ABRAHAM LINCOLN'S LAND - SPRINGFIELD , ILL.

A Dream come true !!!!!!!!!

Ever since my first visit to Chicago in 2006, i had always wanted to make a trip to Springfield, Illinois, the home of Abe Lincoln. My first introduction to Lincoln was about 54 years back, when, as a school going 10 year old boy i heard my teacher telling us about Democracy and Lincoln's immortal words "..... of the people, by the people, for the people..." Later on, my friend's grandpa told us stories about how he ended slavery and brought in real equality etc. Thus Lincoln's image was permanently stamped in my young mind as the greatest ever American President and the man who influenced world history most in terms of democracy.

Thus it was nothing short of a pilgrimage for me when we left our Chicago home on Friday, the 24th June '2011 morning at 10-30am. We took the 55 South and made it to Springfield by 1-30pm, covering the 150 miles in three hours of comfortable drive in the SUV. The car parking lot was very close to the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum located at 112 North , Sixth street in downtown.

The Museum is open from 9am to 5 pm daily and the entrance tickets are priced at $12 -adults, $ 9 - seniors and free for kids below 5 years age. From the reception area we go through a simple security check and guided into the Plaza. The Plaza is a big central circular hall and the museum opens outwards. In the Plaza you are greeted by the life like figures of the Lincoln family and all visitors are welcome to have themselves photographed with the Lincolns using your own camera. The staff are very nice and courteous and assist you in this.


After getting ourselves photographed, we had a quick bite at the Subway located right next to the Plaza before starting our tour in right earnest.

We started off with the Journey One- The Pre -Presidential years. It starts with an incredible Forrest cabin and a 9 year old Lincoln sitting on a tree stump and studying a book. You enter the cabin and see the poverty through which he had gone through as an young boy in that one room cabin where his entire family lived and the teen Lincoln reading by the fire light. He was SELF TAUGHT. There is a small gallery ON THE RIVER that shows he worked as a ferryman. Lincoln moved on to New Salem and has made trips own the Mississippi to New Orleans. The figures of a black family being torn apart by Auctioneers is gut wrenching and , probably, Lincoln had witnessed such scenes in New Orleans.

In 1832, at age 23, Lincoln and a partner bought a small general store on credit in New Salem , Illinois. Lincoln served as New Salem's postmaster and later as county surveyor, all the while reading voraciously. He then decided to become a lawyer and began teaching himself law.His second campaign in 1834 was successful. He won election to the state legislature. Admitted to the bar in 1836, he moved to Springfield, Illinois, and began to practice law under Mary Todd's cousin.He served four successive terms in the Illinois House of representatives as a Whig representative from Sangamon County. In 1846, Lincoln was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, where he served one two-year term.Lincoln returned to practicing law in Springfield, handling "every kind of business that could come before a prairie lawyer".

After the state Republican party convention nominated him for the U.S. Senate in 1858, Lincoln delivered his House Divided speech , drawing on Mark's gospel from the Bible: "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe this government cannot endure permanently half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved—I do not expect the house to fall—but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing, or all the other." The 1858 senate campaign featured the seven Lincoln - Douglas Debates , the most famous political debates in American history. Lincoln argued that the Founding Fathers had little use for popular sovereignty and had repeatedly sought to restrict slavery. Lincoln insisted the moral foundation of the Republicans required opposition to slavery.On May 18, at the 1860 Republican National covention in Chicago, Lincoln's friends promised and manipulated and won the nomination on the third ballot.

Unwittingly, i had gone into quite a bit of the history but these years have been well and truly presented in this section of the museum through paintings, documents and other exhibits.

We then moved to the Union Theater for the "Lincoln's Eyes" . This is a theatrical special effects spectacular giving a broad overview of Lincoln's life. The focus is both on his personal and political dramas in his life.The system of layered digital projection screens and the special effects are fantastic. During a dramatic battle sequence the entire theater resounds with war and smoke. Truly fantastic experience !!

