[vnabhi]

[vnabhi]

[vnabhi]

A walk along the National Mall area from the Capitol to the Franklin Memorial at the other end took nearly 2 hours in the first sunny weekend in DC:

[vnabhi]

Thanks to a suggestion from a Team-bhpian, I added Mount Venron to my list of must-see places. Mount Vernon is the place where George Washington owned a huge house on a large, picturesque estate.

I made inquiries from my colleagues and pals, but none had been to that place, though they were living in the vicinity of DC for several years. So
I googled and found out that it was hardly 18 miles from my residence and there were 2 ways of reaching that place if one could not drive down: on a cruise boat or by local transport. To my chargin, boat cruises operate only from April onwards, so that option was ruled out.

So on a bright Sunday morning, I took the Yellow Line Metro train to a terminus named Huntington and took a connecting bus from there. In all it took me an hour to reach that place. The train journey passes via the Reagan Washington National Airport and through the scenic town of Alexandria in Virginia. The bus journey takes one mostly parallel to the Potomac river and then atop a hilly and forested terrain.

A visit costs $15 and the headset (optional) costs $6 more. One passes through the Ford Motor Company theatre where they screen a 20 minute picture of General Washington's life.

Here are a few pics:

George, Martha and her kids:

















Note: The wall below appears to be made of stone---it is actually made of wood.

[vnabhi]

The tour through the house was mind-blowing---they've manged to keep the original furniture, wall paintings, crockery, utensils used by Washington. Photography is strictly prohibited inside, so sorry, there are no pics.

Here are a few pics of the ranch on which the house is situated:-