Day 17 & 18, Day 17 & 18 - October 5th & 6th: Washington D.C.

...and so it happened that Ben and I made our way to the German Embassy the next day to secure his departure on Saturday. The German Embassy is located in an outer district of Washington D.C., Georgetown, and from the outside it looks more like a fortress than an authority. The building, which is not particularly impressive from an architectural point of view, sits high and is fenced in, and can only be entered without a cell phone. Upon arriving there, we had to endure the full breadth of German bureaucracy... The passport was marked as invalid in the system and a travel document as a substitute for a passport was applied for. Since this also takes time abroad, we were sent away for coffee.

After about 2 hours, Ben was able to receive the document and we could make our way to the rest of the group. In the meantime, they were on the National Mall. However, not for shopping, as some might think. The Mall is home to the essential monuments of American history. For example, memorials for some former presidents of the USA (the largest and most impressive are those of Lincoln, Jefferson, and Washington), memorials that commemorate various wars and their fallen (such as the Vietnam Veterans Memorial or the National World War II Memorial), or even memorials that commemorate other significant figures in American history, such as the M. L. King Memorial.

Despite its relatively short history, the USA knows how to present it in an impressive and patriotic way, which is probably only possible in a planned capital city. It is interesting to know that Washington D.C. does not belong to any of the 50 states of the USA and therefore does not have representation in the Senate. Its territory is made up of former parts of Virginia and Maryland.

After Ben and I had contacted the group by phone, we agreed to meet at Arlington National Cemetery, where the group was now headed. With public transportation and the help of friendly locals, we managed to reach the agreed meeting point. The visit to the cemetery is free, but like any other "attraction" in the USA, it requires a security check. Arlington is the final resting place for over 260,000 American soldiers and their families, as well as several presidents. For example, John F. Kennedy and his family are buried there. One special memorial is the Tomb of the Unknowns from the various wars in which the USA has been involved since World War I. This tomb is guarded by "the old guard" and attracts many visitors to the cemetery - not least because of the quite impressive changing of the guard.

Afterwards, the group returned to the hotel to take a short break. During this time, I caught up on what I missed in the morning and walked back across the Potomac River to see the National Mall and the White House. Ben would certainly have been interested in seeing these sights as well, but in the meantime, we received a hopeful phone call that the backpack had been returned to the hotel and of course, we wanted to verify this immediately. And indeed, everything reappeared and our trip to Georgetown would not have been necessary. Unfortunately, you only know this in advance...

After the break, we wanted to visit one last stop and headed towards the Capitol. Unfortunately, it closes at 4:30 pm, so we could only see it from the outside, which is still very impressive - in my opinion, much more impressive than the White House, which is quite small.

To close out the day in D.C. and to enjoy the last evening of our entire trip to the USA, we went to a pizzeria to unwind and spend a cozy evening together. The way back to the hotel took us through Chinatown and gave us a small but nice glimpse of unofficial Washington D.C.

This day started with a separation of our group. Mr. Schams and most of the group went exploring the sights of Washington D.C. while Ben and I went to the German Embassy to get a new travel document for Ben. The Embassy is located in Georgetown which is not easily reached. At least we weren't surprised by the bureaucracy of the whole endeavor as it was as tiring as it is in Germany. Nonetheless, after we managed to get a document so Ben could actually fly home with us the following day, we got in contact with the rest of the group to arrange a meeting point. They had been to the White House and the National Mall to look at all the Memorials. We met up at Arlington Cemetery to visit the Tomb of the Unknowns as well as J.F. Kennedy's Grave. Especially the changing of the guard at the former is quite impressive. In the meantime, we received a phone call from the hotel informing us that a bag had been brought to the hotel. It was, in fact, Ben's bag with all his belongings inside!

Due to a lot of walking involved over the first part of the day and also due to curiosity about the bag, we decided to take a break at the hotel. I, however, took the opportunity to visit the sights at the Mall.

After the break, we had one last stop we wanted to see in D.C.: the Capitol. Although we missed opening hours, it was still impressive to see this building from the outside. In my opinion, it is more remarkable than the White House - which is smaller than I imagined.

To finish the day in D.C. and also to enjoy the last evening of our whole trip to the USA, we went to a pizza place to unwind and to exchange our impressions of the day. Our way back to the hotel led us through Chinatown and showed us a glimpse of the unofficial Washington D.C.