The Washington Post

Harbinger of lines to come

My husband has always wanted to visit Washington D.C.

Waiting in the rain in a museum

So for my birthday we went to Maui and this year for his, we went to the nation's capital — the most visited place in the United States and at the busiest time.

We planned to visit the White House, the Capitol, the Jefferson Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument, Mount Vernon, Arlington, and several of the Smithsonian museums.
It was a good, ambitious plan.
We just didn't plan on taking along Utah weather.
Our first clue that we'd misjudged the situation was when we noticed free "wet umbrella bags" on every turn.
Our second was that we were depending on our heavy raincoats, raincoats we'd only grabbed at the last minute because my son (who has been there before) suggested we might need them.
We needed the weatherproofing, the warmth and the hoods.

Happy Birthday Marc!

Turns out that Washington D.C. downpours are soakers.
The granite sidewalks hold the water so you're sloshing through about a half inch to an inch of water all the time.
The tourist attractions are not designed for tourist comfort. There's nowhere to hide from the raindrops until you get inside.
It's really quite the challenge.

Not singing in the rain

We got so we looked forward to getting onto the Metro for refuge.

waiting in the rain at The White House

I decided early on I would save my travel blog about seeing Washington's teeth and the enslavement quarters at Mount Vernon and Ford's Theater where Lincoln was shot and the Green Room at the White House and post this warning first.

Waiting in the rain for the Capitol

If you visit Washington D.C. in the spring (or apparently in the summer, the fall or the winter) go prepared for weather that changes in the blink of an eye.
Take layers, long sleeves and waders!