Greetings from Washington DC!
I am so excited. Kristin has found a spot in her purse for me so I am now able to go with her everywhere she goes on this trip. I am very glad because I like to see new things. It is much better than being stored away in a suitcase.
We arrived safely earlier this evening but we were delayed a bit along the way. It was snowing in Chicago and we had to wait for a special truck to spray pink liquid on the wings of the plane. Keith said the liquid is anti-freeze and the truck was “deicing” the plane. He says it is bad if there is ice on the wings of a plane when it takes off. It was very interesting to watch out the plane window.
The trip was uneventful after we left Chicago. Keith and Kristin’s luggage arrived OK and we took a cab to our hotel. Keith tells me there are two airports near Washington, DC. We arrived at the Ronald Reagan National Airport. Did you know it was renamed several years ago to honor President Reagan?
In the cab we drove by several large, white stone buildings and towers. Kristin told me they are monuments and memorials. The tall white tower is the Washington Monument. It honors America’s first president, George Washington. I also saw the Jefferson Memorial, which honors our third president, Thomas Jefferson. And the road is so close to the Lincoln Memorial that I could almost touch it from the cab window. That building honors President Abraham Lincoln. I could also see the Kennedy Center across the river. It honors President John Kennedy.
I was beginning to sense a pattern so I asked Kristin if every president has a special memorial here in Washington. She said no. So, I have decided that these presidents must be extra special.
We are staying at Jury’s on Dupont Circle. Keith and Kristin have stayed here several times. Kristin’s room is nice but much smaller than the rooms she had in the Middle East. It actually overlooks Dupont Circle and even has a small refrigerator full of drinks and food. Kristin says she has to pay for anything she drinks or eats and I guess it is VERY expensive. Kristin says this room is much closer to the type of room she normally stays in on her trips in the United States.
Tonight Keith and Kristin met one of their very good friends at a Chinese restaurant near the hotel. Her name is Liz Shropshire and they met her several years ago in Kosovo. Do you know where Kosovo is? See if you can find it on a map. Liz teaches music programs to children in Kosovo and some of her students have visited Muscatine. Kristin and Keith (and his entire family) were part of a Muscatine group that visited Liz in Kosovo last summer. Liz was speaking at a nearby college so she decided to have dinner with Keith and Kristin. Here you can see me with Kristin and Liz.
Well that’s about it for now. I need to get to sleep. Kristin says we have a full day of meetings tomorrow.
Until next time….
