Capitol Grounds Tour

Just before election day I took a tour of the Capitol Grounds given by the US Capitol Historical Society. No reservations are required, you just show up at the appointed place and time. Guess what? No one else showed up! I had a private tour with the most wonderful lady.

We started at Union Station. I had gotten off at the Metro stop there a couple of times, but had never actually gone inside. It is amazingly beautiful. At the time it was built, it was the largest train station in the world. But, with the advent of plane travel it fell into disuse and was eventually closed in 1981. It was reopened in 1988 after a full restoration and now features shopping, dining, a movie theatre and yes, you can still get the train. Oh no! I just realized I have no pictures. I guess I was so interested in what my tour guide had to say I forgot to snap a few pics. I'll be back for their holiday decorations and will put some up in a later post.

We left Union Station and headed for Capitol Hill. We walked all around the US Capitol and the Senate and House office buildings. It was the day before election day, but you can see that work had already begun on the platform where the Inauguration will take place.

Next we went by the Library of Congress and then to the Supreme Court building. This tour didn't include the inside of any of these buildings. It focused on the history and architecture of the buildings themselves. I was also given a lot of information about the tours that are offered and how to sign up (or show up) for them, how to get gallery passes when Congress is in session, and how to attend oral arguments at the Supreme Court. I didn't realize that just anyone could walk in off the street and listen to oral arguments presented to the Supreme Court. I figured you'd need official business or a pass of some sort to do that.

So many things to do, so little time.