dark days.

so i think some of you may have heard about the virginia tech massacre. a korean american 23 year old english major killed 32 people in his campus before turning the gun unto himself. 32 students, professors were killed, mostly execution style. many have expressed outrage and tremendous grief. it is very very shocking and disappointing when i watch the news about his videos and photos that he sent to NBC in new york before going on his rampage. it's sad when i read about the immense grief that the virginia people are going through. i went for UW's vigil memorial at the red square last night. lit a candle and listened to the clock tower bell chime 32 times, in remembrance of the victims. with 200+ of my fellow UW students. maybe this will prompt america to tighten their gun laws even more. reports here.

ok. other than horrible tragedy, school has been hectic with assignments and readings and midterms are coming up! not to mention a presentation that i should start on before my sisters arrive in seattle, and a group project. hence the lack of updates. apologies!

here i continue for washington dc. i realised i took a LOT of pictures in DC. maybe because i was there for 4 days! darn my flight delay, or i could have seen new york more. speaking of which, DC is near virginia tech. =(

i thought this was cute. took it in the subway train. in DC it was very obvious that their rule for escalators is to stand on the right. the left is for walking people. just like tokyo. in singapore it's to stand on the left right? now i'm so used to the right i think i would need some time to change back to left in sg. so i'm NOT an escalefter! =)

we arrived at one of the busiest train stations in DC, union station. it's connected to the amtrak (US's train service that connects cities and states all over) too. it's really big and grand and has a fantastic food court and great shopping!

external of the train station. it was really white and blinding 'cos of the sun shining brightly.

we were here!

at the fountain.

walking to the capitol. beautiful day.

back of the capitol. it was so funny 'cos we happened to strike up a conversation with this man who was really nice and very eager to find out more about Singapore. turns out he was the president of a political consultant company and one of his clients was the democratic party. yayy for democrats. =) my political science module has opened my eyes to american politics a little more. and he is going to singapore next year. haha. he gave us his card too. check out his company here.

beautiful statues around the capitol.

me and the capitol. the US capitol "serves as the location for the United States Congress, the legislative branch of the U.S. federal government". wikipedia is great for information.

in front of the capitol is the reflection pool. i sat here and just looked out at the national mall and the washington monument in front. great place to think and chill.

me thinking. haaaa.

next we went to the library of congress. (oh we toured the inside of capitol. more later) while waiting to go in this little girl was running around and playing outside. and i love her skirt! it's so boho.

the majestic and beautiful interior of the library of congress. it is the "de facto national library of the United States and the research arm of the United States Congress" and one of the most important libraries in the world.

more beautiful interiors.

and more beautiful interiors. so glad they allowed photography.

nice paintings too.

where we were. the library of congress has a few buildings. the visitors' center was at the thomas jefferson (one of US's former presidents) building.


outside library of congress. wind was very very strong.

the department of justice. their court of law. superbly grand. end of the day! we went back to union train station to shop! and eat dinner. hehhh.

the next day we woke up really really early because we had to get in line to queue up for tickets to tour the inside of the capitol building. and by the time we got there, at 8.30am (ticket distribution starts at 9am, lonely planet did recommend going at 8am but we couldn't be THAT early. sleep is important, esp when travelling.) the line was already starting to snake around. and it just kept growing and growing.

but the sun was gone. gloomy day. we got tickets for the 9.45am tour and it lasted about 1 hour 30 mins. security, as usual, was super tight. no food and drinks allowed at all.

the dome thing you see at the exterior shots, here is the interior. an artist painted the top and it's really high and one time he almost fell to his death. the painting shows george washington surrounded by angels and clouds. very nice. i bought a postcard with the painting. so touristy i know. the painting is called The Apotheosis of Washington by Constantino Brumidi.

the paintings all around the dome. the tour guide was really informative and she was this cute girl who is about my age or older. and he just rattled on all the history and facts and ancedotes behind the paintings that described most of the major events in US history. like christopher columbus discovering america and the independence in 1776.

this used to be a study/reading room/workplace for members of congress, but because of it's elliptical shape or something, the sound bounces and when a person is speaking at one spot, softly, it can be heard at one particular spot across the room. our tour guide tested this amazing physics thing and it was amazing! she was across the room meters away, and i could hear her speaking softly, as though she was just right next to me! anyway they found it really annoying so they decided to not use the room and it became a place to display statues. haa. there are many statues spread over the whole capitol. and every state in US will donate at least 1 statue of a famous american that hailed from their state. quite interesting.