We then moved on to the Journey 2 - White House Years.
On November 6, 1860, Lincoln was elected the sixteenth president of the United States. He was the first president from the Republican Party. Winning entirely on the strength of his support in the North and West, no ballots were cast for him in ten of the fifteen Southern slave states. As Lincoln's election became evident, secessionists made clear their intent to leave the Union before he took office the next March.On February 23, 1861, he arrived in disguise in Washington, D.C., which was placed under substantial military guard. Lincoln directed his Inaugural Speech to the South, saying, "We are not enemies, but friends. We must not be enemies.On April 12, 1861, Confederate forces fired on Union troops at Fort Sumter, forced them to surrender, and began the war.Lincoln encountered an unprecedented political and military crisis, and he responded as Commander-in- Chief, using unprecedented powers.

The Emancipation Proclamation, issued on September 22, 1862, and put into effect on January 1, 1863, declared free the slaves in ten states not then under Union control. Lincoln's comment on the signing of the Proclamation was: "I never, in my life, felt more certain that I was doing right, than I do in signing this paper."

He addressed at the Gettysburg battlefield cemetery on November 19. Defying Lincoln's prediction that "the world will little note, nor long remember what we say here," the Address became the most quoted speech in American history. Lincoln asserted the nation was born, not in 1789, but in 1776, "conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal."He declared that the deaths of so many brave soldiers would not be in vain, that slavery would end as a result of the losses, and the future of democracy would be assured, that "government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." Lincoln concluded that the Civil War had a profound objective—a new birth of freedom in the nation. On April 9, 1864 the war was effectively over with the surrender of Lee to General Grant.

Lincoln was re-elected in a landslide, carrying all but three states, and receiving 78 percent of the Union soldiers' vote. On March 4, 1865, Lincoln delivered his second inaugural address.
Booth formulated a plan with co-conspirators to assassinate Vice President Andrew Johnson Secretary of State William H Seward and General Grant. Without his main bodyguard, Lincoln left to attend a play on April 14, 1865. Grant along with his wife chose at the last minute to travel to Philadelphia instead of attending the play. Lincoln's bodyguard, John Parker, left Ford's Theater during intermission to join Lincoln's coachman for drinks in the Star Saloon next door.

The now unguarded President sat in his state box in the balcony. Seizing the opportunity, Booth crept up from behind and at about 10:13 pm, aimed at the back of Lincoln's head and fired at point-blank range, mortally wounding the President. After being in a coma for nine hours, Lincoln died at 7:22 am on April 15. Secretary of War Stanton saluted and said, "Now he belongs to the ages." Vice President Johnson was sworn in as President at 10:00 am the day after the assassination. Lincoln lay in state in the East Room, and then in the Capitol Rotunda, before the funeral train bore him to his final resting place in Springfield, Illinois

This piece of history of Lincoln's presidential years is very well captured by the museum and it's exhibits. A truly remarkable job has been done in piecing this history together with a great care.The debate on Emancipation Proclamation is very well enacted by an actor with all other life like characters at the table and takes us back to those historic times. It was a wonderful experience.

Ask Mr. Lincoln is a small interactive theater allowing us to get answers from Abraham Lincoln in his own words. We have to select a question on the screen from the pre-programmed list and Lincoln answers us. I asked a couple of questions on his Gettysburg address and Liberty and got very satisfying answers !!!

Lincoln's Tomb is located at Oak Ridge Cemetery which is about a 10 minute drive from the Museum. Visitors are not allowed beyond 5pm so we had to really rush from the museum. Lincoln lived from 1809-1865 and he was assassinated on April 14, 1965. The granite monument within which lie the remains of Abraham Lincoln was designed by sculptor Larkin Mead and completed in 1874. His wife Mary and three of his sons also lie buried here. It is a very serene and beautiful place and people come from all over the world to pay their respects to this great man ,and , as i bowed my head and offered my respects to this great apostle of democracy, my heart was filled with a sense of accomplishment that i could do so in person. It is a tradition at the cemetery to rub the nose on Lincoln's bronze face for good luck and we promptly did that and took photos.

