Here, There & Everywhere

04-09-2025 Catacombs of Washington, D.C., aren’t quite as ancient as the name would suggest, and all but one of the graves are totally fake. They were built at the turn of the 20th century by a well meaning group of Franciscan monks who wanted to create a facsimile of the Holy Land for North Americans… Read more

03-29-2025 Peak Bloom As luck would have it, peak bloom occured on a beautiful Saturday. The area was packed, we were delayed 30 minutes just to exit the train, then another 30 minutes just to walk out of the Metro up to the National Mall. The crowd was thick and the walk slow, but in… Read more

03-25-2025 to 03-28-2025 Cherry Blossoms at last! We rode the Metro into DC each day to see the progress of the blooms. The cherry trees are planted primarily around Tidal Basin and spread to the Washington Monument area. Surprisingly, we found the trees near the Washington Monument were blooming earlier than the ones near the… Read more

03-25-2025 Free museum showcasing an extensive collection of bonsai trees, including one said to be approximately 400 years old. We spent an afternoon here. The museum is attached to the United States Arboretum which we walked through with family on a previous visit years ago. Read more

03-19-2025 & 04-10-2025 The Public Quarry at Government Island in Stafford County, Virginia is the principal source of Aquia Creek sandstone, a building stone used in many of the early government buildings in Washington, D.C., including the U.S. Capitol and the White House. Today the Island is a public park with handicapped accessible ramps. There… Read more

03-16-2025 to 04-13-2025 At long last Martha’s dream of “seeing” the cherry blossoms in DC. Two missed attempts over the years, but this time we planted two weeks early and hit it big. The show was impressive. We stayed at Aquia Pines Camp Resort. It’s tucked in between two major roads, yet retains its feel… Read more