Thursday, April 17 – Catherine and I rode to Crystal City. There were airplanes everywhere. The airplane at the Metro Station was called "Barnstorming" by Artist Matt Wuerker. I got a bacon, egg and cheese biscuit at McDonalds. We took the wrong Metro to the National Archives so we had to walk several blocks. I forgot the pink forms so we had trouble finding the correct entrance. We had a great tour. The National Archives houses original copies of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution (on permanent display), as well as hundreds of thousands of other lesser-known historical documents; a rotating exhibit program begun in 2005 opens the vaults on previously unviewed artifacts, papers, and letters.

We ate lunch at the National Gallery café near the waterfall. I had a lemon tart for dessert and Catherine got a single gelato. We toured the National Gallery of Art West Bldg. and then the East Bldg. As we were walking south to the Federal Center Metro Station we witnessed an accident between a cab and van at the corner of 4th and Independence Ave. SE. I left my name, address and phone number with the van driver as a witness.

We rode the Metro to Pentagon City. We ate early dinner at the Nordstrom café of Chinese Chicken Salads with crostinis. I purchased an ice cream dessert set of four bowls and four plates at Williams-Sonoma at 6:30 PM as a gift for my daughter-in-law. Catherine got a Tall Caramel Frappacino and I got shortbread cookies and tea at Starbucks. We rode the Metro to the Pentagon Station where we caught the bus.