Annapolis MD to Front Royal VA13 Mar 2011
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some lamp post art on the highway
Driving around Washington DC
Some building in Washington. looking for parking
| Today a slow start again but it was Sunday so that excuse worked for us as we wanted to go by the local Harley dealer and the shops don’t open till 10 on a Sunday. No bargins here, so we drove into Washington DC for a bit of a look around only to find that there was a Saint Patricks day parade being held. Only in America can they celebrate a day NOT on the actual day!!! Not only do the coppers close streets, parking was at a premium and the traffic was at a standstill so as we had seen most of the Washington DC sights on a previous visit, we bailed on that idea and drove to a Starbucks for a coffee.    It was good to take time to plan the next few days, make a hotel booking then get back on the road and head for Chantilly to check out the Smithsonian National Air and Space hangar at Washington Dulles airport. The hangar is an annex to the Air and Space Museum in Washington and is home to some of the larger exibits. There was a lot of historical aircraft there such as a Concorde, Space Shuttle Enterprise, the “Enola Gay” bomber that dropped the first atomic bomb on Japan and many others.       One, which was quite amazing, was the Virgin Atlantic Global Flier that holds the world record for longest distance on one tank of fuel. 41,467 km and nearly 77 hour in the air with a cabin that the pilot flew lying down is a huge achievement in both engineering and ability to overcome boredom.The Hanger is well worth a stop and other than $15 parking, free to visit. Also it is the first time we have seen a McDonalds store actually inside a Museum. Just in case you get a bit pecky whilst visiting I guess. Dulles is a very busy airport with planes landing every 30 seconds or so. It was great to be able to park so close to the end of the runway to see and hear the noise of jets landing. We watched a few planes land, got a couple of pics and continued west towards our nights accommodation at a Quality Inn in the Shenondoah National park town of Front Royal.       Found a mexican resturant for dinner that served traditional mexican food and we walked out bursting at the belt buckle for abou $30 including drinks. It is one of those type of meals you regret having but shit it was nice. |
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