Last thursday through this tuesday I was on the East Coast with my sister and dad. It was greatness. One of the main reasons we went was to look at Patrick Henry, a college that both of us are considering, but we spent most our time in and just out of DC (the District of Columbia, for you unpatriotic types). We spent a full day on the National Mall and Capitol Hill. A lot of people and tourists because of the Cherry Blossom Festival, but it was way worth it. Sometimes I like to avoid tourist spots, but sometimes you just have to be like "Well, there's a reason a lot of tourists come here. Because it's amazing!" So yes, that was what the national mall was. The Washington Monument was a lot taller than I expected. I guess it's around 500 feet. That's half the height of the Eiffel Tower! (Which is another amazing structure I've been up. :) ) We saw it before we even got over the bridge going into DC.
The last full day (Monday) we went to Mt. Vernon (Washington's place of residence). That was pretty much my favourite place ever. I would give a lot of money (if I had it) to have that be my home. It's a fully working farm (even though there aren't half as many livestock as when George was alive), and has a great view of the Potomac (pronounced Pah-toe-mic. We had a long debate about this). Here's a couple pictures that sum up why I loved it so much:
We also sat in the sunroom with two "characters" that "lived" on the estate. The first was Washington's head slave, who went with him wherever he went during and after the war. He had a great old American proper accent, but as soon as the presentation was over and people started asking questions that the character wouldn't know, he dropped the accent and sounded like a regular black guy from New Jersey (which he was). Same with the other guy, who played Washington's lifelong friend and physician. He had a Scottish accent, which I was pretty convinced was the real thing. But then he "cleared his throat", and almost sounded southern Hill billyish. It was great fun to hear their accents. That's always been something that fascinates me, how people can put on accents and such. If you've never listened to "His Last Bow", a reading of Doyle's Sherlock Holmes', do. It's read by Frederick Davidson, and he does so many accents it's crazy! Cockney English, proper English, American, Spanish, even girls voicese. It's quite convincing and very entertaining to listen to. Click right here to listen to some of it! It's the 3rd down. Let me know what you think!
The day we flew back was our school's dance, which they insist on calling the "Soiree". This year's theme was 1920's Paris, which followed through in the decor, menu, and entertainment of the evening. There was a live accordion playing, a mime (a great friend of mine, but I didn't even recognize him until later on), and a caricature artist. It was a great night of dancing, talking, and laughing! I think I'm a bit bias, but I never think there're enough ballroom songs. There were, of course, the feel-good slow dance songs like You and Me and Iris, but we only got a few swing songs in, and even less of classics like Frank Sinatra. But it was great dancing, and a great night all in all. :)
And last but not least, is hiking! I went on a short one yesterday with friends Rebekah, Grace, and Twyla, who was down visiting from SF this week. :) The hike itself was pretty uneventful, but we sat at this lovely spot on top of a rock near the pond in Malibu State Park. I think I fell asleep for a little bit in the sun. Quite lovely, to sound proper. =P It was a perfect day for hiking and sitting on rocks. We also spent quite a bit of time watching these two guys try to cross over the rock face down above the pond. We came up with names and a plot, to boot. The first guy (who made it over)'s name was Ted. He has a younger sister named Sara, who is the second guy's fiancee/boyfriend. The second guy (Jason) is Ted's prospective brother in law, so Ted decided to take him out for "male bonding".. or, in other words, to test him. Jason went along with it, claiming he was great at rock climbing. So poor Jason was having a hard time getting around one part in the cliff, but he felt that he *had* to make it in order to prove himself to Ted. It was all very entertaining. We even clapped and cheered for Jason when he made it over. :)
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