Women's March on Washington- travel for a cause

After the US Presidential Election last November, I was left sick to my stomach and unable to sleep for several days.  I can’t remember politics having such a physical effect on my before.  It was downright scary how much fear was in my heart and mind after my country chose to vote for a hateful, fear-mongering failure as leader of the nation.  Honestly, I still can’t quite believe it was true.  It defies logic.

It was hard to figure out what to DO.  I knew that my representatives in Congress were going to fight the good fight for the American people, but they are in the minority party.  There was little I could see myself doing, besides continuing to teach that we should judge sources carefully, not believe everything we see on the internet, and love all humans equally, always. 

When I heard about the Women’s March, it gave me hope.  I booked hotel rooms.  I made rough plans.  I joined up with friends and we set off on a grand adventure.  Leaving Friday late afternoon, we had an easy ride to Philadelphia, where we stayed the night.  Up early the next morning, we drove through foggy weather down to DC.  Every rest area that we passed was FULL of buses- so many people were making the journey, it defied belief.  Once we got close, we heard that the Greenbelt Metro station garage was full, so we rerouted to College Park and arrived with plenty of spaces still available.  That doesn’t mean there weren’t people- the line to buy tickets was nearly two hours long!  Everyone was pleasant and positive through the whole thing.  It was truly the nicest crowd ever. 

Once we were on the Metro, we heard that L’Enfant Plaza stop was closed because people were backed up onto the platform.  They couldn’t get out of the station, the streets were so jammed.  Then we heard that Archives was closed for the same reason, on the far side of the mall.  We ended up getting off at Galleria.  As soon as we exited the station, the protest erupted in the streets.  Cars were stopped, because there were so many people walking down 7^th St.  Everyone had signs and held them tall.  John Kerry walked right by us! 

When we got to Constitution, the mall was totally full of people.  We were directed right, past the archives.  With a full streetful of people we marched down Constitution, past the White House, all the way to the Lincoln Memorial, around, and back up Indpendence.  At that point people were stopped in their cars as the protest went by.  Most were cheering and beeping their horns.  It was so powerful just to be in that. 

When we got back up to the Washington Monument, we met the bulk of the march moving down Independence and turning toward the White House.  Everything slowed down.  There were chants—

“NO HATE, NO FEAR! IMMIGRANTS ARE WELCOME HERE”

“SHOW ME WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE!”   

            “THIS IS WHAT DEMOCRACY LOOKS LIKE.”

“WE NEED A LEADER, NOT A CREEPY TWEETER.

And my favorite: “WE WILL NOT GO AWAY!  WELCOME TO YOUR FIRST DAY!”

Eventually we went back past the White House and up to MacPhearson Square, where things broke up.  We tried to find food, since we’d missed lunch, but everything was so crowded.  We ended up with chips and drinks from a convenience store at the edge of Chinatown, before getting back to the Metro.  The ride back was long- full trains, breakdowns, medical emergencies.  Still, everyone was in good spirits and sharing phone chargers and stories of the day.  We ended up taking a Lyft back to the car from a station after our train went out of service, then had a delicious dinner at Hard Times Café in College Park.  We stayed in Maryland, and had the smoothest drive home the next day.

This was a new kind of travel for me, and sadly one I see myself doing more in the future.  It was incredibly uplifting to see so many different people coming together from so many parts of the country to stand up for women’s rights in all forms.  I’m so happy I was able to participate in this.

March Madness Journey

Originally I was thinking DC in April, but when I found an amazing deal on a plane ticket, it got bumped to March.  A long weekend, just a little get away this time, but it would be a great chance to reconnect with college friends.

I flew down on Friday morning and checked into a great historical hotel on Embassy Row near Dupont Circle.  I'd always heard such wonderful things about the area but never spent much time there.  People were right- it's a great place to stay, much better than the more touristy areas that are dead after the museums close.  I loved having so many great places close by.

The first day I had lunch at Kramerbooks and Afterwords Cafe- the butternut squash ravioli was only OK, but the key lime pie was AMAZING.  I wish I'd had time to go back for another piece.  I browsed around for a while and then started walking, killing time really.  I walked down Connecticut Ave to Farragut Park, and then on to the White House.  Which I didn't realize was the White House because I was pretty lost.  Oops.  But hey, White House!  That was fun.

I took the Metro out to Virginia to meet with my college roommate, and then we joined another friend for dinner at the Lost Dog Cafe and desert at Sugar Shack.  Oh, my God, the Samoa donut.  I could have eaten a dozen.  I picked up a few extras for breakfast the next day or two.

Day two I headed to National Geographic, but decided it was silly to pay for a museum when there were free ones a few blocks away.  I perused the gift shop for a bit.  Then I went to the Archives.  I hadn't been there since I was 10, so it was practically something new.  It was pretty cool.  I mostly just enjoyed hearing all the parents telling their kids about the documents.  I tend to be way too cynical about civics in our world today, but it turns out there are a lot of people out there telling their kids about the Founding Fathers!  Go America!

Archives and Navy Memorial

I had a quick sandwich lunch and then ran over to the National Gallery for a bit.  I had a bit of a headcold so wasn't feeling great so the visit didn't last long.  I ended up going back to the hotel to sleep.  Dinner was sushi at Raku, which was pretty good but I was seated sort of alone in a corner of the bar- way to not make me feel like a loser, hostess person!  Dining alone is still sometimes tough.

Day three I was feeling pretty miserable, but I braved it out to the Freer and Sackler museums.  I wanted to see the Hiroshige prints in the Traveler's Exhibit.  It didn't disappoint, once I found it.  I also visited the African art museum.  They win for the worst layout ever.  Lunch was Shake Shack, a happy accident, and then nap time again.

I was feeling better in the evening and it was finally getting warmer, so I wandered to an Asian bowl restaurant and had a great Satay rice bowl for dinner.  Then because it was still light out (yay, spring!) I got a cinnamon hot chocolate from Starbucks and walked around the neighborhood for a while.  Then I had to grade research papers, joy.

Monday I tried to go to the Library of Congress but the streets were closed off.  Giving up, I walked back to the National Gallery for a more proper tour.  I love the little courtyards there, and sat with my favorite Renaissance pieces for a while.  The Piero di Cosimo exhibit was interesting- I really liked the part about the restorations of one of the more battered panels.

Almost Cherry Blossoms!

I wandered back to the hotel from there, stopping at Wicked Waffle for lunch (delicious!) and then it was time for home.  All in all, it would have been a better trip if I'd been feeling better but there are worse places to be sick than in a grand hotel with a king size bed, huge TV, and daily replenishment of tissues.