Janee's Traveltales - Summer 2000

June 16

Bloomington, IN. All packed up and ready for our journey!

Dayton, OH. We arrived at the Dayton Tall Timbers KOA at about 6pm local time. The drive was fine, though there was intermittent construction all along I-70.

We are taking interstates till we get to Washington DC, since we have to be there by Monday. Weather is the big story. Storms followed us the whole way. Right now (7:30pm) we are getting thunderstorms and quite a bit of rain.

On the way here, we were traveling through heavy heavy rain and at one point, to the immediate south of us when we were just east of Indy, I swear I saw a rotating wall cloud. We are both kinda getting used to the idea of being on the road, trying to find the stuff we put away in our cubbies, mulling over the items that we forgot to do or forgot to bring.

The APRS seems to be working well. Michael has it in the little radio that is tethered well up by the dash so that the passenger can see what is going on when it beeps. It sent our beacon out a few times and we got responses back. I hope you can follow us on the map. There is a link to it on OUR ROUTE page.

June 17

Morgantown, WV We started out early today and made it to just east of Columbus OH before lunch. I took a nap while M drove the 2nd shift. Just after lunch, the flat corn and bean fields lined with the slender stems of blue chicory and the tall purple-plumed thistles gave way suddenly to tall and green rolling hills trimmed at the roadside with massive growths of clovers and daisies.

We had rain again today, although it stopped just as we got into camp, long enough for us to level, hook up, go to pay for the site, and for M to work on patching the leak around the back window before it started in again. Sand Springs Camp is quite rustic and wooded, built on as big a mountain as West Virginia has, I'd wager. It is a well-kept camp with a beautiful large swimming pool, miniature golf, and a nice game room. We figured that if they were to pave the roads and do some work leveling their sites, this could be a real destination camp. Pretty place.

June 18	This photo says it all as far as weather went today. Actually it did clear a bit, till the rain caught up with us again. We had a relatively short drive to Cherry Hill Park just NE of Wash DC.	Got a modem hookup and did an upgrade, answered some emails, and made contact with our friend Scott. He came and got us and took us to Tara Thai, a fantastic Thai restaurant, decorated artistically in an undersea motif. Loved it! Talked about old times and current affairs. Great visit!
June 19	Today we took the Metro bus to the train and then took the train to the Smithsonian stop on the Mall. What fun! We found the train to be fast and smooth and really easy to navigate. We met Scott at the pre-appointed time just outside the Smithsonian stop and we went to the old post office for lunch. They have converted it to a food court in the lower level. Afterwards, we took the glass elevator to the top of the tower and looked out over the city. The air was cool and breezy, not hot at all. Still no sunshine as you can tell from these photos, but it did not rain! Then we began our monument walk. With Scott in the lead, we visited the Washington Monument, then walked along the reflecting pool to the Lincoln Memorial. They were doing construction on the Washington Monument so we couldn't go to the top. They were also working to renovate the inside of the Lincoln Memorial, but we could still see it all despite the scaffolds.	From there we went over to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall. We all were moved by this display of the names of the thousands of our veterans who were killed in this war. An integral part of this memorial is the roses and poems, photos and teddy bears that had been left by people to remember their friend, their father, their grandfather, who was killed. We walked then, across the bridge over the Potomac over toward the Arlington Cemetery. By then we were all too pooped to do anymore and so we hopped the train from there and went to Scott's house in Arlington. Scott gave us the tour, then we went out to dinner at the Foccia Luna Pizzeria on Wilson Blvd. Wonderful eats! Then Scott drove us through the evening traffic back up to Cherry Hill Park! Great day! Thank you, Scott!
June 20	Today we started out our trip into the city with lunch and a cookie from LARRY's Cookie shop in the old Post office building, and another trip to the top for some great photos. Then we went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Janee's favorite part of the museum was the gemstones and minerals; Michael also said that this was his favorite part of the day.	This evening Michael has hooked up his TenTech and is working some 20 meters. He talked to a guy in Maine just now also a guy in Guatemala; got both on his first try!
June 21	We uploaded the site and did a little chatting before catching the Metro bus/train into town. Our first stop was to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum where we reserved our time to go through. We had decided anyway to go to the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden first, and that was good, because the first time we could get to go to the Holocaust Museum was 3:15. A trek to the Hirshhorn and we were starved. We had lunch in the cafe outside there. Michael had a turkey sandwich and i had tuna salad in a "boule", carved out bowl of bread. We really enjoyed the Hirshhorn! Michael most enjoyed the sculptures and so did I! We took these photos outside in the Sculpture Garden.	Then we went back to the Holocaust Museum. The building is dark and big and stark in its architecture. The floors are of iron or of concrete. The portals leading from one exhibit to the next were often of brick, done in an archway that looks reminiscent of the opening of a gas oven. The feeling one gets upon entering the building is that one is about to be part of a serious experience. And that we were. This was an uncomfortable experience, but a very important one. We were taken by the numbers of people visiting, and by the pervasive, almost palpable, quiet that reigned despite the numbers. We both found it overwhelming. I found walking through the boxcar (yes, one of the actual boxcars that they used to transport the Jews) particularly difficult. We stopped at the grocery on the way back to the campground and got steaks for the grill. We took these photos.
June 22	Today we got started a bit late and got lunch (and Larry's cookies) at the old Post Office. Today I got a photo of Larry's Cookies.	We proceeded on to the Mint, but they were not still giving tours; they only offer tours 9-2. Off to the Museum of American History where we enjoyed a really interesting exhibit on Woody Guthrie, saw lots of coins, guns, read about the Japanese internment in WWII and looked at the gowns worn by the last several First Ladies. My favorite of these was Hillary's and Nancy's. Hillary is just a tiny li'l thing! Went back to the Wash Monument to take another photo and then back to the grocery on the way back to the campground. Very hot day today, but sunny and pretty.
June 23	We did our laundry and cleaned the rig, then spent the rest of the day today just goming out around the campsite. Michael got his radio finely tuned and ready for tomorrow's Field Day.	I played backgammon against my computer and won 9 to his 9. I also took a nice long nap. Sat outside in the late afternoon and had a beer on our love seat rocker.
June 24	We spent this whole day preparing for and participating in Field Day from Washington DC!	See Hobbies on the Road for details.