User blog:Forestpaw13/Forest's Trip to DC - The Capitol of the United States

Hey, guys. As you all may know, I've just gone to DC... and I'm here to tell you all the stories that I can remember.

A Couple of Notes...
Ms. Davis is my science teacher. She's really nice, but really serious unless under certain circumstances, such as this trip.  Ms. Matherly is my Social Studies teacher. She's been diagnosed with ADD. She has a crush on Abraham Lincoln. Enough said, I think.  Mrs. Feldman (my favorite) is my Language Arts teacher. She has been an inspiration to me for one year, and some of you may know her as the freaky weird one who stalked me. Not anymore, okay? Thanks. Respect is necessary.

Day 1
I had seen the seating chart before, but when I walked up to Ms. Matherly on Monday morning, exhausted and excited, I realized with a start that I was sitting in the front row- right across the isle from her and Ms. Davis. Uh-oh. I threw my suitcase on the bus and grabbed my phone and iPod Touch, and I was ready for a five-and-a-half hour bus ride from Raleigh, North Carolina to Washington, DC, the capitol of the United States.

The first thing I can remember was Ms. Davis (window seat) grabbing Ms. Matherly and yelling, "SNUGGLE!" really loud. I was, suffice to say, absolutely astonished. Ms. Davis, snuggling? No freaking way.

Ms. Matherly quickly made me laugh, and after five and a half hours, after watching two movies, I was ready for... snap.

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The subject of my horrors for one year was finally reality- and it was the first stop on the trip.  I was shoved through security, shoved into an elevator with about 40 other people, and we were on our way to the fourth floor- themed as the beginning of the war, and the Holocaust. I managed to get through it, attempting to stay close to Mrs. Feldman, as she was the only one who knew about the horrors I had experienced in my past.  The third floor was... oh, God... concentration camps.  Dead bodies.  Bunks.  Outfits.  Guns.  Dead bodies.  Dead bodies...  I passed through it, abandoning all attempts to stay near Mrs. Feldman. She was looking too closely at everything.  The second floor- who knows? I saw shoes and pictures. Words. They all meant nothing.  The first floor was where I could finally breathe. No pictures, no horrors, no words. Peace.  Mrs. Feldman eventually reached me, and, even now, she says I was shaking so hard she thought I was having a seizure.  Wrong. Mental breakdown.

Next we went to the Smithsonian, nineteen museums... all free, funded by taxes. It was interesting. *shrugs*

We had dinner at the mall. We dared one of my guy friends to go into Victoria's Secret. Win.

Next we went to the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon. 180 benches. If they faced towards the building, it means they died in it. If they faced towards the world outside (not towards the building), they died on the plane. The youngest was a baby, 18 months old. The oldest was a man born in 1911. Before World War I.

We went to the hotel... shared rooms with three other girls. Teachers slept right next door. *scream* Hah, but Ms. Matherly looked funny without her hair straightened.

Day 2
We woke up at six. I took a shower, Ms. Davis handed me meds (hypothyroidism, don't ask), and we were on the road again.

We visited the Library of Congress. 2 copies of every book EVER published.

The Capitol- boring. Had to take my belt off to go through security. If I must say, they should find a way to get around that.

We went to a souvenir shop, located directly across the street from Ford's Theater, where Lincoln was assassinated. I was the first one out and Ms. Matherly pulled me across the street and took a whole bunch of pictures. Weirdness, but... okay then.

We went to another mall thing for lunch. I got a hot dog. Yum.

We visited a lot of memorials after that. Veitnam (wall), Lincoln, Korean (wall with statues).  On the way back to the bus (we drove everywhere possible, it was raining and windy, despite the forecast), Ms. Matherly ran up to me and yelled, "A flying lion! Look!" <BR> I looked to entertain her. She sighed. "No, sorry, a flying horse. A pegasi." I stared, and she continued. "I like to add 'i' to the ends of words. It makes them sound cool. Monumenti, horse-i." Then she drifted back to another group of students, leaving me alone to process what had just happened.

The Arlington National Cemetery. Lots of graves. Saw the Eternal Flame.

Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. I swear, the location was unknown, because it was BEHIND A BUILDING! <BR> We watched the Changing of the Guards and the Laying of the Wreath (two, actually). Really cool. <BR> Most inspiring- the people in the wheelchairs. At the National Anthem, one actually stood up. It was really neat how he would do that for his country, how much respect (in Social Studies terms, nationalism) he had for his country.

Dinner- ESPN zone, a buffet and the famous arcade. Beat the **** out of Mrs. Feldman at air hockey, lost to Ms. Matherly at a driving game. She knows how, apparently, to take a couple thousand shortcuts on a simulated game that she has never played before. I'll believe that when hedgehogs fly and yarrow cures greencough.

Then, the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. The teachers knew that we were exhausted, wet, and cold (my teeth were chattering), so they got us FREAKING GLOW STICKS! Win. <BR> A Play By Annie<BR> Ms. Davis: I like pink. <BR> Annie: Okay. Great. <BR> Ms. Davis: Do you want to traaaaade? *puppy eyes* <BR> Annie: Um... sure. *hands it over*<BR> Ms. Davis: *hugs Annie* <BR> Weirdest experience ever.

Got back to the hotel. Helped clean all the trash off the bus. Laughed a lot. Went to bed.

Day 3
Breakfast. Meds (Mrs. Feldman had a hard time with that, she was all like, "Is it this bottle? That one? This one?"). Loaded all luggage onto the bus.

First- FDR memorial. Then- Newseum. After, lunch, then we took a picture with a SENATOR!

Then we headed home. To may absolute astonishment (and pure happiness) Mrs. Feldman switched buses with Ms. Matherly. Yes!

The first thing she said to Ms. Davis...? "Annie called me a slut on Friday. Funniest thing ever." *puts head in hands* Great. Now you're laughing.

Then Mrs. Feldman asked me about my medical condition. "What's hypothyroidism?" I had to explain it like 16 times 'cause she didn't get it. Whatever.

I listened to music. Mrs. Feldman complimented me on my iTouch (bling...?) and asked me six thousand questions about THAT. I remember thinking "Why is she talking to me so much?"

Of course, then I found out why. Ms. Davis switched seats with me (on Mrs. Feldman's request) and, to my astonishment (very sudden), I was sitting DIRECTLY next to Mrs. Feldman, sweating like a pig. It was the worst situation possible. <BR> And then... Mrs. Feldman asked me, "What did you think about the Holocaust Museum?" <BR> I couldn't speak. I was thinking, Act cool and shrug it off or say my real feelings? <BR> Mrs. Feldman answered for me. "It's okay," she whispered. "I know you had a lot of trouble."<BR> Flashes are coming back. The concentration camps, dead bodies... Oh my God, I think. <BR> Apparently I start shaking me again because Mrs. Feldman is calming me down. <BR> She tells me to forget about it, that she would of never signed us up if this would happen to me. <BR> I nod. <BR> She hugs me. Then... "You have a fever." <BR> What? "A- fever?" I ask quietly. <BR> Advil. Ordered rest. As if I'm not already. Sweating, and cold... <BR> The rest of the night is a blur. Flashes are coming back to me from the Holocaust Museum. I sit, next to my guardian, and wait until...

The Marine Museum. Probably one of the greatest experiences of my life. Mrs. Feldman stays with me and walks though the museum with me, apparently worried about my fever. Ms. Davis does, too. <BR> At one point Mrs. Feldman finds this gun. She stands behind it and pretends to hold it so she is about to shoot an invisible person. She beckons me, grinning. "Annie, get in front of this! Ms. Davis, take a picture." <BR> I laugh and obey. Then there's the tank picture. Ms. Davis and I in front of this huge tank. <BR> The ice room was FREEZING. The two of them had to stay close to me because of excess body heat. I didn't tell them that I was freezing, too. <BR> The hot room was hot. They got me out of there as fast as possible. <BR> As soon as we are out, Ms. Davis is ordered to take me back to the bus, because Mrs. Feldman wants to get souvenirs for her kids. Ms. Davis pushes me back into the seat next to Mrs. Feldman. <BR>

The ride home is weird. Games on my iTouch. Laughs and cheesy jokes. And we make it home.

And then is when I realize that I need to suck my horrors up.

I do.