shadowmeboy

After leaving the Lincoln Memorial, we walked over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. I find this memorial to be one of the most impactful in DC. This picture captures the true size of the entire memorial. The personal mementos get me. As it was getting dark, we jumped in an Uber to get up by the White House quickly. Since we were only in town for the day, we were hitting some highlights for Susan's sake!

They were working on the Memorial when we got there. Unfortunately, it ruins the picture.

When we visited in December, it was just after wreaths were placed at every grave. The Pentagon We headed over to the Kennedy family graves. Looking up at the Tomb of the Unknown After we finished at Arlington, to save daylight, we Ubered over to the Lincoln Memorial. While its not that far, our legs were starting to hurt and it would have taken us far too long.

We headed into the House to look around. These displays were in former slave quarters. Slave Quarters

We then caught the Tram to Arlington House Civil War Tomb of the Unknown Incredible views of Washington from Arlington House

The Guard stepped off his path to address the spectators, who were talking too loudly. People are expected to be quiet and respectful, these people were not and the soldier addressed it. You could hear a pin drop afterwards.

Witnessing the Changing of the Guard Ceremony is something I highly recommend. It is such a great honor for these soldiers to have the responsibility to look after this tomb. Here is the video I shot of the Changing of the Guard.

4th Infantry Memorial We decided to do the Bus tour, so we could expedite between sites and see everything we wanted to see. For more info here is their website: https://www.arlingtontours.com/ Based on when we arrived to Arlington, the timing necessitated us to skip JFK's grave at first and head to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We arrived just before the top of the hour. During the off season months, changing of the guard only occurs at the top of the hour. In the Summer, its done every half hour. Arlington Tram

Crossing the Potomac into Washington! Lincoln Memorial Washington Monument Washington Union Station So we stored two bags and checked the rest to Baltimore. Then we headed to the Metro to go exploring. We grabbed an all day pass! Waiting for the next train Crossing the Potomac on our way out to Arlington National Cemetery.

December 20th, 2023 1 day till embarkation! Starting Location: Just outside Dulles International Airport We finally got ourselves up and going. We had received breakfast vouchers, so we headed down to the restaurant for Breakfast. One of the office doors at the hotel was decorated, we got a good laugh! The messy bed. Time to head out. We had an evening train up to Baltimore, so we were going to head into Washington, check the bags, and then go explore. Susan had never been to The District before. Waiting for the Uber! It was about 38 degrees this day, but sunny! Our Uber!

We grabbed a cab to take us to the hotel near the airport we had booked. That didn't work. That's better. We made it to the Hyatt Regency Dulles. Lobby We were exhausted when we arrived and got to be at around 1 am.

We arrived at Gate B65 at IAD. Its about 9pm PST or Midnight Eastern. We had to catch the train to the main terminal. Someone is tired. Waiting for the bags! They all made it! We choose nonstops with Alaska to limit the chance of lost bags.

You can see the lights of IAD - Washington Dulles International Airport (Just to the left of the GoPro red lights. On final approach! Ready to land! Being Silly! Finally off the airplane!

Back in 2021, we traveled to this area when we were visiting Ohio. My 49th state visited. Great railfanning in the area! I constantly fight the blue accent lighting that Alaska has during night time photography. The bright spots near the top on the left are Detroit, MI and Toledo, OH. The nearest big light patch on the left is Bowling Green, OH. You can see Lake Erie at the top. The big patch of light (top center of picture) right on the shore is Cleveland. Akron is below that to the right. Mansfield, OH is the closest big light blob. Mansfield, OH is home to the Ohio State Reformatory. You are probably asking this question: Matthew, why are you mentioning a prison? Well, the Ohio State Reformatory is a former prison that was the set for the movie The Shawshank Redemption. When we visited Ohio, we toured the prison. Talk about spooky. If you are ever in the area, check it out! . Morgantown, West Virginia Any guesses on the bright lights? Answer will be at the bottom of this post. Getting closer to Washington! Answer: A Federal Prison in West Virginia! I shook my head when I figured out it out!

Spokane, WA if I remember right. I ended up watching A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood for the first half of the flight. It was a bit bumpy so they delayed the meal service for a bit till we got smoother skies. Susan decided to read. Dinner time! Coconut Curry with Chicken for Susan I got the Chicken with fingerling potatoes. Here is a better view! Someone is trying not to smile! Its a little dark out there. We are over eastern Iowa/western Illinois and its cloudy. Thus you can't see the city lights. Susan took this one for me! It was about this time she figured out I was bored. You can just barely make out Chicago through the clouds. We skirted the very bottom of Lake Michigan and then started angling towards Washington DC My Iphone takes better night photos! This is looking down on the area around Elkhart, Indiana.

Wow! What beautiful skies! Here is the video from the takeoff!

The view out the window towards D3! Heading out to the runway! I find it interesting that they have this taxiway labeled as W on the ground, but it does not show Taxiway W on the FAA diagram for SeaTac. Interesting... There goes a CRJ 75 on 16L We reached the end of the taxiway! Time to turn and takeoff! Up and away we go! Angle Lake Kent Valley

This Alaska paint job was designed by an Alaskan Native. I enjoy the unique paint jobs that Alaska has, including the now retired Salmon-three-seven. There is the chariot that will be taking us to Washington! The other Washington! Time to board the plane! Ready to Go!

Finally time to drop the bags! Heading to security! Our plane was departing from Gate D2. We headed to the Alaska Lounge in D Concourse, just right next door. We landed upstairs.

Time to check the bags! Lots of Dogs flying this day! Remember, Alaska Airlines doesn't just fly; They Sleigh!

We typically park at Doug Fox Parking at SeaTac. They have good rates and you can earn points toward free parking. We unloaded the car and headed to the shuttle to the airport. A blurry look at N Concourse as we pass by on our short drive to SeaTac. Doug Fox is the closest to the Airport, so its really convenient! Got to love SeaTac Traffic; Not! It looks like a lot, but one rolling suitcase is just tip bags, tripods, and snorkel gear. Heading up to the Skybridge to head over to the check-in desks. Arrivals level Of course, they are "upgrading" SeaTac again. (rolls eyes)

Christmas/New Years Review is officially underway! Link:

I know; I know 😉 I wanted to give you something to read on your cruise!

It will be nice when I90 is three lanes each way over Snoqualmie Pass. Snowing, but wet roadways! Perfect driving conditions! Still raining off the Mountain We hopped on Interstate 405 at Bellevue to head to the Airport. Seahawks Team headquarters in Renton along I405 We finally made it to the airport parking lot, and parked the car.

There are snow covered Mountains over there. They just were a little blurry. Use your imagination! From Ephrata, we head down WA Highway 283 to George, Washington. Yes, George, Washington. At George, we jumped on westbound Interstate 90 to take us to Seattle. Interstate 90 bridge over the Columbia at Vantage. As you can see from the windsock, it was windy as well as rainy. Here is a better shot (screenshot from the GoPro Video). Yippee! Back to a Rain/Snow mix We made a stretch break before attacking the pass at the rest area.