Enjoying the City

By hannahbethdray

We are already 6 weeks into the semester, and it has been an interesting one to say the least. Insane weather, with two snow days and two days off school for President’s Day and Martin Luther King Day. And this week, I was hit by February Flu, or in the UK what we would refer to us Fresher’s Flu, wherein after a few weeks of classes, and everyone returning back from their holidays, you are knocked off your feet and into bed. I did however get a reprieve this weekend when the sun suddenly appeared, and the temperature wasn’t scarves and gloves for the first time! I have been told that nothing is more beautiful than Washington DC in the Spring and I cannot wait to see this, and this weekend, I started to see the beginnings of it. After spending most of the week watching House of Cards and sleeping, I decided to head down to my favorite spot in DC: the national mall and monuments. Hundreds of people had gathered in the sunshine to take a walk around the Vietnam memorial and Lincoln memorial and have their photographs taken. I had not visited every monument however; my missing ones were The FDR memorial, Martin Luther King memorial and Jefferson memorial.  For any student who has not walked every monument – take some time one afternoon, have your walking shoes on and get out there. Because they will take your breath away, particularly this weekend. I was surprised to find that although there was sunshine some of the reflection pools were still covered in ice.  Our first stop was at the Martin Luther King memorial  where a stone had been pulled out of a larger rock, with the inscription “out of the mountain of despair, a stone of hope.” What I found surprising was that this monument was only completed two years ago, over 40 years after his death. I also walked through the large FDR monument, an interesting look at everything that happened during the 12 year presidency.However my favorite moment of the afternoon was seeing the Jefferson memorial   Sitting beside the water, there were blocks of ice slowly melting and floating on top of the water was an interesting sight! Walking up the steps, it was truly an impressive site , it completely takes your breath away. I love DC, and at times forget how lucky I am to have places like this on my doorstep. Next week keep an eye out for The St Patrick’s Day Parade in Old Town Alexandria on March 1^st.