Philadelphia and Washington DC

Visiting Philadelphia and Washington DC on the East Coast trip was awesome. I’m happy we went here because of all of the amazing things we got to see in these two places. There was so much to do, you might want a few more days than we had.

Philadelphia

First, on the drive over, we stopped in Delaware for a quick tourist stop, then made our way to Independence National Historic Park and did a guided tour of Independence Hall. Here, I got to see the original Senate with the 13 states and the old House of Representitives. Then, we had some free time, so my friends and I went to the Benjamin Franklin Museum which was super fun because it was very interactive. Finally, we made a long drive to get to Washington DC.

Washigton DC

DC was full of memorials and monuments, which made for a lot of walking around and learning.

Day One

First, we went to the Arlington National Cemetery and walked around a lot in there to see the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and some presidents. Then, we went to the Marine Corps War Memorial, the MLK Jr. memorial, the World War II Memorial, and the Washington Monument. Finally, after lunch, we went to Mount Vernon in Virginia to see George Washington’s mansion and the grounds, which had an amazing view from the back of the house.

Day Two

To continue our time in DC, on day two, we started with the Roosevelt and Jefferson Memorials which were beautifully designed. Then, we went to the Holocaust Memorial and followed the story of the person whose ID card we picked up. Next, after lunch, we took a tour of the US Capitol and the building was stunning! We went inside the dome and saw the famous paintings and then we went into the old House of Representatives which is now known as the statue room. After that, we got to go to the National Archives and see the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and The Bill of Rights. Later after we had dinner, I got to see the Vietnam War and Korean War Memorials which were both done beautifully. As the last thing to end the day, I had the opportunity to see the Lincon Memorial. We got there just before sunset, so we got to see it lit up with the purples, pinks, and oranges from the sunset. From the amazing building, I also got a great view of the Washington Monument from on the other side of the water.

Day Three

On our last day of the fantastic trip, we did two things before getting to the airport. One thing was the White House. It may seem as the cool thing to see, but it was a let down. It was small and not very impressive, the Capitol was way nicer. The final thing to close the trip was the Smithsonian Museums. I got to do the entire giant Museum of Natural History, which was just like the one in “Night at the Museum” with the counter and the dinosaur skeleton and everything. I went in the Mammal, Human History, Geodes and Rocks, Earth, Artist Photos, Dinosaur, and Ocean Animals exhibits. It was amazing.