One of the mistakes that I have made in my traveling life as an Ultimate Frisbee player, a conference goer, and a teacher consultant was to neglect the city of my destination. In my forties when I began to pay my way to conferences and come to the realization that I have been to cities such as Savannah, Georgia over 20 times and never seen more than the building surrounding
Forsyth Park, I began to deliberately plan my trips with at least one off day. In Vegas, I enjoyed the NCTE & ALAN conference, but spent my Sunday in Red Rock Canyon and at the Hoover Dam. In Boston, we toured the historical sites on Sunday including the Boston Public Library, gorgeous. When I found out my conference was going to be in DC this year, I planned 4 extra days, two with my friend and two with my family. I thought I would share some of my top five sites from this visit since my eye is twitching from reading too many essays today.
5. Crossing the Potomac! The power of GPS!
4. Eleanor...one of the few women represented on the Mall!
3. The thought and creativity in the design of the 9-11 Memorial at the Pentagon. Visually stunning both day and night!
2. The important ideals of our leaders as invaluable reminders throughout the city.
1. Seeing the Library of Congress and a real snowfall with my kid.
Now I have a year to figure out what to do in Minneapolis!
Love your photos. Each one probably could lead to a new piece of writing. Glad you had a good time at NCTE and could extend your visit to include friends and family.
ReplyDeleteI hadn't thought about that! Thanks for the idea!
DeleteThanks for sharing these! I did not get beyond the environs of the Gaylord, but that was adventure enough!
ReplyDeletePart of it is hard for me to be indoors for so long! I get antsy! I also have a great partner in crime from work who travels with me and shares the same philosophy! The Gaylord was amazing!
DeleteBeth,
ReplyDeleteI'm so jealous! I was disappointed to be so close to Washington DC and not be able to actually find the time to visit. I really wanted to see the WWII Memorial and the Martin Luther King Memorial. I'm going to have to start considering an extra day for sight seeing. You are so smart!
Cathy
They were both amazing. Picture never capture their grandness! So different from the Lincoln and TJ Memorial, but all powerful!
DeleteIt's so great that you are taking advantage of your time in all of these places. You could go to the sculpture garden in Minneapolis at the Walker Art Museum (the museum is fun too). I love it and it's where the iconic cherry and spoon are. There's a greenhouse there too and I think it's open even during winter. There's a sculpture in there also. There are some great independent bookstores there too like Birchbark Books and Wild Rumpus. Have fun whatever you do.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the advice! I will add this info to my notes!
DeleteBeth, I first experienced writing in a writer's notebook (too early for blogs, but our prof read our entries) in a graduate course in the mid '90s. It was a powerful experience! Kudos to you for extending the challenge to all your students. Love your pics and comments from your DC excursions.
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