We're at the White House!!!! How cool! Sadly, despite reading and rereading the do's and don't's of visiting, the traveling selfie stick still died in order to allow us to enter. There were tears. The white-house tour was somewhat disappointing. We walked through a number of old public-facing rooms. The tour might be interesting if you've never done castle tour after palace tour after castle tour after palace tour. We're glad we went, but probably will consider this a once-and-done experience.
If you've been visiting here at Werdehausen Adventures very long you know ... we love us some food! One of our travel goals is to Travel the World of Food. We've had Escargot and Mussels in France, Hiroshima "Soul Food" in Hiroshima; German Food in Germany; enjoyed dishes from the recipe books of Sultan royal chefs in Turkey; Sushi in Japan; Eel in Japan; Luxemburgese Food in ...wait for it ... Luxemburg; BBQ in Texas, you get the drift. Coming to Washington DC, in our home country, we didn't really know of any 'local' types of food to seek out.
We were thrilled to discover Mitsitam. This restaurant is located on the first floor of the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. Mitsitam features dishes from various regions of Native American groups. What better food to experience in the national capital city of The United States of America than that of the original inhabitants of our country.
Knowing that parking along the mall would be impossible, we choose to park at an outlying metro station ($4.95 per day) and ride the train into the city.
Because of traffic and confusion and ... life ... we finally arrived at the Museum at 2:40 pm!
Note, Mitsitam closes at 3:00. Wifey was initially caught off guard by the layout of the restaurant. Like other Smithsonian museum cafe's and restaurant, it is cafeteria style. Her brief uncertainty at our late arrival and the cafeteria setting were for naught.
Bison Strip Steak with Red Wine Sauce
Bison Burger
Salmon, Apple and Chard, Mashed Cauliflower
Indian Taco - Bison chili over a shell with various toppings
For future visitors, be aware that Mitsitam is a cafeteria, not a sit-down restaurant. The food is excellent and there are so many different choices! It is pretty expensive but well worth budgeting as part of your D.C. experience.
Today we had the opportunity to visit Arlington National Cemetary in Northern VA, just south of Washington DC. Within the cemetery, we spent some time at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and visited the gravesite of President Kennedy.
We drove to the Cemetary and parked on site for $4. The Cemetary itself is free to visit, although do be prepared to go through a security checkpoint on your way in. The guards inside have maps available upon request.
The walk from the visitors center to the Tomb of the Unknown is pretty easy, only taking approximately 15 minutes. Along the way, you pass by seemingly endless rows of graves.
All perfectly straight.
The area near the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is marked by entry signs reminding visitors to remain silent and show respect.
We were able to view the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier while we were visiting. If anyone is more familiar than me with the words spoken during this ceremony, please shoot me a message and I'll update my captions.
After the Changing of the Guard ceremony, we walked to John F. Kennedy's grave. On it burns an eternal flame.
