Washington, DC - Day 5

Wake up: 5:30am (again, didn't need to be up til 7:30...)
Breakfast: 9:00am (running a 1/2 hr later than planned)
Metro: 10:30am (running an hr behind now) [we finally rode a line all the way to the end!]
Bus: 12:02pm (well, we got to the station at 11:07 and there had been a bus at 11:03 so we had to wait for the next one...an hr later - now we were running an hr and a half behind)
Arrival at Mount Vernon: 12:30pm
We watched a decent intro video and then were released onto the estate (which seems really big but the part the public is allowed on isn't really because we walked most of it) about 1:00pm.
The mansion was only worthwhile because of the employees (volunteers?) who were giving (very) short talks about the different rooms, but other than that, the model in the Ford Center was really more interesting (I found) because it was an exact replica (working door knobs and windows) that could be looked at up close (well as close as the case would allow) and looked kinda like a doll house because it was so small yet so detailed. We had been through most of the grounds and the mansion by 4:15pm so we headed toward the exit (the museum, shops, restaurant, and learning center) and spent a while looking around in there til they closed at 5:00. The plan had been to eat a late lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant but since we were running so late and weren't sure how long the tour of the estate would take we decided to skip on the lunch and continue exploring. Fortunately, the restaurant stays open later than everything else so we actually had dinner there. It was decent food but a lot of it you could tell was pre-prepared and therefore not technically period-authentic as the atmosphere of the restaurant was trying to set. We caught the bus back to the Metro Station at 6:30pm and caught the Metro back to DC about 7:00pm on which we decided to go see the monuments (Lincoln and Washington) at night. We got off at the Arlington Station and walked across the Potomac to the Lincoln Memorial and hung out there til after sunset. While we were waiting a (really knowledgable about Lincoln) park ranger told us all about the man...it was crazy how much this ranger knew about our former President (down to what he usually ate and the arguments between him and Mary Todd). There were still a couple hundred people at the Lincoln Memorial so we took a few pictures of it and the Washington Monument (across the reflecting pool) lit up and then headed down the street (a good walk but the shortest route) to our hotel, stopping only at the 7-11 to pick up drinks and ice cream. bedtime...walking around in the sun is tiring

sleeping in tomorrow...probably some museum...more later