. It has a huge pillar for every state that was part of the US plus Hawaii and Alaska. In the middle of the ring of pillars, a big spring was created. The architect of the memorial actually wanted people to be able to jump into it, as it is a kind of ritual to do that after war to show community and hope. However, it's only allowed to sit on the rim and put your feet inside nowadays. Still a good way to cool off during a hot day like today. We didn't have time for that, though, as we were on a strict schedule (as usual on FAMs). Our next stop was the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial which looked across a lake right to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Our last stop on the National Mall was the Abraham Lincoln Memorial which is really impressive. The assassinated president really is huge. The building itself is created after the Pantheon in Athen, as Lincoln was a huge democrat and Athen the birthplace of democracy. In front of the building are the world famous words "I have a dream" by MLK Jr. engraved at the exact place where he stood all these years prior and held this speech. He was looking at 250.000 people at the National Mall. That's a quarter million. I can't even talk straight to one other person sometimes.
Our last stop was the White House, home to all presidents of the United States but Washington. We couldn't get close to it, though, because it was in use that day. Kamala Harris and some other politicians worked there to discuss the budget of the US. We even saw how one of the helicopters escorted Kamala to the meeting, driving through the streets. It is so weird to know that such an important person is in the same city as you, and even kind of in reach. I'm really crossing all my fingers and toes that Kamala is voted president in November. Otherwise, it will be a difficult 4 more years not only for the states but for the whole world. I don't want to know what happens, when two tyrants like Putin and Trump are in power at the same time.
Giving our bikes back at the pickup station and saying our goodbyes to David our guide, we finally drove to our last hotel. The Yotel was opposite of the Hyatt, only a ten minute walk away from the Capitol and 40 minutes from the wharf. It was super modern, with mood lights and a very weird but somehow cool bed that you could roll in and out like in the hospital (but cooler).Okumaya devam et