Capitol Trip

My Trip Through the Capitol
The sun was just peaking of the horizon as I stepped off of the bus and into the brisk morning air of Washington D.C. My adventure through Washington was one of my most memorable trips; exploring the nation’s capitol, wandering through The National Air and Space Museum, and solemnly viewing Arlington National Cemetery.
The bus ride was long and boring. I spent most of the time listening to music or sleeping. It was my first time out of Texas and I was excited to see Washington. Exploring the Capitol Building was a very neat experience. Even before entering the building, I could see all kinds of security. There were secret service agents walking around, snipers on rooftops, and helicopters circling the city. Inside
I really loved this part of the trip, because I got to see aircrafts and space shuttles up close. I have always been interested in how things work; so getting to take a closer look at them was really cool. I saw apollo 13, toured the inside of a space shuttle, and learned about astronaut food. I even tried dehydrated ice cream! The National Air and Space Museum houses hundreds of planes, space ships, and other exhibits. Unfortunately, I did not get to see everything, but that’s okay because one day I will hopefully go back and see the rest. However, I did get to see some of the earliest aircrafts ever built. I saw the wright brothers 1903 airplane, and the 1900 glider. These were especially cool because they were made completely of wood and canvas. After the crash of the 1900 glider, the wright brothers studied the way birds wings work in order to make the 1903 version succesful. Even before the trip, I knew I wanted to buy some sort of souvenir. In the gift shop of the museum, I found the perfect souvenir, an Albert Einstein bobblehead. He even speaks; “Pi equals
This was the most inspiring part of the trip. There are thousands of graves in the cemetery, and lots of them are unmarked. The first thing I did when I got there was head to the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier to see the changing of the guards. It was amazing to see the amount of respect that the guards have. There is a dark path beaten into the cement from the polish on the guards shoes. This is the only place the guards are allowed to walk. They march in and out at attention, and every step is crisp and uniform. After the changing of the guards, I went to see Robert E. Lee’s house. Robert E. Lee’s house, although a two story house, was much more modest than I would have expected. I knew Robert E. Lee was originally from virginia, so it was no surprise that his was in arlington. However, I was surprised that he stayed so close to the capitol after the civil war. I also saw the marine corps memorial of the battle of iwo jima in WWII, John F. Kennedy’s grave, and the Korean War contemplative bench. Overall, I think the experience gave me a greater sense of pride for my country and our