Today was a rainy day. It was still a great day. We did not walk as far as we did yesterday, and we managed to be inside for most of the day. We started our day at the Air and Space Museum.
The Air and Space Museum covers the history of flight very well. It also looks at the history of navigation from the beginning of time. Before we began our blog, we had visited The Wright Brothers National Memorial at Kill Devil Hills, NC. It was interesting to see a second view and recount of the events leading up to and after the Wright brothers first flight.
The Air and Space Museum covers flight from hot air balloons to space travel. It also covers some aspects of land and sea travel. What do these have in common? Navigation! There is a very interesting section of the museum that traces the history of how man has navigated through space and time, both on the earth and through outer space.
The study of getting from here to there was exceptionally well done. It traces early navigation which was done by sight and feel, more than by instruments, to current developments intended to improve interplanetary travel.
It is amazing that early ocean travelers relied on animal migrations and water temperatures to cover large distances over the ocean. As basic as that seems, early space travel used very simple metrics to go to the moon and other planets compared to the ideas that are presented for creating a GPS system for space travel.
Almost all modern navigation is now based upon accurate clocks and timed signals from fixed positions. By comparing the time where you are with the amount of time signals were sent from known fixed positions, you can determine very precisely where you are. The clock you use had better be accurate though, or you could get very lost, very fast.
From the Air and Space Museum, we took a short walk to the American Indian Museum.
The American Indian Museum has an interesting and unusual architectural style. The displays and layout show the history of people in America, from before Europeans arrived through today, and the views of various indigenous groups of where the future lies.
We ate lunch at the American Indian Museum. The cafeteria offers food options from many Native American cultures. At lunch, we sat near the waterfalls, but from inside the building. The Building was designed to try to reflect the native view of the blending of man and his environment. That is why the waterfall appears to come from inside the building.
From the inside of the building, you can walk from one time period to another, or from one culture to another, using the circular staircase around the rotunda. This arrangement shows the interconnection described in most of the cultures examined within the museum.
Our next stop for the day was the US Capitol.
We met our guide in the capitol Visitor’s Center, near the Jack Sweigert statue. While were were allowed to take pictures on the tour, we were not allowed to use our cameras in the Senate and House chambers.
Each state is allowed to have two memorials in the Capitol. This statue is unique because it is the only one currently allowed to have multiple colors. We learned many details of the Capitol’s history, including stories about the old Supreme Court location within the Capitol.
There is at least one place where the fixtures in the Capitol were not expensive. The chandelier in this dome was purchased in 1965 for $1,500 from the ABC Wrecking Co., which had removed it from the Capitol Hill United Methodist Church on Seward Square in southeast Washington, D.C. So at least once, the government bought something without overpaying.
The full rotunda of the Capitol is impressive. The art work and the detail is amazing.
When we completed our tour of the Capitol, we were across the street from the Supreme Court building. The Supreme Court was not on our schedule, but we decided to tour it anyway.
The Supreme Court building was completed in 1935. Prior to that, the court met in a small space in the Capitol. The new quarters for the court are much larger and have much more character, as shown in these two photos.
There was some serious discussion about separating the Supreme Court from Congress in the Capitol Building. The “new” structure is literally across the street from the Capitol as shown below.
Our final stop on our tour for the day was Union Station. Union Station was a relatively short walk from The Supreme Court. Fortunately, the rain had slowed.
We had dinner at Crepe Lena, one of the many specialty restaurants in Union Station. The building is unique and the food selection is great. We got on the Metro at Union Station for the ride back to our hotel in Arlington, Virginia.