that's the weird shape of the ceiling of the statue room.

this white spot marks the center of washington dc. right in the middle.

the former courts, now no longer used, so its for us visitors to see.

the way to the toilets. so nice right.

one last shot just after exiting the capitol. more info on the capitol here.

i forgot why i took this shot. it has been too long.

my sticker! its good because all of such tours are free, like many things in washington dc. museums and all. so it's really good for budget travelers like us. you just need to wake up early to get the free tix.

alright, not wanting to crash your web browser, i shall continue another time. back to work!

the capital - day II

so after walking around the national mall all day, we decided to check out this free jazz performance at the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for Performing Arts. we took the metro there and it was a nice hall. situated along the banks of a river separated 2 neighbourhoods of DC.

here it is! the JFK center for performing arts. there was a play that night too. shakespeare's the tempest. our jazz concert is the series of free concerts that happen every single evening at 5pm. weekday, weekend everyday also have.

the interior as we went in. i tried to spot the singapore flag, but we were late because the shuttle bus to the center was late. so i quickly snapped this picture.

the jazz performance. performing on stage was this 2-man band, purely instrumental and their music is grounded on jazz, rock, latin and world music. weird mix, because they wanted their music to reflect their roots, as well as where they live (washington dc). there was this guy on drums and percussion and he's good. the other guy played the keyboards and flute. they're called the Duology Band. not too bad.

nice interior.

the riverfront. reminds me of esplanade! why are they all built next to water bodies? the sydney opera house is also next to a river, with the harbour bridge. singapore also got that bridge that is near fullerton hotel. here in washington dc, there's the arlington bridge.

the tall walls of the concert hall have words of JFK, america's former president that died way too young, inscribed on it. very inspirational.

a nice place to chill. weather was perfect. dusk is falling.




ahhh the arlington bridge here. a better view.

the next day we got up bright and early and headed to the Pentagon. it's a pentagon and very ordinarily-looking. photographs of the building were NOT allowed. i shan't tell you about my encounter with the policeman in shorts and a bicycle. then we found out we couldn't go on the tour because you gotta book way in advance with your consulate or something, just like the White House. so we headed to the Pentagon Memorial instead.

please excuse the goofy shot. i know we took a solemn shot too. here is the memorial for the people that perished in 9/11. we often overlook the plane that crashed onto the pentagon because the WTC collapsed and all. but people died here too. and they are currently building a proper memorial. so here is the one they have now.

p.s please do not be shocked that i'm wearing a t shirt only. it was really really warm and we were perspiring like crazy. it was probably around 24 degrees.

up close. the 184 people that died. young and old.

cannot take picture of the pentagon, so take picture of its surroundings, as proof that we were there!

then we headed to the Arlington National Cemetery just one train stop away. it's really a cemetery, where they bury the men and women that have served the US in military service. right from the world wars, to the vietnam war, to the iraq war. it is HUGE. and very peaceful and serene. you know how cemeteries are really freaky sometimes? they look sinister and scary and dark, but this cemetery is so peaceful and beautiful.

we visited JFK's gravesite. he, together with his family, are buried here too.

many many sacrificed their lives for their country. a lot of americans are really patriotic. i wonder who will die for singapore.

see what i mean by peaceful, serene and beautiful? you wouldn't see such beautiful trees and flowers in other cemeteries.

JFK's grave.

the memorial stone, remembering the astronauts that perished with the space shuttle columbia. i remember hearing the news and reading the report and feeling very very sad.

that's the mast of a submarine that sank. some country, i can't remember which, went to bomb their submarine and they recovered the mast.

this is the place where they hold memorial services. it's like an outdoor amphitheatre. and everything is white. like marble. very very nice.



as i was walking to the exit, and feeling extremely hot, i chanced upon this ceremony. a funeral service, or a memorial service. you can see the officer holding a wreath. and it's extremely solemn. with the marching of the guards, saluting, and everyone holds their hand to their hearts (like when they sing their national anthem). and the bugel horn plays that tune. i can't sing it here, but it's that piece they play for a military funeral. i first heard it in the movie, Mr. Holland's Opus.


as we leave the cemetery, a parting shot.

ok. time for dinner gathering. i cooked emperor chicken again! and we have laksa and hor fun and baked rice and stir fried veges and some other dishes.

ohyes. i got my package from gerri! they were so nice to deliver it to my house! i always feel bad when they are nice. hmmm. i like pineapple tarts. (: yummm.