2 January : We had plenty of time to get to Penn station about a 10 minute walk and then breakfast there, before boarding the train which was very busy and a bit of a challenge to find somewhere to put the bags but in the end we sat across the aisle from each other until Philadelphia where we could sit together. About a 3 and a half hour trip, lovely blue skies so could enjoy the views. We ended up walking to the hotel which was a reasonable distance but very flat and gave us a sense of where we were, walked through Chinatown on the way. Staying at the Sofitel which is very nice, much bigger room than NY and very much quieter, NY is sirens and noise all night.
Not much more to report as we just ate in the hotel including a free cocktail - I had a Nancy Reagan (Strawberry vodka, dry Curacao, Blood orange Puree, Lime juice), inspired by Nancy’s signature Reagan Red, and Dad had a Manhattan.
3 January : Discovered there was a free yoga class downstairs at 6.30 today so was up for that - the only participant. After breakfast we walked past the White House and National Christmas Tree (not very exciting compared to the ones in NY, partly because sun so bright) towards the Washington monument, down to the Lincoln Memorial which we revisited as it is so impressive, and then across the Potomac River to Arlington National Cemetery (ANC) which is set on 639 acres.
The Arlington Estate was established by George Washington's adopted grandson, George Washington Parke Custis, as a living memorial to George Washington as the first president. Custis's daughter, Mary, married U.S. Army 1st Lieutenant Robert E. Lee in 1831 and they lived at Arlington house which is on the hill in the ANC and which we visited.
At the start of the civil war Lee decided he could not continue to serve with the US Army and resigned to join the Confederates resulting in the family needing to abandon the property. The U.S. Army eventually seized Arlington Estate and in May 1864, the first military burial was conducted, and it became a national cemetery on June 15, 1864. It was segregated by race and rank until 1948, when President Harry S. Truman desegregated the military.
We visited the tomb of the unknown soldier which was an interment of an unknown from World War I, also visited the grave of President JFK who is buried there along with family members.
Today, approximately 400,000 veterans and their eligible dependents are buried at ANC with service members from every one of America’s major wars, from the revolutionary war to todays conflicts being interred at ANC.
We had visited a WWI cemetery near Arras when we were in France in 2018 and found it very moving - particularly reflecting on the ages of the soldiers who died. The ANC had a different feel and there was less connection, possibly because it covers such a long period across different wars. However, the sheer size and formal/grand nature of it provides a different view. It is also still active, there were funerals happening while we were there. Well worth the visit.
Brief stop for lunch then we walked up to the Washington monument via the Korean war memorial - the numbers killed in that war were also mind blowing. Then our first visit to one of the Smithsonian museums - American History Museum - only managed one floor so far but it is free so we may go back.
Ice Hockey match tonight.
