Before I tell you about our time in Washington DC and Annapolis Maryland back at the end of August, I want to wish all of our Jewish friends and family “Git Yom Tov”. As I’m sure you are aware, I write and schedule my posts ahead. So today, like many of my readers, I am actually spending in retrospection and repentance. Under normal circumstances Steve and I would be doing this in a synagogue. But sadly, this year, that is not the case. We will be relying on You Tube for our worship. We wish all of you a healthy, happy and prosperous new year!

The Lincoln Memorial

We were so fortunate to be staying only a few miles from both Washington DC and Annapolis Maryland.

Washington DC

Both Steve and I have visited Washington DC on many occasions so we didn’t feel compelled to take another walking tour of all of the monuments. But we just happened to be out for a sightseeing drive and found ourselves right in the heart of DC.

The architecture 

Fabulous town homes in Washington DC

Incredible architecture in Washington DC

Another stunning example of the great architecture in Washington DC

I had never paid attention to the wonderful architecture of the fabulous townhomes that line the streets on the way to The Mall and Government areas. But they are truly spectacular and majestic structures.

House of Flowers

From one of my favorite movies The American President, the infamous House of Flowers

As we were driving along we realized we were in an area filled with hotels and retail shops. And suddenly I saw House of Flowers. And you are all wondering why is this significant. Well I am going to tell you.

In one of my favorite movies The American President, stars Michael Douglas Jr. as the president and Annette Benning as a lobbyist. The President who is a widower is dating the lobbyist. He keeps trying to send her flowers by ordering on the phone. No one at the flower shop House of Flowers believes who he is. They think it’s a prank call. Near the end of the movie he is passing House of Flowers and has his driver stop so that he can go in and purchase flower for her. It is one of the cutest scenes in this 1995 romantic comedy.

The monuments

The enormous Treasury Building in Washington DC, fills an entire square block!

A closer look at a small portion of the Treasury Building

The majestic Washington Monument

The front of the Jefferson Memorial showing all of the scaffolding necessary to complete its restoration

The World War II Memorial

The World War II Memorial with the Lincoln Memorial in the distance

The Lincoln Memorial

The new, soon to be opened World War I Memorial

We continued our drive passing the Treasury Building and then spotted a new memorial. We believe it is The World War I Memorial. Without getting out of the car we were able to also see the Jefferson Memorial, World War II Memorial, Washington Monument,  and Lincoln Memorial. We also drove across the bridge to Arlington National Cemetery but were not able to park and walk around due to Covid-19.

Annapolis Maryland

Captain Paul Foer and his charter sailboat the Non Sea Quitter

An Annapolis marina where our friend’s sailboat the Non Sea Quitter is docked

The next day we went to visit a friend in Annapolis Maryland. Paul Foer is the brother of a very dear friend of ours in Florida, who grew up in Maryland. Paul is a long time resident of Annapolis and a boat captain who offers sailboat charters on his beautiful boat the Non Sea Quitter.

Kitchen garden

Heirloom tomatoes and lemon cucumbers from Paul’s garden

A trio of spaghetti squashes just picked from the garden

A variety of fresh, just picked vegetables

Our visit began with a stop at his historic home built in the 1920s. His kitchen garden was the type that chef’s dreams are made of. There were so many wonderful fruits, vegetables and herbs all lusciously ripe and ready for picking. Nothing tastes better than tomatoes and lemon cucumbers right off the vines.

Touring downtown

City Docks in downtown Annapolis MD

What was once an historic tavern is now a restaurant and provisions store

The inside of The Middleton Tavern, where you can dine in or order food to go.

A bit of Annapolis history

The State House is the Capital of Maryland

A bell from the USS Maryland is on the lawn of the State House

And being the ultimate tour guide Paul showed off his wonderful downtown Annapolis. From the City Docks to the souvenir shops and restaurants, from historic buildings to the United States Naval Academy we visited all of the sights on our walking tour.

US Naval Academy

Steve finally got to his dream school, the United States Naval Academy. Better late than never!

The entry gate to Annapolis Naval Academy

The biggest thrill for Steve was seeing the US Naval Academy. As a high schooler his dream was to attend Annapolis. As a senior he got as far as first alternate, but sadly he did not get to attend. When Vietnam came calling he enlisted in the navy and became an Air Traffic Controller. And unfortunately due to Covid we couldn’t even take a tour of the Naval Academy. I guess we will just have to have a return visit!!!