Theodore Roosevelt Island and Memorial

Anyone who watches movies will recognize the Lincoln Memorial or the Jefferson Memorial, but Theodore's memorial never gets any play.

His statue might not seem as majestic as Lincoln's, but Teddy has an entire island to himself. You'd think people would be impressed by that.

You actually need to metro over to Virginia to get to the memorial. Then you walk over a long bridge overlooking the Potomac and Georgetown.

The island has walking paths, some interesting plants and quite a few little buzzing things. We also spotted locals fishing (brave souls).

It's a nice park and makes a great afternoon outing on a pleasant day. Just don't look for vendors or anything, cause you won't likely find any.

Washington Folk Festival at Glen Echo Park

The Washington Folk Festival at Glen Echo Park was this past weekend. They had every kind of music from bluegrass to gospel. That'd be the gospel group in the pic.

Weather was idyllic. Crowds were thick, but not impossibly so. There were a lot of kids around, which didn't make the boyfriend too happy. The small people eventually pushed us off.

Aside from music, the park was highlighting arts and crafts, many of which were made on premises. Glen Echo has classes in ceramics, painting, glass blowing, writing, and just about every other creative thing you can think of.

There is also a historic merry-go-round, a dance hall (where they teach dance), and a cafe. It's pretty much a crafty person's dream. The highlight for me was watching the glass blowing. I really need to learn how to do that. Look how happy he is!

Whitehouse Hippy Protest

I believe I have mentioned in past posts that protesters often gather in Lafayette Park behind the Whitehouse.

Sometimes people camp out, sometimes they just walk around with sandwich boards and a megaphone. Code Pink likes to get creative - shoe throwing, animal outfits...

A couple weeks ago, Chris and I were walking through Lafayette on our way somewhere and ran into these two (pretty awful) musicians who were giving a concert straight out of 1969.

They had all of about four people grooving to the music and another twenty or so tourists taking snaps and moving on. The sign says "Wanted Wisdom & Honesty Peace Park." Peace Park is a 24 hour a day vigil that has been going on in Lafayette Park since 1981. Not sure how camping in the park is supposed to bring peace, but I guess it can't hurt.

Now if they started a little Lafayette Park agriculture project, that might spread some peace.

Reflecting Pool in Washington, DC

The reflecting pool stretches from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial down towards the Washington Monument. It's one of the most famous spots in DC and is filled with thousands of tourists any day of the week.

The paths and tree-covered grassy areas on either side of the pool are where you will find the locals. It's a great place for a walk, jog, bike ride, or nap.