Week(end) 1: Natural History Museum, American History Museum, Washington Monument, National Archives

After we FINALLY finished with our four day orientation with lunch at Ben's Chili Bowl, we spent Friday afternoon in the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History, which was fun because we nonstop laughed at all the silly animals that went extinct. Harsh? Maybe. But who wouldn't laugh at a saber-toothed deer? There was also a really cool exhibit about how graves and bones can tell us just as much or more about how people live (and die) than archaeology alone. It specifically addressed early settlers in the Chesapeake and everything from occupational markers like little chinks in teeth caused by holding pins in your mouth if you are a tailor to what a shattered skull looks like. It was gruesome and cool.

It only took us three visits (spread out over two weekends) to finish off the Smithsonian American History Museum. There is some good stuff in there. Lots of exhibits about wars, presidents, first ladies, science, entertainment, and art. Some highlights: the exhibit which chronicled every way American has ever been involved in, the exhibit with pop cultural items like Kermit the frog, the presidential exhibit where you got to pretend to be giving a presidential speech, and the Colbert portrait.

WWII mittens with a trigger finger.

Lincoln's actual hat. This is what is cool about the Smithsonian. This stuff is ACTUAL.

I wish.

Me hijacking FDR's inaugural address.

Washington. Toga. Abs.

On our second visit, this Friday, we did more of the science-y things, like transportation overland and oversea, as well as the Kinsey collection of African American art exhibit. Pretty much that took up the entire 4 or so hours we spent on day 2. Day 3 was a mission to finish the exhibits before our scheduled ride to the top of the Washington Monument, so we learned with purpose about the invention of the lightbulb and other cool electronic devices, pop-up books, Julia Child's kitchen, and science's changing role in our world (which included a hilarious and unreasonably large chunk all about the birth control pill).

Mom and Dad: Found your next recreational purchase!

And don't forget to pack this: an electric marshmallow toaster.

So much psychedelia. So much birth control.

So our visit up the Washington Monument was a success, with hardly any line (we are learning that winter is the best time to do the most touristy things). The view was pretty cool, but the windows are only about a foot tall and people were kind of bad at sharing in the small space at the top. One of the other cool things about the Monument that we learned about on the way down in the elevator is that states donated local stone for it, and California donated a block of gold (which obviously didn't make the cut) and Northern and Southern states donated stones inscribed with sassy comments about the approaching fight over slavery.

View from the top of the Washington Monument towards the Capitol.

Today (Sunday) we tried to find our books for classes. It was a wild goose chase. We got some Starbucks to console ourselves, which I promptly spilled all over Brittany's scarf and our table. We managed to salvage the day by going to the National Archives, where we saw the "Charters of Freedom" (it should sound all echoey and serious in your head, like the guy who says "Pigs in Space" on the Muppet Show). In addition to the Declaration of Independence, which you can hardly read anymore because its so faded, there is the Constitution which is much better preserved, and the Bill of Rights, and an original copy of the Magna Carta. Apparently there were several originals and the US got its hands on one somehow (I'd like to imagine the mob was involved, but the plaque said something about the Perot Foundation). Also in the rotunda there are two murals and George Washington looks hilarious in what looks like white leggings.

LEGGINGS! Proof that this fashion trend (like all good things) was begun by our first President.

My favorite part, though, was the exhibit about the various functions the National Archives performs, with handy examples of all sorts of documents and interactive displays. We got to hear conversations that FDR recorded (illegally?) in the Oval Office, saw the Homestead Act paperwork filed by Pa from Little House on the Prairie (Laura Ingalls Wilder's real life dad), and there was a fake computer showing the White House website, circa its first incarnation in 1994 (the computer was vintage, also).

Archives from the outside. Looks like...lots of other buildings in DC.