Thursday, Nov 9, 2023 - Library of Congress & Capitol

Deb here again. We had an exciting morning, since we'd learned the day before that Erick and Hannah would be passing through from the boatyard in Norfolk on their way to Greenport. We made plans to meet Hannah and Erick at Ruthie's All Day Diner in Arlington at 10 am, and Ginny would join us there. Tom, Kim, John and I took an Uber there and once again, so easy. We had a wonderful (but too short) time catching up with Erick and Hannah over brunch and then said our goodbyes. Jon arrived to pick up Tom for a noon tee time at his local golf course, and John, Kim, and I all took an Uber back to our apartment. 

Kim felt as though she needed an afternoon's rest (she's getting her hip replaced at the end of the month), and John and I decided we'd go into the city to check out the Library of Congress. This was another stop that hadn't been on our radar, but we wanted to check it out on the recommendation of our friend Keith Kennedy. 

We easily found our way to the Library of Congress via the metro and wow, we were blown away by the building. A definite must visit site when in Washington! A gorgeous building that included all kinds of tile work, a grand dome, magnificent reading room, and even Thomas Jefferson's Library. So cool.

After leaving there we decided to see if we could get inside the Capitol Building. It turned out to be an easy process, and before we knew it we were in a tour group. Our 23 year old tour guide did a wonderful job, taking us into the Supreme Court Chambers and the Senate Chambers of the 1800's, the Rotunda, and the Statuary, giving us interesting tidbits of info along the way. Another highly recommended visit.

We returned to the apartment, and later on the four of us walked nearby to The Clubhouse, where we met up with Tom's bio sister Kelly and her daughter Lauren. We had lots of fun chatting with them, eating bar food, and having a drink. It eventually got really loud, so the 6 of us walked to The Bodega, a quieter spot that Lauren knew of, and followed up on more conversation and drinks before heading back to the apartment.