Thus ended my trip to Springfield , it was more like a very satisfying pilgrimage for me.
From there we went to St.Louis, but, that is another story.

STIEG LARSSON - AN INTRODUCTION AND TRIBUTE

I must thank my daughter Madhuri for introducing to me the works of Steig Larsson. I have just finished reading the last of his three novels which make up a triology.
But, to start at the very beginning, if you love CRIME FICTION like i do, then read on.

STEIG LARSSON (1954-2004), who lived in Sweden was the editor in chief of the magazine EXPO and was a leading expert on anti-democratic, right wing extremists and Nazi organizations. He died in 2004, shortly after delivering the manuscripts of his now famous TRIOLOGY.

The Trilogy comprises of :
1. THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO
2. THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE
3. THE GIRL WHO KICKED THE HORNET'S NEST.

It is strongly recommended that the books be read in the same order as above.
The main characters are LISBETH SALANDER and MIKAEL BLOMKVIST.
Blomkvist is an investigative journalist and Salander is a freelance research assistant.

The first book, ...Dragon tattoo ... , is about the search for a missing girl after decades by the persevering Blomkvist, a manic serial killleer , a libel case and the crashing of a billionaire. It makes a heady mix, though it tends to be dark, violent and graphic occasionally. The climax is breath taking. Blomkvist is undoubtedly the hero of this first book, ably supported by Lisbeth and also a host of other characters. He comes across as a handsome, attractive Casanova who is also greatly focused on his job and shows a great deal of perseverance in solving the mysteries.
Once i finished this book, my appetite was so whetted that i had to start Book two right away.

The second book is " The Girl who played with the Fire". It is all about Lisbeth, her past and the grave injustice done to her, the abuses she was subjected to a s a young teenager. Some of it is very disturbing, graphic and violent. Your heart goes out to this little helpless girl subjected to such atrocities in a civilized and democratic society. You also see the machinations of a small secret group within the secret police which is a law on to itself , and which subverts democracy in the name of protecting the same.But Lisbeth is no weakling. She is a girl who indeed plays with Fire and you can not but admire her spirit of fighting a lone battle. She is the main character of this book and all others become supportive cast.

The third and final book is " The Girl who Kicked the Hornet's Nest". This book is all about Lisbeth and the Present and when all her enemies come together and conspire to bury her for good, she fights them back, all alone with her characteristic chutzpah. She has to fight not just individuals but the system too. Does she get her revenge is the absorbing story of the final book. The suspense is tremendous at times and the court scenes are breath taking. Not withstanding her small, thin, anorexic figure, i could see Lisbeth as a Lara Croft fighting her way out of trouble against all odds.

After i finished reading the three books, i kept on thinking about Lisbeth and her story for several days- that is the sort of impression she leaves on you. I also thought about Steig Larsson and how cruel destiny is. Here is a man who died when he was only fifty and who did not live to see the success his books would achieve, translated into English, world over.

His books have sold millions of copies , and, i understand, the English movies are under production. Here is another addition to his million fans.

Well done , Larsson, you wrote great fiction. We love you and your Lisbeth.

LOVE INDIA - NOT AIR INDIA

At the outset, let me state clearly that i had always been a staunch defender of AIR INDIA whenever someone criticized it, out of a sense of patriotism (which, i now realize, is alas, misplaced). What changed my heart ? Read on......

I and Bharathi left Chicago on 17th June'2010 to return home to Hyderabad by Air India flight AI 126. Our problems started at O'Hare Airport when we checked in. Let me state that in the month of May'10 i visited their web site and tried to get our seats against our confirmed tickets that were originally booked in Chicago. I was greeted with a message that ASR is not working currently (ASR = Advance Seat Reservation). After several trials over the next few days, i got in touch with our 'desi' travel agent who made our bookings. After a while he told me that he too has the same problem and message and can not help.

