DC Day 4: The Capitol, Jefferson and FDR Memorials

[I'm writing about this day 7 days later because internet at the hotel was getting expensive.]

First day we used a tour trolley. Thank goodness for public transportation, because it was raining the first half of the day. Why didn't we think of this sooner? And it was buy one day, get one day free deal.



Things we learned from the day (lest we forget):

• Our 2nd tour bus driver, Super Dave, said to take lots of pictures because people won't remember what was said during a tour, and that pictures last a lifetime. This is true, because I'm having a hard time remembering a lot of what was said that day. Or any day, for that matter.
  
• He also said that for our safety that we should keep our arms and legs in the trolley or else they'll get cut off. When he finds arms and legs, he brings them to the gas station. Haha, bad joke.
• Statues at Union Station were originally nude, but because people were so aghast about nudity during those days, architect Daniel Burnham covered them with shields. The private parts are still there though.
• The Columbus Fountain at Union Station has a bunch of symbols. I may be remembering incorrectly, but the female figure at the front of the bow of the ship on the Columbus statue has her eyes closed because he didn't know where he was going.
• The Statue of Freedom, located at the top of the Capitol dome, is 19.5 feet tall. All statues in DC cannot be taller than 19 feet. Why? Because nothing can be higher than freedom.
  
• Food at the Capitol cafeteria sucked, mostly because it was way overpriced.
• Thomas Jefferson didn't like being President. He wanted to be remembered as one who wrote the Declaration of Independence, the statute for religious freedom, and founder of University of Virginia. He did not want to be remembered as a President. He also had a vanilla ice cream recipe, and I think that's worthy to mention as well. He seems like someone I'd have a beer with. His memorial is based on his favorite style, Roman architecture (the Lincoln Memorial is Greek, while the Washington Monument is Egyptian).
• Our other tour drivers made many other bad jokes. While I won't write the jokes, I will write the punchlines (lest I forget): "A day late and a dollar short", "laundering your money is illegal", "Hawaii 5-0", etc.