Washington DC Last Day

As we come in for the night we are realizing how painful our feet are because we did so much walking today. We are also have pain in our hearts as we have to say "see you later" to all our wonderful new friends. We have no idea when we will see each other again soon but it could be sooner than we think.
  

Today was the final day of our trip and Washington DC. The first part of our morning consisted of a walking tour which included Library of Congress, the Capital, the White House, and the Washington Monument. All of us enjoyed the Library of Congress because it was a very beautiful library. All of us agreed we wanted to pick something to research because we wanted to try to touch the old fashioned books. Unfortunately we had to keep moving on the tour. We saw President Obama come into the White House because security was pushing us away and snipers were coming on top of the building. It was either President Obama or someone very important, but I'm sure if he met us he would have let us into the White House right away because we are the coolest exchange students ever!!! ;) 

The Capital

 

Library of Congress

Library of Congress

Washington Monument

White House

White House

So a lot of walking makes you very hungery, so we went to the Union Station for lunch. The Union Station is still a working train station with a lot of options for lunch. The main terminal was really pretty and there were a lot of people there. You can easily get lost in there.

In the afternoon all of us had free time to go to the Smithsonian in the National Mall. Mari and Delfina went to the Natural History Museum and Aerospace Museum. They were both very interesting, but Delfina liked the Aerospace Museum and Mari liked the Natural History Museum. In the Aerospace Museum they went on a flight simulator to see what it was like to fly in the sky. They both said they are leaving the flying to the professionals. In the Natural History Museum we went in the butterfly pavilion and they landed on our shoulders. The site was so beautiful. There was so much to see, but little time to see all 10 museums. We will have to come back and see more of the other museums one day in the future.

The last and final activity of our trip was going to a historic part of Washington DC known as Georgetown. We all did some more Shopping and I think the girls had the most fun at this location. We are also thinking the parents are very happy this is the last day of shopping for everyone. We ate at Old Glory BBQ!! The food was great!!!
 

Last Dinner

Old Glory BBQ

On our way home we played a trivia game to see who knew the most about their American History. Mariana, Brazil, and Chloe, Taiwan, won the game, but it came down to a tie breaker question.

This week went by so fast and we can't believe how much we have done this week. We had a great adventure and we are packing our bags till our next big adventure!!! We have made life long friends and it is time to leave our favorite city for good!!

Thanks for reading our adventures this week and we will be returning to our host families tomorrow!!! Take Care!!

Delfina, Argentina
Mariana, Brazil

Washington DC Day 1

We have arrived in Washington DC and we are ready to learn some American History. At the end of the day we were so tired from walking, but we didn't even realize throughout the day how much walking we actually did because of all the interesting monuments we saw.

First up, came the National Mall. At the National Mall we saw the Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument, Vietnam Wall, Martin Luther King Memorial, and the Korean Memorial. From the Lincoln Memorial you could see every memorial and the beautiful reflecting pool. The view was fantastic. We weren't surprised by the size of Lincoln because he has been portrayed in the movies to be much bigger. The Jefferson Memorial was really unique because it was on a lake and you could see the south lawn of the White House. This was our first glimpse at what the White House looked liked. Our favorite memorial was Martin Luther King Jr. because many people in the world know about him and understand what he represented. He represented that peace could be achieved in the world. Today was a very important day for him because it was the 45th anniversary of his death.

Martin Luther King Jr. stood here with his speech"I Have A Dream"

Lincoln Memorial

Jefferson Memorial

Korean Memorial

/

Future First Wives??? Our girls with Eleanor Roosevelt

Martin Luther King Jr.

FDR Memorial

Of course you can't go to DC without doing more SHOPPING!! We went to lunch at Fashion Center  right next to the Pentagon. Don't worry we only spent $500 each ;)

To wrap up our day we went to Mount Vernon, the home of the first President of the United States George Washington. One of the videos about George Washington was an interactive theater. During the presentation snow was falling from the ceiling. Another part of Mount Vernon we enjoyed was the view of the Potomic River. We enjoyed the farm animals and all the nature that was offered there. We have been in the city for so long we forgot what nature looked like. Mount Vernon is a very peaceful place and we understand why George Washington lived in this area.

Mount Vernon

To end our night we had dinner at the Mount Vernon Inn where we had food from the 18th century. The food consisted of ham or turkey with veggies and potatoes. To top it off, we of course had a New England treat, some Apple Pie.

Day One was great and we learned a lot. We can't wait to see the White House tomorrow!!! Stay tuned for our adventures in Washington DC!!

Mari, Brazil
Jenny, Norway

Philadelphia

It was really sad to leave New York, but we knew that we had more adventures ahead. So on we went on the big blue bus to Philly!!

In Philly we went to lunch at the historical Reading Terminal. The Reading Terminal use to be an old train station converted into a fresh market that is found in many other countries. The food is really amazing to eat and we saw a dead pig. The big was tied by its hooves and it was funny to look at in the middle of an American market.

Reading Terminal eating some Ice Cream

So once we were done with lunch we went to the National Constitution Center to see how the United States was created. Philly is actually the place where the United States was born and Washington DC was not created until the 1800's. At the Constitution Center we took the Oath as President, learned about freedom, and voted on American Presidents. We also took a lot pictures with the statues of the founding fathers.

Liberty Bell

Liberty Bell

Hold Federal Bank

Christ Church

We made it to the top of the stairs like Rocky

We went on a walking tour of Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, Ben Franklin's home, and many other interesting places. We learned a lot about the city. One part of the tour was Ben Franklin's grave and each of us tossed a penny on his grave. If it landed on heads than we were given good luck, but if it was on tails then Ben Franklin received our luck. One of our favorite places was Carpenter Hall because this is where the first Congressional Congress ever met. Another part of the stop we enjoyed was Christ Church because this has been a church where some of the former Presidents have attended. We also ran up the steps of the Phildeplphia Art Museum, where Rocky is famous for climbing these steps.

After all this walking we were getting hungry and if your in Philly you have to have a Philly Cheesesteak at Bridget Foy's. The food was delicious and that concluded our day in Philly.

 

Of too Washington DC!!!