So, when we checked in at O'Hare, i asked the girl in the counter to provide us two seats together out of which one should be 'aisle'. She checked up and said that no 'aisle' seats are available and no two seats together are available !!!! When i protested saying that i couldn't get their ASR for a month on the web, she smiled and told me it rarely works and she can not help (she was an American girl). Finally she gave us 20B and 20E , both middle seats, but, in the same row. After we got into the aircraft, i asked the 'AIR AUNTY' to help us and she told me to try it at a personal level with our neighbours on the flight for a 'friendly exchange'. When i told her about ASR, she too said it never works. She said that i could have visited their office in advance in person and tried.

Now, if you are wondering about the term 'AIR AUNTY' , i find that the female staff on board an Air India flight can be classified into two - majority of them are 'AIR AUNTIES' who are aged, overweight, hardly move, rarely smile and answer you with a sad look. The minority are what we normally call 'AIR HOSTESS' who are young, energetic , smiling and helpful. They even do the mistake of calling you a 'Sir'. AIR INDIA has a lot of AIR AUNTIES and only a few AIR HOSTESSES.

Having been duly advised, i managed to exchange 20 E with 20A so that we had one window and one middle seat, but , grateful that we are together on the long flight. And luckily, 20 C was another 'telugu guy' so we could disturb him, as often as we wanted.

We took off on time at 4-05 pm and landed at Frankfurt at 7-30am (all local times please). I was upset to see that there was no 'Aero Bridge' and we are required to climb down the stairs. Now, we had a strolley which was a bit heavy because of a laptop. Bharathi had to carry that and go down the steps while i limped along behind her with my backpack and one hand holding the supporting rail.

We were loaded into a bus and after a few minutes were asked to get off. We entered the airport terminal and walked into the security check. It was a thorough check and once we were through we looked up at a huge display board that showed 1C against flight AI 126 to Mumbai. We looked around in vain for any Air India staff to guide us, and not finding any, we started following others. We walked for a mile or so, often in doubt, where we were going. It reminded me of a scene from old hit 'Gumnam' - only thing missing was the song .... Gumnam hai koi..... Suddenly everybody stopped, because one of those who were leading the pack managed to ask some airport staff in German for directions and we took an escalator to one level below and another display board which now said the gate is C 20 in terminal 1C. So we walked on , manfully, the young and the old, the women and the children, another half a mile, to Gate C 20, which by the way is the LAST GATE. There we entered the Transit lounge and mercifully rested our bottoms on the comfortable chairs. Our relief was short lived because, another display board here showed that our flight would leave at 11-45am and not at scheduled 930am. We were aghast, we did not know the reasons for the delay.

The Transit lounge was very comfortable in terms of seating, ambiance and Rest Rooms. The only problem was there was NO DRINKING WATER and NO STALLS where we could buy one. The bold ones walked back a half a mile and bought what they wanted. You guessed it right, we did not dare. Around 10am one of the Air India staff came on the Public Address System and told us that the flights to Mumbai, Ahemadabad and Delhi all got delayed because the flight coming in from Newark got delayed. It should be here soon and then we should be boarding soon. He also said SORRY but hardly sounded really sorry. When i asked one of the staff there about lack of drinking water he just shrugged. Finally our flight was called and we were taken by a bus all the way back to our aircraft (the same one we landed). We trudged up the steps again warily and collapsed into our seats again. Bharathi wondered aloud why we had to go to the other end of the airport for a transit lounge without water and come back all the way. SOME ONE SAID IT COSTS AIR INDIA LESS THAT WAY, PASSENGERS BE DAMNED!!!!! I do not know if it is true but would certainly like to know Air India's answer. We finally took off around 12-30pm (against scheduled 9-30am), a three hour delay.

