August was a busy month for C and I what with my starting my new job as an entry-level Career Development Officer at the State Department while managing C’s final three weeks of summer camps then the start of seventh grade, and C pursuing several merit badges for Scouting. It still sometimes feels a little strange to me to be posted to Washington, D.C. and to have so many activities at our disposal. Had we remained in Guinea we would have had one more year left. There would have been no summer camps and we would have had only a fraction of things to see and do.

Our first activity of the month (actually the tail end of July), was a visit to the Flying Circus Air Show in Bealton, Virginia, about an hour southwest of DC. One of C’s merit badges, in Aviation, had a requirement to either tour an airport, visit an aviation museum, or attend an airshow. In Malawi, C had a tour of the airport and control tower for a school field trip and we had been to the National Air & Space Museum a few times, so an air show sounded like something different to do. A quick Google search brought me to the Flying Circus. How lucky that there was an air show every weekend throughout the summer within an easy drive. Of course there was. I wonder sometimes if there is anything this area doesn’t have?

C and l located our lawn seats, last used when C was a toddler, and headed out to the air field. It was a real hot and muggy mid-summer day, perfect for grabbing some food truck goodies and hiding in the shade of one of the free trees to watch the aeronautic acrobatics. These daredevil pilots go up in their WWI replica open air planes every weekend to demonstrate the barnstorming tactics of the early airmen and women. Pretty fantastic stuff.

Three weeks later C had her merit badge event in Lorton, Virginia, on the expansive grounds at Gunston Hall, the residence of U.S. founding father George Mason. As C would be there a good eight hours, I decided to make excellence use of the time and do a little sightseeing. I had not visited Gunston Hall before, so I booked myself a house tour with access to the gardens and grounds. As luck would have it, I was the only person on the tour that morning; I very much enjoy historic home tours, especially when I get the guide to myself.

Gunston Hall sits on a plain overlooking a slightly over a half-mile tree-covered slope down to the Potomac River. It’s a grand location about eight miles south along the Potomac from George Washington’s home at Mount Vernon. Though river travel was the way to go, Mason didn’t like to do it much as his father had died when his boat capsized on the same river and I learned he was a bit of a homebody. I suppose with an estate like Gunston Hall (and the wealth and privilege it conveyed) it was not so bad hanging out at home. I enjoyed the tour and a little meandering outside before heading over to the small historic town of Occoquan for lunch.

A colleague recently told me how much she enjoys walking in and around Occoquan, with its lovely location alongside the Potomac tributary of the same name. I found a nice table at a restaurant on the water, to enjoy a delicious meal and take in the view. Boats of families were coming and going in the small marina, and visitors were kayaking or stand-up paddle-boarding. After lunch, I took a long stroll through town, including a loop using the footbridge across the river, up back to the highway, and then back over the pedestrian sidewalk on vehicle bridge, ending with a big cup of frozen custard. I spent the last bit in the small local museum and a riverside park. The history of the town, established in 1804 but with colonial tobacco warehouses and mills set-up as early as 1734, is well worth a stop. I would have liked more time to visit both Occoquan, maybe getting out on the water, and Gunston Hall, where the numerous trails on the property beckoned for a long walk.

We wrapped up the month of sightseeing with a visit to the George Washington Masonic National Memorial located in Alexandria, Virginia. I remember in the early 90s dropping off a boyfriend at the Amtrak Train Station across from the memorial and thinking, I really ought to visit there someday. I grew up in northern Virginia and spent several parts of my life here, but it took until now to finally visit this extraordinary memorial to both masonic traditions and the first president of the U.S.

In the early 1900s, American freemasons decided to build a monument to George Washington, not only the country’s first president but also a prominent freemason. They hired a famous New York skyscraper architect, who went on to also work on 30 Rockefeller Center, and its rumored the building is at least partially inspired by the ancient lighthouse in Alexandria, Egypt. Work began in 1922 but was not completely finished until 1970; in 2015 it was designated a National Historic Monument. Sitting on Shuter’s (or Shooter’s) Hill, the 333-foot tall building is at once both imposing but also seems smaller than its true size. Standing in the grand hallway, with its 40-foot high columns flanking either side and a much-larger-than-life statue of Washington at one end, the place feels so much bigger than expected. The tour took us to the replica of the Lodge room where the freemasons of the area would have met (Washington was often too busy being president to attend), including a chair of Washington’s. On other floors we could visit a chapel, a small museum to freemasonry and other related fraternal organizations, and to a platform on the top floor allowing 360 views of Alexandria, the Potomac River, and off into Maryland, and Washington, D.C.

But that is not all! Oh no, we really had a very full month. We also caught another Washington Nationals game. C and I love to catch a game at Nationals Park and we try to go to 2-3 a season. C especially likes to go on promotion nights. We also attended a performance of MJ the Musical at the National Theater, where each season they bring Broadway blockbusters from New York. MJ is a biopic about Michael Jackson told through his songs and music. There are several of these types of Broadway plays out there such as about Tina Turner, Britney Spears, Neil Diamond, and the show We Will Rock You, which uses the music of Queen and we saw on our cruise ship to Norway last year. I don’t now how many of those C would like, but she lists “Smooth Criminal” among her favorite songs of all time, so I figured this would be a hit, and I wasn’t wrong. At the end of the month we also took in the Cat Video Fest at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in Crystal City, Virginia. The film was just 90 minutes of video clips of cats. Like watching one really long YouTube Video. BUT, the money goes to support shelters and other cat support organizations. We went with Foreign Service friends we met the year I was here for French training and who have just returned to the States for another year. It was an hour and a half of wholesome fun in comfy theater seats and yummy, not-all-that-healthy food.

C and I rounded out our month with a visit to the Arlington County Fair. I could not remember when I last went to a county fair! As I try to recall, the last I remember was in Frankfurt, Germany, in the 90s. Foreign Service friends of ours on a domestic tour who were volunteering at the fair invited us to spend the afternoon with them. They had been given some ride tickets for volunteering and their eldest daughter received a bunch of ride tickets as a prize for her winning photograph. The forecast had been for a bit of rain, but the weather turned out spectacular! Carnival rides, games of chance, and fair food like corn dogs, pizza, nachos, funnel cakes, deep fried oreos, and cotton candy were in abundance. Ah, so, very, Americana!

All in all, we had a great final month of summer; we really made the most of it. As of now, the spring and the summer have felt like they have been around a long while, and I love it. The weather will remain warm for another month or so, but soon enough things will cool down. It is, I think, harder for me to appreciate being in the D.C. area when the cold of late fall and winter roll around. Still, I will continue my attempts to make the most of our domestic tour in Washington.