Joanne is this weeks host. Her challenge post is here. I’ve decided to concentrate my article on a place I think is special and that’s Washington DC, USA. In truth I could have featured any number of places but Washington is somewhere special for us.
My brother and his family moved to New Jersey, USA, in the early nineties and ended up living there for over twenty years before returning to the UK in 2015. We took full advantage of that and visited most years, usually in the Autumn or a little later for Thanksgiving and the start of the Holiday Season (Thanksgiving would have been my Lens-Artist ‘Longing Challenge’ post if I’d had time to write a few weeks ago).
During every visit to Neils we would drive down to Washington, about 3-4 hours by car from Princeton, usually staying for a few nights in the Springfield area on the end of the Blue Washington Metro line.
We found Washington really buzzy and interesting and there’s so much to see and do. I was always more than happy just wandering the National Mall area or drifting up into Georgetown and we spent a lot of time there. In that same area you have access to some outstanding museums, monuments and parks.
You could spend a whole day in some of the museums. We’ve visited the National Air and Space Museum (we had a fantastic guided tour there), the Museum of American History and the Holocaust Museum to name a few. All were outstanding and provided for free by the Smithsonian Institute. On our last visit we picked up free tickets for a tour of the Capitol Building which was shorter than we expected but again a great experience.
Washington Zoo is another free attraction we really enjoyed as well as Arlington Cemetery. Two more visits that could easily tie up a couple of days.
As I said at the start of the article, there are so many places I could have featured here. London, The Brecon Beacons Wales, Marrakech Morocco, The Cotwolds UK. All are special. I can’t say that Washington DC has any more to offer than any of these, but it was just somewhere we were always drawn to, really enjoyed and we went out of our way to make a visit there happen.
We haven’t returned to that side of America since my brother left. I’d like to think we will go back to Washington some day but having said that, there’s so much more of America I would like to see. I’ll leave my blog there for now and thank Joanne for hosting this weeks challenge.
All images: ©Stephen Hyde 2007-2025 – All rights reserved.
Steve Hyde 
A great post, Steve, and a great response to the theme. It’s nice to have a place that you enjoy returning to every now and then. Washington, indeed, has so many unique attractions. Thanks for sharing your photographs and memories.
Thank you Joanne. It was a great challenge to return with after a few weeks where I’ve not been able to post 🙂
Loved your post Steve, especially your closing image. Interesting you chose to highlight DC while your brother was in the states as opposed to NYC although I’m sure you visited there while here. DC is a marvelous place, especially for museums and memorials.
Thank you Tina. I could easily have written up a similar blog for New York. I lost count of how many times we visited there, probably well over twenty! In fact we found those brass figurines you posted in your last challenge. We’d walked the Highline, came down, took a right and then walked along the river to Chelsea Park. We found them on that route, by the river. Part of me wanted to highlight Washington because its somewhere us brits never think of visiting. Most people here go to New York or Las Vegas for a four or five day short break and hit the normal tourist hotspots. I’ve told so many friends to try the Top of the Rock before the Empire State building, for a better view (in my opinion) or take the Staten Island Ferry for a free ride and view of the Statue of Liberty or even get a bus out to Princeton and see a bit more than the city but they don’t. I have written a short blog here on our visits to New Jersey over the years Neil was living there. – North America
Just checked it out Steve-great again! You really got a good taste of our northeast, my old stomping grounds😊😊
Literally my backyard, Steve! And you’ve done a wonderful job capturing the essence of DC. One of the best Metro pics I’ve ever seen. Our Metro is a bit unusual in its architecture – love the long exposure! Bravo and Cheers!
Thank you Kirsten. I reckon the Washington Metro is excellent. Far easier and nicer to use than the Tube in London. Really clean stations and trains as well. I’m so sad I even had the Metro chime that accompanies the ‘Doors Closing’ message as my phones message alert for a while, until it became irritating 🙂
That’s hilarious, Steve!
Others might say ‘Tragic !’ Kirsten 😄
You did a great job showcasing a city you have enjoyed, the photos do the place credit
Thank you Ritva 🙂
I was in the US in 2015, but I didn’t see any of these, I only visited San Francisco and New York. these are brilliant Steve, I imagine they go with lots of memories too.
Thank you Leanne. Yes lots of happy memories 🙂
Steve, I’ve been to D.C. a few times, only in the role of a volunteer work assignment, but I did take time to see a few of the places you’ve shared here. Alas, I missed the Washington Zoo on my journeys there.
That’s a shame John but you would need a full day to really appreciate it 🙂
Steve, thanks for featuring this very special place. Your images are fantastic, especially the last one. I lived in northern Virginia in the 1960’s when I was a teenager. We visited D.C. often. Many years later my husband and I took our two children there. Our favorite place was the Smithsonian.
Thank you Beth. I took my daughters to Washington but they were young woman by then. If I had a favourite it would probably have been the Space Museum. The guy leading the tour was a really good guide and a real space enthusiast which rubbed off on to us 🙂
Beautiful images Steve. I remember on one visit, my friend and I got to see the Supreme Court hearing a case.
Thank you Anne. You can have a free tour of that building. We never thought of doing that but I will now if we go back 🙂
Yes, do it. Hopefully they will be hearing a case.
Steve, what a wonderful choice and photo selection. You showed how beautiful our nation’s capital is. The metro photo is impressive.
Thank you Egidio 🙂
You sold Washington DC wonderfully, Steve. The metro station photo is also a favourite but the panda wins the day!
Thank you Sofia 🙂