We were about 80 miles from Mumbai and were expecting to land around 11-45pm when the pilot announced over PA that this is the monsoon season and there is a rain and the ATC advised us to be on the 'HOLD' and may take an hour more. So, there we were, circling over the Arabian sea for an hour and fifteen minutes. Now, Bharathi, my dear wife of 42 years, is a worrying type, and was not exactly happy with the idea of circling over the sea for more than an hour. Finally, we landed at Mumabi at 1am. After going through a quick security check (which was hardly any thing compared to what we had in Frankfurt) we were asked to proceed to Gate No 4. When we were passing through the Duty Free Shops which were dazzling, my wife said that Mumbai airport looks good now compared to last year. But alas, IT WAS A LITTLE PREMATURE COMMENT. When we neared our destination we had to go one level down. THE ESCALATOR WAS NOT WORKING AND THE STAIR CASE HAD PEOPLE SITTING ON BOTH SIDES ALONG THE SUPPORTING RAILS LEAVING A NARROW PATH TO WALK DOWN.
NOW, JUST IMAGINE OUR PLIGHT, WALKING DOWN THE STAIRCASE WITH A STROLLEY AND WITH NO SUPPORTING HAND RAILS.

I SAID TO BHARATHI 'WELCOME HOME'.

By divine grace we managed to climb down the stairs without an accident and entered the lounge at Gate 4 which was already chokeful of people. MERCIFULLY, TRUE TO INDIAN VALUE SYSTEM, TWO YOUNGSTERS GOT UP AND GAVE THEIR SEATS TO US, GOD BLESS THEM. There was a stall near by where we could have bought some water but we did not dare for two reasons - it meant we could lose our seats and it also required courage to make one's way through the mad rush there.

They kept on announcing that flights to Bangalore and Hyderabad are delayed because incoming flights are delayed , AS IF IT WAS THE PASSENGERS WHO WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR IT.
Finally we were asked to board and our flight took off for Hyderabad around 4 am on 19th , a delay of three hours.

Once we landed at SHAMSHABAD at 5-30am, it was like a dream. The whole process of immigration, baggage collection (paid porters were plenty) and walking out took JUST HALF AN HOUR. We got the cab without any problem and were back home in jiffy.

LEARNING POINTS
1) AVOID TRANSITING THROUGH MUMBAI IF YOU CAN, LIKE PLAGUE
2) BEST TO FLY LUFTHANSA WITH JUST ONE HALT AT FRANKFURT ON THE CHICAGO-HYD SECTOR. ( FRANKFURT IS THEIR HOME BASE)
3)BLOCK YOUR SEATS AT THE TIME OF BOOKING YOUR TICKETS, THAT IS YOUR ONLY CHANCE.
4) NEVER ASK THE AIR AUNTIES FOR ANY HELP, THEY ARE LEAST INTERESTED IN YOUR 'MINOR' PROBLEMS
5) DEMONSTRATE YOUR PATRIOTISM IN OTHER WAYS, AVOID FLYING AIR INDIA.

TRIP TO WASHINGTON DC - DAY 5 - 11-04-10

WASHINGTON MONUMENT:
The last item on the agenda was a trip to the Washington Monument. While you can visit this monument free, you need a free ticket to go up the 555' tall monument in an elevator. These tickets are issued on a daily basis at the site on a first come first served basis. I was very keen to go up the monument. We were planning to check out at 12 noon and leave for home, so we decided that Chandu and I would make a trip and try our luck.

We started as early as possible, but, still managed to reach there only by 9am and we could get free tickets only for 11-30am. We tried to plead with the guard there, but, it didn't work this time. I was disappointed that i could not go up ( if you have read Lost Symbol, you would know why). However, we spent an hour there going round the monument and taking pictures.

