Washington, DC

Recently the Library of Congress opened a new exhibit displaying Thomas Jefferson’s Library. This exhibit displays the collection of books Jefferson sold to the Library of Congress after the Congressional Library was burned when the British burned parts of D.C. in 1814, as part of the War of 1812. This collection is not all original, as over the years some volumes have been destroyed/lost with many being destroyed in the 1851 fire at the Capitol. The original collection that restarted the Library of Congress and helped it begin to develop to become what it is today number 6,487 volumes.

This exhibit in one form or another represents all 6,487 volumes that made up the collection Jefferson sold to the Library of Congress in the early 1800s. The books are displayed in bookcases arranged in a circular pattern. The books are organized by themes that Jefferson himself organized his books. The collection contains about 2,000 books that are originals from the collection. Another 3,000 of the books on display are other copies of the volumes originally in the collection and came from other Library of Congress collections. Some volumes are represented by a box with the title on it. These are the ones that the Library of Congress does not have the original or copy of and is still searching to find the particular version of the book to make the collection more complete.

As you browse the spines of the books in the collection you will likely notice that some books have colored ribbons in them. The ones with green ribbons are originals to the collection. The ones with gold ribbons are recent acquisitions purchased to as part of the effort to make this collection complete. The ones without ribbons are books identical to the ones in the original collection, but have been taken out of other Library of Congress collections, such as the Benjamin Franklin and George Washington collections.

These small exhibit is actually quite fascinating to just browse the spines and discover old books. It is interesting just to read the titles of books Jefferson had in his collection even those in foreign languages that I could not decipher what it meant. The most fun is finding titles of books still known today.

The holiday display on the Ellipse (the park area behind the White House in case you do not know) includes more than just the National Christmas Tree. It also includes a National Menorah that is in a separate area of the Ellipse and over 50 smaller Christmas trees that surround the National Christmas Tree.

The National Christmas Tree has been lit on the Ellipse every year since 1923. This year it has the theme of Holidays in the National Parks. Two trains go around the base of the Christmas Tree. Around the tree are also several small train displays that also include trolleys going through the miniature towns.

The pathway around the Christmas tree goes past over 50 small trees. Each tree represents one of the U.S. states or territories. The small trees are all decorated with ornaments made by different organizations from the specific state or territory such as Girl Scout troops and children’s museums. It really is fun to see the different ornaments, especially the ones that truly represent the specific state or territory such as the cactus ornaments on the Arizona tree. You really can spend hours between enjoying all these trees and watching the trains around the National Christmas Tree. I actually easily spent over an hour just simply photographing each of the small trees and not even spending that much time looking at each, although I certainly would have taken longer to enjoy the different ornaments if I was not hungry.

Along the pathway at the farthest part from the National Christmas tree there is a nativity scene. There is also a traditional yule log fire going near the manager.

holiday, Christmas, ellipse, Menorah, D.C.

It is still possible to get tickets to go in the White House it is certainly not something everyone gets easily. Thus the White House Visitors Center was made and offers a better alternative if you ask me. I did do the tour back in 2001 when I graduated on my class’s 8th grade trip. It was honor then that we got tickets and that was before September 11th, so I imagine it is now even even harder to obtain tickets., however it may be worth a try to contact your member of Congress to try and get some. When my brother visited me for the 1st time in D.C. since he could not go in the White House we brought him to the Visitor Center. I was surprised that it is so well done and much more interesting than the White House tour, although seeing the President’s helicopter land and take off with him was kind of cool to see when I toured the White House, but the rest was not all that well done. (more…)

While perhaps the White House is the most recognized government building in D.C., it is the Capitol building that most stands out when you are actually in D.C. Visiting the Capital building itself is also very doable compared to trying to get inside the White House. It is also in my opinion a much more interesting place allowing you to really see more of something related to the history and current going ons of the U.S. Government. The Capitol can only be seen by taking a guided tour, which are offered between 9:30am and 4:30pm Monday through Saturday. There are no tours on Sundays and the only federal holidays no tours are done on are Thanksgiving and Christmas. Tours are on a first come basis with tickets needing to be obtained the day of by visiting the kiosk near 1st Street SW and Independence Ave SW on the southest side of the Capitol building.

D.C., Capitol

The Library of Congress is one of the most beautiful buildings in D.C. if not the most. The building was built under budget, so some of the leftover funds were used to more ornately decorate the walls and ceilings of the interior. It truly is an amazing building to see even if you are among those who dislike reading. Personally I love books, so I found it also interesting to see the main reading room and learning about how the Library of Congress works.

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The Supreme Court building is a nice government building you can walk into (through security of course) and very rarely will you encounter crowds of tourists. The parts open to visitors are part of the main floor where you enter the building and the upstairs part that leads to the court room. On the ground floor you will no doubt noticed the large statue of John Marshall. This floor has some exhibits relating to the Supreme Court that are changed every so often. You can also watch a film here and visit the gift shop. The main attraction in my opinion, though, is the Spiral Staircase. (more…)