The guy who was sitting next to me is Indian-American. He hears an Indian couple speaking some Indian dialect. He turns around and asks what the dialect was. It turns out they both come from the same part of India. The older women asks if he knows an Indian guy named Ray from Philly? The young guy says no, but he gives them his card.
I disembark the train and follow the army of people with their luggage to the main hall of union station. Union stations is one of these train stations that looks like how a grand train station should look like. Like grand central in NYC or union station in Chicago, it isn't one of these sterile ugly monstrosities built in the 60s and 70s. You walk in and their are shops everywhere. You go to the main hall and their is a sense of history.
I walked with my giant duffel bag outside the station. I had a couple hours to kill. I could see the capital building in the distance. Christ it was cold but not as cold as New York was. People where running to and fro grabbing cabs, buses. School groups where getting organized to take the tour of DC. Me I was just some sketchy looking guy with a duffel bag, a worn mariners baseball cap, dark circles under my eyes and a scruffy beard. So either an escaped con or a guy who isn't aloud within 50 feet of a minor. I fit right in.
I walked past the senate office building. I wonder if I can take a tour, probably not with the duffel bag . I see security is everywhere. More so than last time I was here. Than it hits me the inauguration is on Monday. DC is going to be a party city. I think it might be fun to be young in DC. I mean yes most everyone works in government, but it seems like it could be a cool place to live. But how burned out you must end up being by the time your 30. Oye vey. I walk past the armed guards that surround the capital. Last time I was here I saw an armed guard with a giant shotgun who looked like Yosemite Sam. Hopefully I'll see him again.
As iam walking snapping pictures of the capital and walking past the school groups I think to myself" why isn't anyone stopping me?"I mean a lone guy walking around the capital with a giant duffel bag doesn't seem suspicious? They probably had snipers in me.
I walk around the capital and see the giant grandstand being set up for Monday. They are testing the loudspeaker, blasting patriotic music. I look over at the tech guys trailers and see about 100,000 cans of diet coke. Wow watching your figure nice. There's probably 100 porta johns around the building. They all have locks in them. Man it's fucking cold.
I decide to walk down Pennsylvania ave to the White House. Didn't do that last time. Figure what the hell. There's construction going on everywhere. Guys are checking the sound equipment. It's a last minute run of making the city up for its big party. American flags are everywhere. Even the Canadian embassy has them up.
I walk past the newspaper museum. They have all the major papers in the country's front pages outside. Everyone's talking about that Norte dame football stars lie about his girlfriend. What an ass I think to myself. I try to find the Seattle times. I see the New Hampshire union leader and random papers from Oklahoma, Charleston, portland but no Seattle. I continue walking.
Outside the federal courthouse I see a n old guy wearing a camal coat overcoat, a big white cowboy hat, shiny brown cowboy boots, smoking a cigar with three young corporate guys. The old guys probably in his 60s the young guys are no more than 28. Something bad must be up. I got to get a picture this is to good to be true. Outside the embassy is four protesters against the oil pipeline . I keep on walking and stumble across the navy memorial and than I see it.FBI headquarters .
As a kid I liked the FBI but also was taught never to trust them. My family still had memories of J. Edgar Hoover . My family always had a fine history of union activity and of just breaking the law. I wondered if their was a file on a relative. I kept walking.
A guy testing the loudspeaker started saying weird things that I don't think he should of. Outside DC city hall was a giant banner for the mayor that said " A more perfect union must include full democracy for DC, taxation without representation". Nice I thought. It's total bs why they won't give DC a voting member of congress. I mean I could get into a whole thing about it but I won't. Watch the nine lives of Marion Berry than we' ll talk.
I make my way to the White House it's like Fort Knox. They aren't letting anyone close to it. Something big must be going on today cause rich powerful people in fancy cloths are going inside. I walk over towards Lafayette park where I see the bullet proof grandstand they have set up for the president. Man they ain't fucking around I think.
I walkover to the gate and snap a photograph of the white house. I start walking and a guard yells at me to walk the other way . I think it's not like your watching over... Than I go oh right.
I take more pics and decide to head back to union station. I stop and see the Washington monument. I imagine every guy and girl are doing that same hilarious thing everyone has always done of either making it look like they're giving a blow job or thats monuments their penis. such witty people we are.
I try to go for the fastest way possible and I get lost for a couple moments. I go to check my phone but it's dead. Great, I see a guy walking the other direction as I cross the street . Stop and ask him which way is union station. He stops stares at me, says nothing and keeps on walking. Okie dokie I think to myself. I finally see a sign and get to union station with plenty of time to spare.
I grab some food at sbarro with their "authentic" New York style pizza. I go and sit in the waiting area. After five minutes they board my train. I call my mom. She says your doing the smart thing. But she says you probably won't look back at this time in your life and laugh, but you'll be glad you did this.
We finally leave and head out of DC. I look at DC, man I wouldn't mind living here at some point. There is a small town feel to it.plus the local gossip must be fun. We leave the outskirts of DC and go through the horse farms of Maryland and make our way through farmland and places that seem from a distant past. I look over across the river and see Virginia. It's getting less urban and more and more rural until we are in the Appalachian mountains and cross a bridge into West Virginia. As the sun is setting over the mountains the sky starts to turn an orange glow and turn into night. I try to write, but slowly doze off as the train takes me west on my new journey.
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