It is shaped like an Egyptian obelisk, stands 555' 5 1/8" tall and offers views in excess of 30 miles.It was built in honor of George Washington who lead the country to independence in the war against the British and later became the first president of USA.It was finished in dec'1884.
The circular concourse is made entirely of white stone except for two decorative courses of dark stone which form two concentric circles around the monument (circumpunct?). The capstone weighs 3300 pounds and is made of marble.It is topped with a 9" pyramid of cast aluminum ( which was a rare metal in those days). As per Dan Brown that has an engraving of "LAUS DEO" (Praise God) but i had no way of verifying it. But no reason to doubt it either.

The observation deck at 500' offers an excellent view - to the East is the Capitol , to the North is the White House , to the West is Lincoln Memorial and to the south is Tidal Basin and Jefferson Memorial. This is the cross roads of America!!

We returned to the hotel by 11-30am, checked out by 12-30pm, had lunch at a Bombay Restaurant a Silver Spring and left around 2pm.We had excellent weather right through the drive. We reached Maumee, Toledo (Ohio) around 11pm and checked into Residence Inn, Marriott there. On the way we had our dinner of Panera bread Sandwiches at a service plaza.

We left next morning at 10am after a nice and leisurely breakfast , reached Chicago at 2pm, had lunch at Madras Restaurant at Ogden and reached home at 3pm on Monday the 12th April.Thus ended a wonderful trip, and, a long time wish fulfilled.

TRIP TO WASHINGTON DC - DAY 4 - 10-04-10

If you want to take a guided tour of the Capitol you have to obtain a free pass either online (issued in limited numbers) or at the site (again limited numbers). We were able to get passes on line for the tour at 9-30am on Saturday.As this involved a very early start, it was decided that I and Bharathi would go first and make the tour while the other three would join us later. As i was pretty confident of going on our own they let us go armed with Madhuri's cellphone.
We were dropped off at Silver Spring Metro station by Chandu at 7-45am. We took the Red line to Metro center and Blue line from there to Capitol South and reached there by 8-45am. From there it is a long walk to the entrance of Capitol Visitor center.


CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER:
This is located on the east front at First street and East Capitol street. Entry to this is free from 8-30am to 4-30pm , Mon-Sat.This is a very modern construction underground of 58000 sq.ft area with the entry at ground level. After a very thorough security check and trashing all the water bottles that we were carrying we were let in.
We go one level down to the main hall called the 'Emancipation hall. The hall has four skylights which provide excellent light and also a great view of the Capitol dome. The hall has a plaster model of the STATUE OF FREEDOM which rests atop the Capitol dome. Isn't it an irony that this statue was put there by slave laborers!!!! But that is history and America has corrected that.
The hall also has a touchable model of the capitol dome and twenty four statues representing the diversity of USA. It also has a 186' long Wall of aspiration having some historic documents. From there we go to the guided tour of Capitol.

CAPITOL:

We are first taken into a orientation theater and shown a 13 minute film titled "OUT OF MANY,ONE ( E PLURIBUS UNUM), the theme on which America is built. It is something like the Unity in Diversity that Nehru used to talk about. From there we are taken to the Capitol Rotunda and a few other halls that house historic,significant paintings and sculptures.

The highlight of the trip was the visit to the CAPITOL ROTUNDA - a huge circular hall lined with spectacular paintings and 186' above the hall is the Dome. As you look up at the inside of the dome high above you see the fabulous fresco of APOTHEOSIS OF WASHINGTON.This is a 4664 sq.ft fresco that covers the canopy of the Rotunda and was completed in 1865 by CONSTANTINO BRUMIDI.


On the central panel of the fresco is George Washington dressed in white robes, attended by thirteen maidens, and ascending on a cloud to heavens, above mortal men. This is the moment of his Apotheosis ( meaning transformation) into a God. Nearby are several ancient Roman Gods presenting American forefathers knowledge. Minerva giving technological inspiration to Ben Franklin, Robert Fulton and Samuel Morse. Vulcan helping build a steam engine. Neptune demonstrating cable laying and Ceres, Goddess of Food, sitting on a McCormick reaper. KNOWLEDGE IS POWER seems to be the theme. After a one hour tour and several pictures we were back in the visitor center. Visitors are not allowed into the Senate or House of Commons, for which one has to obtain passes well in advance through the Congressman or Senator.

