Morning Walk on Capitol Hill

Someone asked us if we missed our morning walks on Capitol Hill. Yes, we do. But we don’t miss the 1890’s building that brought with it all the problems and unexpected issues for “easy living.” Add street parking to the mix and it was very unpleasant at times. Although it all looked so picturesque from the outside! Now that the blazing heat of summer is subsiding, we will be making a habit of driving in to the old neighborhood for our morning walk since we can’t attend any programs at the Library of Congress where I worked for ten years. It’s usually a pleasant drive and only 5-10 miles away depending on where we want to go. Yesterday we thought a stroll around the Supreme Court, Capitol, US Botanic Garden and the new Eisenhower Memorial would be good. It was a beautiful day as we found a parking spot on Duddington. The streets were still pretty empty as well as a lack of pedestrian traffic. We drove in on Saturday and there were a lot of people milling about for the first time since March. Where the Supreme Court was filled with momentos, flowers, and well wishers, it was all cleared away in preparation for the public viewing. The Capitol complex was also devoid of activity, but the fences were up to control the expected pedestrian traffic. We have walked this route a million times but it never gets boring. We do miss just walking over when great events occur - late at night was a much quieter time to pay respects. It’s still nice to be able to visit whenever we feel like it, but it’s not quite the same anymore.