For many years now, I have been in search of a good time on the Fourth of July. Any holiday involving barbecues, patriotism, and explosives at high altitudes should be phenomenal, right? I've certainly had some good times over the years, but nothing has blown my socks off like I would have liked. This year started off nicely. We took the Metro back to the Museum of Natural History for another crack at the place. We got a good two hours in but still only managed to scratch the surface. One thing is for sure: I saw the biggest damn train I've ever seen in my life.
The museum closed at 5:30 and we made our way up the Mall to meet up with Gabriela. We were lucky enough to happen across the Air Force Symphony Orchestra performing a live concert in front of the Air & Space Museum. Very cool.
After we rendezvoused with Gabriela, we had an excellent dinner at a Mexican restaurant just north of the Capitol. After dinner we headed to the other side of the Capitol where the Symphony Orchestra was performing with special guests James Galway, Ray Charles, and David Benoit (kicking off the Week Of Dave). The fireworks followed Ray Charles' performance and, quite frankly, I think the show at Disneyland is better. Yeah, there were 30 minutes worth of fireworks and yeah, it was neat to see them explode behind the Washington Monument but it was nothing phenomenal. Plus there were a lot of people and very little organization and the natives were getting restless. I had much more fun after the fireworks, when we went back to Gabriela's place and corrupted her with her first cigar. Although we didn't inhale, I wouldn't say we used the "Clinton approach".
On our way out, Gabriela was amused by the amount of items I had in my pockets. As I emptied them out, Aaron observed us from the steps. Seeing his amusement, I attempted to explain our zaniness and the road trip. It was easier just to take his picture. Smile!
