Washington DC

Sunday 4 May 2008

After a good night’s sleep I was even happier to be able to get a good morning’s breakfast at the bistro downstairs. The bowl of mixed berries and toasted blueberry bagel with cream cheese were a perfect to start the day. We caught the 10.05am Gallaudet University shuttle to Union Station to meet up with the Washington Sightseeing Bus. There are 26 stops you can get on an off at, although with Jill’s wheelchair, we weren’t planning too many ‘off’s’. I obviously attract tour groups of children (read “The Little Whitehouse”, Warm Springs) because after a short ride, we were joined by what seemed liked hundreds of Spanish speaking pre-pubescent’s with a couple of adults to supervise. A few hours later (well, 9 stops actually) the National Cathedral came into view where they all piled off – for religious study, I suppose. Not far from there is Embassy Row, and I wasn’t quite quick enough to take a photo of the British Embassy, complete with a large, bronze sculpture of my benefactor for this trip, Sir Winston Churchill.

We decided we’d like to go for a cruise on The Potomac River so disembarked in Georgetown, a lovely Harbour-side suburb with lots of trendy shopping and eating options available. We headed on down a fairly steep hill (I wasn’t looking forward to going back up . . .) to the Georgetown Waterfront Park where we joined other happy Sunday holiday-makers basking in the glorious sunshine. A short time later we were aboard the “George Washington” National River Tours boat enjoying the views.

Time to get back up THAT hill! Jill walked a bit, I pushed a bit, we both stopped a lot, but we eventually made it thinking we could now eat that extra piece of triple chocolate fudge cake. We boarded the bus, each with a different agenda in mind – Jill to see the National Air & Space Museum (which she didn’t end up getting to) and the American Indian Museum (which she did) – and me to see the sculpture park and later the United States Botanical Garden (USBG). Not that I knew that I was going to the USBG but while I was wandering around the attractive but smaller-than-anticipated sculpture park, one of the omnipresent authorities of some sort stuck up a conversation with me as I was taking photos. He said I was the second Australian he’d spoken to that day and I thought, “He must be an Aussie magnet in the same way I’m a school kid magnet”. He then surmised that, being from Australia (Melbourne NOT Sydney), I must be into the great outdoors, or nature at the very least, and pointed me in the direction of the USBG. This was actually a good suggestion and not too far to walk. It also took me close to Capitol Hill which was interesting from a distance, although I didn’t feel the need to venture any closer.

After meandering around the lovely BSBG for a while, I found my way back to Union Station on foot (another piece of cake) and had a look around the building. It’s a massive structure and very impressive inside with huge vaulted ceilings and intricately patterned windows. Jill and I had agreed to meet again at 7.00pm for tea and this time she had my mobile phone number in the event of any mishaps. While I was waiting for the Uni shuttle to pick me up, I started chatting with another woman, who was staying at the Kellogg Conference Hotel, about why we were there, etc. Of course, I mentioned my study tour and she told me her husband had contracted polio as an adult and was experiencing a range of symptoms that his neurologist wasn’t able to diagnose. Sound familiar? Unfortunately, she lives in Texas or I would have suggested she contact Dr Lauro Halstead at the National Rehab Hospital (NRH) here in Washington.

Tomorrow we’ve been invited to lunch with Wendy Wilmer, President of The Polio Society based in Washington, DC (www.poliosociety.org), together a some others on the Board of Directors. Dr Halstead, who we are meeting up with at the NRH on Tuesday, is on their advisory panel. It’s interesting how meetings and food go hand in hand. I suppose this format has been going on for time immemorial, and I’m certainly enjoying these occasions.