A Washington DC Walkabout, Washington D.C., USA

Spontaneity has not been much of a feature of my traveling exploits lately, but the Christmastime trip to Washington had a bit of spontaneity in it. It was originally conceived as an opportunity for moms to do things with kids, and my participation in that was vague at best. Just a few days before the departure, while discussing the itinerary, I suddenly recognized that I was afforded a chance for a self-guided photo-walk around the city while the rest of my family would be engaged elsewhere. The last of my past trips to the Washington area had happened way before I re-ignited my enthusiasm for photography, so my picture archives of the United States capital city were pretty thin. So I took my camera and on the morning of December 25th somewhat unexpectedly found myself walking around the National Mall in Washington, DC.

I focused almost entirely on the well-known landmarks and monuments. Starting with that majestic sight of the US Capitol.

That is the frontal view across the Capitol Reflecting Pool, with the equestrian statue of the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial in the foreground. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).