Easter Break in Washington D.C.

This past weekend, over Easter break, I had the opportunity to travel to Washington, D.C., with my parents to visit my brother, Tommy at George Washington University, where he goes to college. I have always loved visiting this city, so any excuse to go is a win for me. I left for my flight Thursday after class and landed in the district later that day and straight after arriving, went to meet up with my parents and brother for dinner. Being together as a family will forever be the most special thing to me because they are the people who keep me grounded at all times. Although it was difficult to see Tommy since he had class and track, it was still a great trip with my family.

We started early on Friday morning because we wanted to get to the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery before it got to busy. This gallery is the home to Barack and Michelle Obama’s official portraits, which was amazing to see. After looking at all of the past president’s portraits, they style for Obama’s was different, but simply put, beautiful. I have never been a

huge art fan, but after going through this museum and seeing all the different styles of art, I was inspired to see more. So, after leaving the crowded Portrait Gallery, we decided to visit the Smithsonian American Art Museum. Although some of the art was questionable to me, all of it portrayed a different artist’s vision, which made them unique from each other. Since it was a rainy day, wandering around an art museum for a few hours was the perfect way to spend the day. We also got to spend lunch with Tommy at a delicious restaurant called Farmers and Distillers in Chinatown. We were all tired after a long day of walking, especially since my parents had been in the city since Tuesday, so we decided to go to dinner on George Washington’s campus. That night, we went to bed early, ready for another eventful day.

On Saturday, Tommy had a track meet about two hours away from the district, so we didn’t get to see him that day. But, we still had a long day of walking and seeing the city, starting at the Newseum. Now, I am not going to deny it, was reluctant to visit this museum after hearing the title of it, but I am thankful my parents convinced me to go (yes, you were right). I will be talking about this museum in my social media blog for this week, so I will spare you listening to me gush

about this visit. All you need to know is I cried multiple times because of what I saw and learned at the museum. We decided to just eat dinner in the cafeteria at the Newseum because we were in there for so long and once we had completed it, we decided to walk the National Mall. As much as this sounds like a shopping mall, I found out on my first trip to Washington, D.C., it is actually a mall of monuments. If you enjoy looking at them as much as I do, you could debate it is better than a shopping mall, but it depends on who you ask. Walking down the National Mall, there were hundreds of families on the lawns flying kites and having picnics, since the day was so nice. When I say there were hundreds of kites in the sky, I really mean it; the sky was polluted with them from the top to the bottom of the National Mall and it was amazing to see. We then walked around the Tidal Basin

to see the half-bloomed Cherry Blossom trees, which were supposed to be fully bloomed, but I’m not bitter. It was still beautiful to see all the trees surrounding the scenery of the city. I also had the chance to meet up with one of my friends from home because she goes to school at University of Maryland. I haven’t seen her since Christmas so it was nice to get to catch up with her. That night was our last night and we decided to go to a burger and shake place on campus, which was one of the best milkshakes I have ever had. After a few long days in the district, we were worn out and ready to relax before flying home the next day back to the chilly Ohio weather. 

This short break was the just the thing I needed to finish the semester off before summer rolls around. That was the last time I will see Tommy before his graduation in May, which is crazy to think about now. The past four years of him at school have flown by and I cannot wait to see where life takes him after he graduates. Family has always been the most important thing to me, so getting to see them for an entire weekend with them was the best way to spend Easter break.