Sampling the cultural riches of
greater Washington DC
After a peaceful night on the hook in
Mattawoman Creek, we arrived in historic Alexandria. Perhaps it is unfair to
compare the great towns of Savannah and Charleston with Alexandria since each
has unique character and beautifully preserved architecture. But, from this
cruiser’s perspective, Alexandria’s old town is the near perfect stop. We
docked at the foot of King Street – the main drag – directly behind the Torpedo
Factory which has been repurposed as art studios and galleries for hundreds of
working artists. There is an 18 mile paved trail that runs along the Potomac
here with the section in downtown Alexandria including the wharf area at the
end of our dock. We found folks, jogging, relaxing and walking their dogs early
in the morning to late at night. One of the best features for me in this area
is all the people who live here. This is not a sterile empty city, but a lively
and lived in historic district. Of
course, the shopping was plentiful from big names, “Ross,” to the unique,
“Lucky Knot”. (I still don’t understand that name.) La Cuisine was a tiny
overstuffed kitchen store which Steve did let me enter – dear boy does like to
eat. We toured the Carlyle House – the stone home of one of Alexandria’s
founders and an early mover and shaker. The events and meetings in that house
were turning points in the move to eventually break with England. The
high-handed treatment of locals by the English army was another contributor to
the growing anti-British sentiment. Many of the early residents of Alexandria
were Irish and Scottish who came to the Americas to escape English oppression
at home and were less than thrilled to experience second class treatment once
again at the hands of Red Coat troops. In addition, the British commander, who arrogantly dismissed the settlers’ advice
and advocated they pay for their own defense, planted the seeds for the
taxation that was the final straw in alienating the colonies. We also visited
the tavern where George Washington dined when he stayed in his town house. This
complex includes the ballroom with music loft where Jefferson celebrated his
inaugural ball. While grand, the room was not large for such a prestigious
event reminding us how times have changed. Besides shopping and history, Old
Town has every type of cuisine known to man. We could not resist eating out more
often than normal. The Lebanese lunch and Thai dinner were standouts. The Bread
and Chocolate bakery deserved several visits. Who can dislike a town where warm
chocolate croissants are a few blocks from the dock? And, from a cruisers
perspective, the perfect place needs to include handy grocery stores. Both a
Whole Foods and Trader Joes were convenient, either an easy walk through
delightful streets or a ride on the free trolley.
Actually our time in Alexandria was
not all devoted to tourist activities. Sadly a virus crashed our PC and we
needed to find the closest Geek Squad for repairs. This was an adventure in
itself. We were lucky that the local Dash bus service would take us from the
end of the free trolley to the Potomac Yard shopping center and the fine geeks
at Best Buy. After a little more than 24 hours they had us back up and
computing with the latest anti-virus software ticking along. All it took was
money. The bus driver felt so sorry for
us when we reappeared for the ride back, she let us ride free. We were spared
another bus adventure by Mike Green who generously ran us out to the Best Buy
to retrieve the PC and hauled our propane tank to the refill station. These
extra trips took us out of the Old Town area and proved this is a great city not
just for boaters.
Dragging ourselves away from friend
like the Greens was hard, but we chugged about five miles further up the
Potomac to the Washington Channel and dropped the hook. A call to the Harbor
Marine Police confirmed we could stay here so we signed up for temporary
membership at the Capital Yacht Club where we have access to their locked
dinghy dock, showers, Wi-Fi and friendly people. There is a fish market next
door with crab legs, lobster and shrimp either fresh or cooked to order – of
course a number of restaurants like the famous Phillips crab house are on site
and best of all, the Smithsonian museums are a short walk up the hill. Our view
includes the Washington Monument, the Capital Dome and a constant stream of
tour or crew boats in the channel. We
are tickled to be anchored among some of the best free culture our country has
to offer. Our cultural experience included a concert by the Smithsonian Jazz
Orchestra in the auditorium of the National History Museum – just a short stroll
from our boat. Then, we were entertained by a free concert – at least free to
us – which was in the outdoor stadium on the waterfront. While most anchorages
are scenic this one – nestled between a park on one side and the heart of DC on
the other is totally unique. The redevelopment plans include installing mooring
balls in this area which will allow more boats to tie up in less space and keep
the channel open for the tour boats.
A
few pictures of our wanderings in DC gardens, monuments, and museums:
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