A 'National' Vaction

Eric and I decided to take our summer vacation over the weekend of the 4th of July.  It worked out that we had 4 days off work and it also happened to be a year from our first date last summer, so we decided to plan a fun weekend.  We had much deliberation about what we should do... Go to Canada?  That't not very American on the 4th.  Take a bike trip to PA breweries?  I'll be riding my bike all week the following week.  Visit some friends in North Carolina?  Too far to drive in a weekend.  We finally decided to go to DC and the surrounding area for the weekend.  A decision we fully recognized had the potential to lead to a lot of traffic and big crowds-- but it turned out to be a great weekend.

We spent the 4th touring the monuments and museums on the National Mall and having lunch at an historic bar called Old Ebbitt, which is right across the street from the White House. Unfortunately, the President was having a 4th of July bash on his lawn, so the roads were closed and we couldn't really see the place, but it was still cool. I got to watch the fireworks from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and the crowds actually turned out to be pretty manageable. 

Our spot between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials for the fireworks show on the National Mall.

One of the best fireworks shows I've seen!

The next day we went to the beach at Assateague National Seashore in Maryland.  The beach was very rustic, with wild horses roaming the beaches and parking lots. We spent most of the day on the bayside because the ocean side was very windy and you couldn't see more than 30 feet out over the water.  Eric took a kite-boarding lesson and I enjoyed the sun and a book. After a day in the sun, I got my urban-explorer fix in Downtown Bethesda, Maryland and ate at my first tapas restaurant.  Whoever decided to make a menu that included eating a sampling of anything and everything you could ever imagine is a genius! It was amazing. 

The beach at Assateague Seasore. 

One of the wild horses we saw at the beach.

On our way home we went to Shenandoah National Park in nortwestern Virginia.  This park has a single roadway, called Skyline Drive, that runs along the ridge of the mountain range for 125 miles.  We hiked in the White Oak area of the park which has 6 waterfalls ranging from 80 feet tall to just 20 feet tall.  Our 7 mile hike took us about 4 hours including stops to catch our breath from all of the climbing and a lunch with a beautiful view of  the valley that I rode through the next week on my bike trip.

From one of the lookout points, we could look down on this 80 ft. waterfall. 

A view from the drive along Skyline Drive.  I rode through this valley the next week and got to look up at these mountains.

It was a great 4th of July weekend touring the National Mall, a National Seashore and a National Park.  And mixing history, cities, and nature. Hope you all got to enjoy a fun-filled and relaxing 4th of July weekend as well!