Washington, the capital of the USA, has long been on our 'hit list' of places to visit.  We hired a car and drove up there on Wednesday for a couple of nights. On the way there, due to an urgent need for a rest break, (me), we ended up leaving the main interstate and driving cross country through some of the Richmond area Civil War Battlefields.  There were a few very small settlements dotted around, but it was a very quiet area.  Some of the Battlefields are marked with small signs, others are just huge swathes of unused land.  

We managed to get to Washington without an problems, we have purchased an in-car sat-nav which was a huge help.  Once we had checked into the hotel, we set off walking.  Washington is quite compact and most of the main tourist sights are in a relatively small area.  It was a gorgeous and sunny, if somewhat cold day.  Our first stop was the White House - well, I can't say I was overly impressed, it is a lot smaller than I imagined!  The Executive Offices next door are in a very grand building by comparison.  This was only the back view of the house, and to be fair, the other side was much nicer, but still, I did expect something grander for the home of the President of the USA.  

The rest of the afternoon we strolled around taking in various Monuments and outside sights, in case we got some bad weather over the following days.  The great thing about visiting at this time of year is that all the tourist sights are quiet, it is also very easy to get a taxi, and actually get to places during the day, ironically the roads are far busier at night!

The Washington Memorial was unfortunately closed and has been since the earthquake last summer has made it potentially unsafe.  From there it is a short walk over the World War II Memorial, and then down the side of the Reflecting Pool, to the Lincoln Memorial.  This area was quite busy as it was Veterans Day here on Sunday, and so there were a few organised veterans tours here.  

After that we walked round the Potomac Tidal Basin taking in the Dr Martin Luther KIng, Franklin D Roosevelt, and the Jefferson Memorials - phew!!

On our way back to the hotel for a well earned rest, we stopped off for a view of Capitol Hill.  We found a great wine bar - restaurant for dinner in the Capitol Hill district that night.

 The back of the very much smaller than I expected, White House

 The slightly more impressive front view! 

  The Washington Memorial

 The WW2 Memorial

 Me by the Reflecting Pool with the Lincoln Memorial in the background.

 John by the Martin Luther King Jr Memorial

 And last but not least, the Jefferson Memorial - phew!!