We came out just in time to receive the other three, and, while we took care of Sreeya and played with her, Madhuri and Chandu did a quick tour of the visitor center. We took a cab from there and went to a subway for a lunch of sandwiches and coke. From there we took another cab and went to the White House visitor center.

WHITE HOUSE VISITOR CENTER:
This is located on SE corner of 15th and E streets. It is open all days 7-30am to 4pm and entry is free. A guided tour of White House is only possible if planned at least a couple of months in advance. In the center we sat comfortably and watched a very nice Video that takes us on a guided tour of White House. The video starts with a welcome by the First lady and ends with a good bye speech from President Obama. The Video is wonderful guided tour and also gives us historic tidbits. Across the road is the Freedom Plaza and we took a walk there. From there we
took another cab and proceeded to Lincoln Memorial.

LINCOLN MEMORIAL:
In the National mall, the three great monuments are in a straight line. At the eastern end is the Capitol, at the western end is the Lincoln Memorial and at the center is the great obelisk, Washington memorial.

I have been a great fan of Abraham Lincoln from my school days when i first learned about his definition of Democracy as the government of the people, by the people and for the people. I read with reverence about his role in abolition of slavery and the heavy price he paid for that (his life).
The Memorial is open 24x7 as befitting a great leader of the people. the Memorial is a huge hall at a good height accessed by climbing several steps. In this hall with three walls and the front open is the huge statue of Lincoln sitting on a throne. The view from the top is breathtaking - all three great structures in a line. On the southern wall is inscribed his famous Gettysburg address where he spoke of......government of the people,by the people and for the people..... On the northern wall is his very impressive second inaugural speech.

We were dead tired but had to walk a bit before we got a cab that took us to Federal triangle station from where we took the train to Metro Center and the Red line from there to silver Spring. It being a Saturday, there was no hassle for public parking there and it was free too. We reached our hotel at 8pm.

TRIP TO WASHINGTON DC - DAY 3 - 09-04-10

We were advised to use Metro rail rather than our car for sight seeing due to parking problems in the Mall area. The Silver Spring Metro station was about 15 minutes drive from our hotel. We planned on an early start , but, managed to leave hotel around 9-30am. It was an unusually cold and windy day. It took us a bit of time to find a all day public parking and finally we entered the station past 10am.
The Metro rail is very convenient and very popular public transport in Washington DC. There are four lines operating in different routes - Red, Blue, Orange and Green. They overlap sometimes and intersect at convenient points for transfer from one route to another. Silver Spring is on Red line and we bought a all day ticket for $ 8 per head and boarded the train. We got off at Metro Center and transferred to an Orange which was one level below us and got off at Smithsonian. Most of the stations are underground but a few are at the ground level too. The trains were comfortable and well maintained.

NATIONAL AIR AND SPACE MUSEUM:
This museum is located on the Independence Avenue and 4th street. Even as you enter the museum the first exhibit that hits your eye is the APOLLO 11 Command Module " COLUMBIA" on display. I recalled the thrill of man's first landing on moon and the famous quote of Armstrong "... a small step for man but a giant leap for mankind.."



Upstairs we visited the WRIGHT BROTHERS 1903 FLYER and spent sometime there.You look at that first aircraft made and flown by them and you realize how much progress man has made in the twentieth century.


There were a number of other rockets and planes on display and there was quite a rush too. We spent an hour there and then walked down to our next destination National Archives.

