We began with a drive by tour of several monuments

First  we passed the Air Force missing man memorial,  then the Marine memorial,  the Iwo Jima memorial

Our next stops were memorials in and around the Mall

The Korean memorial

Martin Luther King memorial

The FDR memorial is a park setting

Our visit to the Lincoln memorial next

We sang our first concert at the Jefferson memorial

We also drove by,  or walked by,  several other sights

Our visits to Arlington National Cemetery and laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns.   Video of that is in another post

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the Capital Hill Club and then a tour of the capital with Rep Mark Walker.  We were beyond amazed to be able to sit in the seats is our nation’s House, the Peoples house. And then to sing and read scripture in the rotunda of the capital. 

We’ve had so many spectacular experiences, on this trip!  Several today were experiences we won’t forget or probably ever get to repeat! 

Our group,  officially the American Festival Choir,  laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers today and our director,  Dr Melton was chosen to be part of that honor.  

Today we had the fabulous experience of a VIP tour of the Museum of the Bible.   There are way too many pictures and details to share,  even in our personal blog!  We saw ancient manuscripts,  history of the scriptures,  the impact of Bible in world history,  and amazing artifacts.   Having a private guide made this a very great tour.

Parts is the longest tapestry in America

There are interactive sections and videos,  all excellent experiences! 

We finished our day with a welcome dinner with 290 of our group,  and an hour of rehearsal of the music we will be presenting in our outside concerts,  beginning tomorrow!  I will try to get some video and of course some pictures of our concerts coming up!  Tomorrow will be a full full day! 

We are on a short but very unique adventure!  Emmett and I, with about 16 members of our Coastal California Chorale,  are joining voices in a 250 to  300 voice choir at the Kennedy Center on July 3, a Salute to our American Veterans!  We are backing up 2 great gospel singers,  Sandi Patty and Jimmy Fortune of the Statler Bros. 

6 is us flew in together today and others are joining us over the next 24 hours.   Those of us who came early are getting a VIP Tour of the Museum of the Bible tomorrow morning before our whole group gathers for a opening dinner and then a 2 hour rehearsal.  And this is just the beginning

Over the next 5 days, we will be singing a couple concerts at 2 memorials, praying and maybe singing in the capital rotunda,  visiting the Arlington National Cemetery, laying a wreath at the tomb of the unknown, and visiting a couple museums on our day off!!  Of course,  the Capital fourth and the fireworks are right at our doorstep,  if it isn’t too hot,  muggy,  or rainy too go… time will tell.  We can see them from the hotel,  if we are inclined to see them that way!    So watch for photos and videos in the upcoming days.

Our capital is impressive even from the air,  isn’t it?

Our next stop,  Imperial, Nebraska, for grandson Walker’s graduation!  Family is gathered and having a fun weekend on the farm

Graduation ceremonies and party

Busy weekend but such fun to have everyone together! Especially fun for the 3 little ones too enjoy some cousin time,  since now they live in different states.  

Lunch and a day of visiting St.  Augustine where we had lunch with great friends,  Vicki and Ted Jackson!  We met them on a cruise in Japan several years ago and got it off!  We’ve been blessed to visit them 2x since! 

St Augustine’s old Spanish town,  with its Fort and lovely old homes along St George Street. 

You do see interesting sights along the street,  like mosaic manakins and pirates

Constitution square and the cathedral of St Augustine

We arrived into Port Canaveral early Thursday morning and, since we couldn’t get into our timeshare until 4 anyway,  we decided to use the time in a fun way!

We had a Great day visiting the Space Center! we enjoyed the exhibits on the Gemini, Apollo, and space shuttle programs.  

The first manned launch of Artemis,  the next moon missions, named for the sister of Apollo, is scheduled for Monday night at 10:35!  We are hoping to witness that!  Stay tuned! 

We have had 5 days of sea crossing the Atlantic,  4 of them smooth and calm,  but the last was quite high swells and white caps.   It’s nice to be on land again,  in Bermuda today

Our cruise in, past old St Georges, a lighthouse we could see for miles out, and a fortress

We dock in the Royal Navy Dockyard and boarder a mini bus for a great island tour,  to Hamilton, the capital of the island country, and St Georges, the first settlement, and original capital.   The country is covered with lovely Pastel houses,  each family having their own color!

Beautiful turquoise water!  On the south shore,  the reef is just 200+ yards offshore,  so the waters are shallow and gorgeous!

We have had a lovely day on Gran Canaria,  visiting the small village and the Jardin de la Marquesa

First Arucas

Lovely countryside drives

The Jardin de La Marquesas,  planted in the late 1880s, with 2500 species of tropical plants

Many cacti and fountains

It is mating season for the peacocks, so they were displaying and dancing for us!

We visited the church and village of Teror and enjoyed our last tapas lunch of a very tender and delicious octopus,  with potatoes and a Canarian sauce called MOJO!

Our last tapas lunch

Our port stop on the Costa del Sol.   I do love this area!  Gateway to Andalusia!

I did the ship excursion to Marbella’s old town

And on to Puerto Banus

We stopped in Malaga’s old town and cathedral square before returning to the ship