Washington DC

Funny thing on the plane, a young chap, age 11, befriended me & chatted. I got his life story, where he was born, his family  had been to the gulf of Mexico to see his dad, proudly told me about his dad's very important job, sounded like with an oil company & he travels the world & if anone has done anything bad, he gets rid of them! His words, not mine, when he first said it, I thought it sounded like he was a mercenry, then I picked up on the oil company bit. Anyway his dad recommended the seafood from the Gulf of Mexico as the best in the world! .... and he agreed.
When we got off the plane & I was waiting for the group, he passed trailing his mom & sisters & he pointed them out to me as he passed, exaggeratedly -  pssst this is them!

Washington DC

Quick dump of bags & out for what they called an American Italian meal at Fratelli, 2 sisters running the show looked like Mexican so v authentic. Food was fine, tried lasagane but probably my own better, That said one of the better meals we have had in US!!!

Next morning Tuesday 17th off to Arlington Cemetry, all military graves. Next day - after fitful sleep in the noisiest hotel so far, I turned off the aircon thinking that was the noise, but really it masked the real noise, whatever it was, traffic, other aircons. Tuesday we drove to Arlington Cemetry, all graves of military personell & their families. Saw the grave of JFK - one big lawned area & rather oddly I thought Jackie was there next to him along with 2 babies, one stillborn & one died an infant.
God it was hot, & the place was crawling with of schoolkids
Then we were dropped in the Smithsonian Museum precint & told to go for it, had to be back at dropoff point, road side of Washington Monument at 5.30. Luckily we set straight off for The WHite House to afternoon tea with the Obamas, joke Joyce - what actually happened was we schlepped along in the heat 98f in the old scale (so much for my research which suggested 25c as the average in JUne for most of these places along the east coast- not Florida obviously) & viewed the backside of it from the road.  OK done that, due to limited time, we decided on the Native American Museum, just a coincidence that it was one of the furtherest away from where we were. By the time we got there, Englishrose-complexioned Pat & I were like redfaced lobsters. Funny thing is most don't wear hats, (we did) maybe there is a hole in the ozone layer above Australia as the heat was intense & most of the walk was in the sun. 
Native American museum was most interesting, took in natives of both north & south America. What struck me was that these native cultures are so bound up with animals, very important to their survival. Apparently there are 600 different tribes remaining, although one had only one woman & her two daughters, so sounds like days are numbered for that tribe! There is one tribe the Lakota, who have 2 million acres in SOuth Dakota, I wonder if they have always had it or has it been reclaimed under a native title arrangement when it dawned on white america that perhaps the dispossession was unfair.
Just reminded me & don't think I mentioned it at the time, but the Belle Meade Plantation we saw in Nashville, was bought by the family who built it up as a horse stud came on the market when the original owners were scalped! 
We had a nice lunch at the Native foods cafe, one of the best so far, & it's all about the CORN. We had something called Full Colour plate, really a selection of 4 salads, one based on big white corn, one cut ear of corn with squash & zucchini, once wildrice (best one) & one okra jalepeno braise. ILO of the okra Pat had something called hominy - not nice at all, it was the corn without the yellow skin - don't bother.
Extensive collection of what looked like ceremonial clobber, all feathers & beads, not too much buckskin, expected more.
We went to another museum, Air & Space, by this time so stuffed looked for the theatre & paid $8 for a Dark Universe show, lay back & show is on the dome above, well we paid $8 for a bit of a kip, couldn't keep our eyes open!
When we left, these museums take up what appears to be a full city block & naturally we left by another street entrance than we came in, & of course the usual frantic search for meeting place ensued, with I don't remember that construction & this doesn't look right & this bloody monument has 4 sides and we may have to get a taxi back. Anyway met the group finally in plenty of time!