D.C.

Honest-to-god, my entire home town would fit inside Union Station in Washington D.C. The six enormous statues towering over everything give it the feel of an old renaissance cathedral. Very awe inspiring. Until I got to the taxi line, which was seventy-five people long. The inspiration quickly evaporated. They should plan it so the taxi line weaves back inside so we could study the statuary while we waited. THAT would be truly cool.

The hotel I stayed in was so enormous that it had a very evolved, tri-fold map for guests to use in navigating. It wasn’t much help. I almost had to call a taxi to get from the hotel lobby to my room, but I think the check-in attendant recognized that I was a wee bit travel worn and took pity on me and placed me in a room just off the elevators. Thank god, or I would STILL be wandering the halls of the Marriott, wondering how on earth to find my way back to civilization.

You all are going to get sick of me saying this, but D.C. was also a MUCH prettier city than I had imagined. Lots of elegant old buildings and brownstones, lovely architectural details, tree lined streets, etc. Very, very nice.

POLITICS and PROSE was an aMaZinG bookstore! Oh Em Gee!! It’s the kind of place you kind of wish you’d get locked up in overnight, kinda/sorta by accident, just so you could have your way with all those lovely, tantalizing books. The school kids who came to hear me talk were sharp and savvy and had all sorts of terrific questions. They kept me on my toes, they did, and were hugely fun to get to know.

And the wonderful Dee and her equally wonderful daughter Miss Maggie drove all the way from Virginia, just so we could meet! I was THRILLED to look up into the audience and see their smiling, familiar faces. (I've only actually ever met Dee, but Maggie was the spitting image, so she felt familiar, too.) Thank you, thank you for making the trek! It was LOVELY to see you again!

My travel observation of the day: I had to go through one of those dreaded x-ray machines at Reagan National Airport. Oy. I thought they were supposed to give us more assurance that people weren’t carrying anything, but both the woman in front of me and myself ended up having to be patted down. The examination was more thorough than my last annual physical.