NATIONAL ARCHIVES :
The National Archives is located at 700, Pennsylvanian Avenue.We sat outside while Chandu went to get our lunch of subway sandwiches. My interest in the Archives was ignited more than a decade back when i read Jeffrey Archer's book "Honour among Thieves". ( if you have not read it i recommend it). This museum has on display THE ORIGINAL CHARTERS OF FREEDOM.

Entry to the museum is through free passes some of which can be booked in advance on internet and some of which are issued at the museum on a daily basis. We couldn't get the advance booking through internet and there was a very long Q for the other passes. I found a much shorter Q for those with internet booked passes. The original documents are stored in underground vaults and pulled out at specified times of the day. As per the information on web site on that Friday there were two more pull outs at 2-30pm and 3-30pm. I didn't want to miss at any cost, so, left my folks saying that i would try my luck.

I went and joined the short Q of special passes. When i reached the gate i told one of the black officers there that i have come from far off India, could not get the pass on the web, it was my ambition to see the Original charters of freedom as they are sacred and could the officer help me. I must have sold my self well because he just said " sir, you come with me" and took me past the security (after a check of course) straight to the Exhibition hall where they were on display. Others must have thought i was some VIP visitor as he escorted me!!!!!!!

I saw the original Declaration of Independence, Constitution and the Bill of Rights (collectively known as charters of freedom). I also saw the original 1297 MAGNA CARTA on display there. What really impressed me was the care with which these centuries old documents are preserved by the Government at a great cost and revered by the people. I thanked the officer profusely while leaving the museum because he made a dream come true for me. When i joined my group they were just finishing their lunch and were very happy for me.
Our next destination was the Holocaust Museum and we took a cab there.

HOLOCAUST MUSEUM :
Back in seventies i have read several books on Nazi atrocities , Concentration camps and Gas chambers, mostly by Leon Uris. I was deeply moved by this genocide and mass extermination of people by Hitler. Thus, the Holocaust Museum was a must see for me.
This is located at 100, Raoul Wallenberg Place,SW. There was a heavy rush of tourists at this place too. There is permanent exhibition for which entry is only through daily passes and they ran out by the time we went there. However, there were many other things to see there.

We saw a 15 minute movie called LIBERATION in a auditorium there. It included the stories of holocaust survivors and their liberators ( in first person), soldiers who freed the victims from the concentration camps. It was very touching and left a lump in my throat.
We also saw a very touching exhibition " Remembering the children- Daniel's story" which tells us the story of Holocaust as witnessed and suffered by Daniel, a young jewish boy in Germany, with a almost real life depiction through pictures and his diary.
I climbed up several steps with Chandu along and visited the Hall of Remembrance where we pay a silent tribute to the six million jews who were exterminated by Hitler and the Nazis in the concentration camps.

We returned to our hotel by the same route by 7-30pm, tired but satisfied.

TRIP TO WASHINGTON DC - DAY 2

After a good night's rest, we had a hearty breakfast of fruit juice, fruit, cereal , muffins and bread toast and left Youngstown at 10-30am. we took I 76 E to Pittsburgh. At 10-45am we enterd Pennsylvania state. We branched off to 279 south to go to Pittsburgh and arrived at the temple in Monroville by 11-45am.
The Sri Venkateswara temple at Pittsburgh was built in 1976 and was the first big hindu temple in USA. It is affiliated to the TTD. It is alocated atop a hill and amidst picturesque surroundings and has a very serene atmosphere.There was hardly any rush and we had a very satisfying darshan of the Lord Balaji and other dieties. We spent an hour and half there.
About a mile from the temple is a UDIPI HOTEL. We had an excellent lunch of 'thali meal' there. If you are ever in that neighbourhood, don't miss it. We left at 2pm and had a lovely drive through the hilly penn state in excellent weather. We reached our destination SILVER SPRING, MARYLAND at about 7pm. The last half an hour drive was through a crawling peak hour traffic.
We checked into the Residence Inn, Marriott, at 7pm. Suite # 331 is an identical accommodation.