Day 8 (Washington D.C.)

Washington D.C. is the home of the most powerful people, including the president of the United States. The white house is a heavily guarded fortress that allows the president at the time to have a workspace in the wings of the home and a family area on the second floor of the main building. This allows a most safe and secure location for whoever the president may be. The White House was built between 1792 and 1800. In 1814, during the War of 1812, the mansion was set on fire and left to burn by the British Army in the Burning of Washington, destroying the interior and much of the exterior. Reconstruction began almost immediately, and President James Monroe moved into the partially reconstructed house in October 1817. Construction continued with the addition of the South Portico in 1824 and the North in 1829. By 1948, the house's load-bearing exterior walls and internal wood beams were found to be close to failure. Under Harry S. Truman, the interior rooms were completely dismantled and a new internal load-bearing steel frame constructed inside the walls. Once this work was completed, the interior rooms were rebuilt. (To see a layout of the White house grounds go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktqgtlFjWRwh?v=ktqgtlFjWRw)

My first visit to Washington D.C. was when I was 10. The first birthday trip my grandparents took me on. Washington D.C. for a long weekend along with other surprises, one was that we were going to go into the White House. Never having even been outside the White House, I was so looking forward to seeing the inside. The wait was long. Minutes felt like hours as we waited to go through security and to enter. Once we got in, I was in Ah. It was Beautiful; the famous staircase was just as I had pictured. The East room, Green room, Blue room, Yellow room, and the Red room were all the colors the names promised. When we got to the end of the tour, we walked out onto the south lawn and proceeded through the Iron Gate that was locked behind us. The tour showed me everything that was meant for the public eye, but behind closed doors and up stairwells was the true White House.

Along with The White house there is another important building located atop Capitol Hill. At the eastern end of the National Mall is The United States Capitol, the meeting place of the United States Congress. A groundbreaking ceremony for the Capitol took place on September 18, 1793 officially starting its construction.(Go to this link to see the history of the US Capital Building: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmo-A_8HoOM)

Along with my visit to the White House, the other surprise was a tour of the US Capital Building. Before going to the capital, we needed to go to our states Representative, who at the time was Patrick Murphy. The capital was amazing. The history behind it was phenomenal. The capital played such a large role in the founding and building of the United States and its history is clearly displayed in its original beams and timbers. With British ammunition bullet holes and scorch marks plentiful, it was clear that this place had stood up to numerous attacks. The number of attacks is probably unimaginable. During another visit to Washington, Ih got to visit the capital building and Supreme Court with my 7th grade class. Both times were amazing and fun.

Both my visits to Washington D.C. were great. Finding all that history in one place and getting to visit one of the most renowned places of all time is something that I will never forget. I can’t wait to see were my school and Grandparents take me next.