Itinerary
Thursday, June 9
Meet at airport 3:30 AM promptly. We will have a manifest and we will all be in line together.
LV Sioux Falls Airport 5:00 AM to Minneapolis Groups A & B. LV Minneapolis 7:00 for DC--Delta
Arrive DC 10:30 and our bus met us at the Baltimore-Washington International Airport
We stopped on the way into DC and had lunch at the Crystal City Mall Food Court and met our guide Lorrie there.
The first stop was at the National Archives.
We saw The Declaration of Independence which expresses the ideals on which the United States was founded and the reasons for separation from Great Britain.
The Constitution which defines the framework of the Federal Government of the United States and
The Bill of Rights which is the first 10 amendments to the Constitution. It defines citizens’ and states’ rights in relation to the Government.
Next up were 2 of the Smithsonians: National Museum of American History (click HERE for more info) This museum houses objects which are important in American history. The original Star-Spangled Banner, the flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the song that would become our national anthem, is among the most treasured artifacts in the collections of the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. Other things we had the opportunity to see were the Ruby slippers--they were only on display thru June 12th, the hat Abraham Lincoln was wearing on the night of his assassination, and The First Ladies’ Dresses to mention a few.
and Natural History Museum (click HERE for more info) where the Hope Diamond, dinosaurs, and a HUGE African Bush Elephant were on display.
6:00 PM DINNER Nando's Peri Peri Chinatown - 819 7th St NW, Washington DC 20001
Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial--the memorial honors Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy and the struggle for freedom, equality, and justice. A prominent leader in the modern civil rights movement, Dr. King was a tireless advocate for racial equality, working class, and the oppressed around the world.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial--the national memorial, spread over 7.5 acres adjacent to the southwest side of the Tidal Basin along the Cherry Tree Walk, traces 12 years of the history of the United States through a sequence of four outdoor rooms, one for each of FDR's terms of office.[1]Sculptures inspired by photographs depict the 32nd president alongside his dog Fala.
Other sculptures depict scenes from the Great Depression, such as listening to a fireside chat on the radio and waiting in a bread line, a bronze sculpture by George Segal. A bronze statue of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt standing before the United Nations emblem honors her dedication to the UN. It is the only presidential memorial to depict a First Lady.[2]
Considering Roosevelt's disability, the memorial's designers intended to create a memorial that would be accessible to those with various physical impairments. Among other features, the memorial includes an area with tactile reliefs with braille writing for people who are blind. However, the memorial faced serious criticism from disabled activists. Vision-impaired visitors complained that the braille dots were improperly spaced and that some of the braille and reliefs were mounted eight feet off of the ground, placing it above the reach of most people.
Jefferson Memorial--The Jefferson Memorial is a presidential memorial built in Washington, D.C. between 1939 and 1943 under the sponsorship of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Roosevelt thought that it was a suitable memorial to the Founding Fathers of the United States and to Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence and the founder of the Democratic-Republican Party.
Lincoln Memorial--The grand Lincoln Memorial towers over the Reflecting Pool, anchoring the western end of the National Mall. The best way to approach the memorial is from the east, by the Washington Monument and the National World War II Memorial. This will put you at the edge of the Reflecting Pool, a shimmering expanse which best illuminates the grand structures honoring our most storied leaders. There are 36 columns, each one representing one state in the U.S. at the date of President Lincoln’s death. The memorial itself is 190 feet long and 119 feet wide, and reaches a height of almost 100 feet.
Climb the stairs leading to the interior, and look up. There, etched into the wall, is a memorable quote: "In this temple, as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the Union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever."
Below the quote sits a 19-foot tall, 175-ton statue of President Lincoln, himself looking out over the Mall of the country that he fought so hard to preserve and unite. The statue was designed by Daniel Chester French, who worked to depict Lincoln during the Civil War, stately and dignified. Interestingly, though the memorial was approved decades earlier, construction did not begin until 1914, and the memorial opened to the public in 1922.
To the left of the statue is Lincoln’s great speech, the Gettysburg Address, one of the most famous in U.S. history. Every single word of the address is etched into the wall to inspire Americans just as it did in 1863. To the right is the entire Second Inaugural Address, given in March of 1865 — mere months before Lincoln’s death.
Friday, June 10
7:00 AM Hotel Breakfast
8:00 AM Our guide met us at the hotel, and we took off for the US Capitol. Tours are a little different since CoVid and Jan 6.
9:15 Capital Tour Dusty Johnson/Thune's Office. Interns will meet us outside the Capitol at the CVC entrance with our tickets. 9:15 a.m. Tour was done by the Capital Tours professional tour guides and we visit ed the Crypt, the Rotunda and National Statuary Hall. Saw the Supreme Court Building - Saw the Library of Congress
Lunch at the Smithsonian American Indian Cafe.
1:15 Wreath Laying at Arlington National Cemetery. Garretson was represented well with Carter Siemonsma, Addison Fink, Bryn Swatk and Ty VanHolland laying a wreath.
At Arlington National Cemetery we saw Kennedy Gravesites, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier - Changing of the Guard
6:30P We The Pizza - Ballston - 4201 Wilson Blvd Ste # 120, Arlington, VA 22203 - 202-390-8802 -
Alexandria Ghost Tour
8:45 Leader Dismissed
9:00 Coach drop at hotel
Saturday, June 11, 2022
8:00 AM Hotel Breakfast
White house (Picture stop)
World War I Memorial - Pershing Park which honors the 4.7 million Americans who served their nation in World War I, including 116,516 who made the supreme sacrifice. Built by the United States World War I Centennial Commission and designed by architect Joseph Weishaar, the new memorial (April 2021) incorporates the existing memorial to Gen. John J. Pershing, commander of the American Expeditionary Forces during the war. The memorial also includes the Peace Fountain, a cascade of water behind an excerpt from the poem “The Young Dead Soldiers Do Not Speak” by Archibald MacLeish;
It was raining, so decided to do some drive bys. We drove by Embassy Row with roughly 175 diplomatic embassies, diplomatic missions, and diplomatic residences.
Drove by the Eisenhower Memorial, nation's tribute to the architect of victory in World War II and its 34th President Dwight D. Eisenhower.
Drove by Washington Hilton Hotel where on March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was shot and wounded by John Hinckley Jr. in Washington, D.C. as he was returning to his limousine after a speaking engagement.
Visited the National Law Enforcement Memorial which honors the role of law enforcement, in service to society, by recognizing the sacrifices and valor of law enforcement, educating the community, and making it safer for those who serve.
We visited the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery which houses collected portraits of American presidents which holds more than 1,600 likenesses of U.S. presidents in its collection. Highlights of the “America’s Presidents” gallery also include the iconic portrait of Andrew Jackson (1824) by Thomas Sully and the 1917 casts of Lincoln’s “life masks” (1860 and 1865.
Lunch at Portrait Museum
3:30 Ford's Theater and Peterson House as well as Peterson House Museum.
4:45 Course Leader Dismissed
5:00 Coach Depart
Toby's Sponge Bob
11:00 PM Coach drop at hotel
DRAFT Sunday, June 12, 2022
8:00 AM Hotel Breakfast
9:15 AM Lorrie met us at the hotel. We loaded bus and headed to Mt. Vernon, Home of George Washington. Education Center and Grounds Tour
Lunch at Mt. Vernon. Great souveneir shop!
Departure Group C (Liz) United 4:35 to Chicago, Chicago to SFalls 7:58 PM Arrive 9:48 PM
Group D (Bob) Delta 5:10 Atlanta, Atlanta to SFalls 5:10 Arrive 10:44 PM
