Washington DC - September 2011

As the plane was landing in Washington DC, I got a nice view of downtown DC especially of the Washington Monument and the US Capital.

I stayed at the Mayflower Renaissance hotel, a luxury hotel with historical elegance.

Activities:

1) Capital Hill to visit the Library of Congress and take a tour of the US Capital.

2) Visited National Community Church in Ebenezers Coffeehouse. I have visited this church in past trips to DC and it has become my "vacation church".

3) Visited the Smithsonian Castle - it serves as an introduction to the Smithsonian museums and includes a Treasure Chest with artifacts that represent all of the Smithsonian museums.

4) Although I have been there before, I decided to make a return visit to the Holocaust Museum since it's been more than 6 years since I was last there. Always a humbling experience, especially the exhibit about the concentration camps. Interestingly, 2 weeks later, my church brought in a survivor of the Holocaust to share about how God knocked down walls in her life.

5) Walked through the Sackler Gallery Museum. My favorites are the Peacock room and the Monkeys Grasping for the Moon, which is a long chain (spanning 3 stories) that consist of the word monkey in many different languages.

6) Join a Bike and Roll nighttime tour of the monuments. I have done this tour in a previous DC trip, but this time the tour included the brand new Martin Luther King, Jr memorial. There is something special about seeing the monuments lit up among a cool night in DC.

7) Had dinner at Kellari Taverna, an upscale Greek restaurant in downtown DC. Their specialty is the freshly caught fish - these fish are on display in the eating area and you can even pick the fish you want. I had the lavraki.

8) Joined a DC Segway tour where you travel from the US Capital to the Lincoln Memorial and learn about key sites along the way. It is an excellent way to see DC and we felt like celebrities - when we were at the White House, one student even took our picture for his project. It was a clear day, which made the already fun tour even more enjoyable.

Labor Day Weekend 2011

Labor Day weekend trip to Chicago to retreat from the 100+ days of Texas.

I stayed at the Marriott on North Michigan Avenue, right in the heart of downtown Chicago.

Highlights of my trip are:
* Walking around the Magnificent Mile
* Biking along Lake Michigan north of Chicago River
* Visiting the lobby of the Palmer House Hilton hotel - very beautiful
* Segway tour along Lake Michigan south of the river
* Seeing rain - Austin has been dry for so long that I considered the Chicago rain a "tourist" attraction :)

Pictures