Cherry Blossoms

We made it to D.C. during the Cherry Blossoms peak and parade weekend. After rain all week, the weather cleared up and it was a beautiful sunny, WINDY, day. There were tons and tons of people down town. We packed our lunches and enjoyed sitting down by the tidal basin and 'people watched.' That didn't last very long as Steve doesn't like crowds very much so we decided to see if we could go to the Smithsonian Museums.

We ended up going to the American History Museum. That too was extremely crowded. We were only able to see a few things and then it was time to leave. We'll have to take a weekday off and head down town when it's not so busy. It was nice to get a glimpse of some of the displays:

The original Ruby Slippers from the Wizard of Oz.

Muhammad Ali's boxing gloves.

Steve in front of a HUGE Bison. His dream is to raise buffalo on his farm.

Although we only got to see a small part of the museum, my favorite part was the orignal American Flag. This flag was the inspiration for Francis Scott Key's 'Star Spangled Banner' during the war of 1812. The flag was kept in an enclosed glass room with special lighting. No pictures were allowed, but I found this picture on the internet. It was really a wonderful experience to see it on display.

After our D.C. excursion, we went to Mike's American Grill for dinner. Mike's is part of the Great American Restaurants that we love to dine at. Our all time favorite that they have at all the restaurants are the Aussie Rolls! And Steve loves Sweet Water Tavern because they brew their own root beer. It was a great way to end the day.