Rolling to Remember – Washington DC on Memorial Day
After finishing with American Supercamp, we continued to Washington DC for the weekend. With COVID numbers on the decline and restrictions easing, we feel finally ready to start venturing out.
Friday, we rode from Quantico to DC, stopping first at the Marine Corps Museum. This free museum is a recommend, presenting the history of the US Marine Corps from its inception to today, with detailed displays in numerous galleries.
The ride from the museum to DC was a wet one. Fortunately, our rain gear was up to the task, although it turns out that Michael’s boots are no longer fully waterproof.
We had booked ourselves an Airbnb a mile north of the Mall. The location seemed great, and it included parking, but we were rather disappointed when we arrived. The host does not live on site, which we’ve now determined to be a deal-killer for future trips. One of the other guests had been living there long-term, and had spread his stuff far and wide such that the living and dining rooms were unusable, most of the kitchen counters were inaccessible, and the bathroom was littered with personal care products and hair. The neighbourhood turned out to be a little sketchy, though we didn’t end up actually having any problems over the course of our 3-night stay.
Friday afternoon we found a small Ethiopian restaurant and enjoyed injera for the first time in over a year. Yum!
The next morning we rode north of DC to Laurel for church, and then spent the rest of the day visiting with friends Archie and Sikhu and their three boys. Sikhu is soon to add a daughter to their home, which was an exciting surprise. We enjoyed lunch and fellowship, catching up on each others’ lives. The boys were curious about the motorcycles, so we took them out to the driveway and let them sit on the bikes, which they loved. Michael honked his 150 dB dual tone airhorn, and that ended up scaring the littlest one a bit.
We headed back into DC, arriving just as the sun set, then headed out for a late supper. Michael found a Turkish restaurant nearby, so we wandered over to check it out. Ottoman Taverna turned out to be a Michelin-rated restaurant for which we were a little under-dressed. We managed to get a table despite not having a reservation, and enjoyed some delicious Turkish fare and outstanding service. The ezme was particularly tasty. A solid recommend, though your dining experience will not be kind to your wallet!
Sunday morning was the primary reason we came to DC. For over 30 years, motorcyclists have gathered on the Sunday of the Memorial Day weekend to participate in a group ride to raise awareness for service members who are prisoners of war or missing in action (POW/MIA), and those suffering from PTSD. In years past, this event has seen 500,000+ bikes, but with a combination of new event leadership, COVID and the threat of rain, this year’s turnout wasn’t nearly as well attended.
We arrived early, negotiating the maze of streets blocked off for the event to arrive at the stadium which served as the rallying point early enough to have time to walk around, view the other bikes and meet a few people. The vast majority of the bikes were cruisers, mostly Harleys. We did, however, spy a few sport bikes, adventure bikes and even one dirt bike in the crowd.
After a few passionate speeches, the singing of the national anthem and a prayer, we were off. Well, not us, but the people at the head of the line. We had to wait a little while before it was our turn. But that didn’t stop everyone around us from firing up their bikes. What a din! The very air around us shook with the combined cacophony of thousands of motorcycles being idled and revved as we waiting for our turn to depart.
From the stadium, the route took us south of the Mall past the MLK Jr memorial, behind the Lincoln Memorial, and then around the Mall itself before ending on a road outbound from DC on the south side of the Mall. We rode past many famous monuments, and were also able to ride past, and salute, the Saluting Marine, a man we happened to meet at the motorcycle show in DC in Jan 2020. It was meaningful to be a part of such a large demonstration. Though we had hoped for a larger turnout, the reduced numbers meant that we didn’t have to wait three hours before it was our turn to start rolling from the staging point.
We were done, parked back at our Airbnb and eating lunch by 1:30 pm, and so had the day to do some touristy things. We went and saw the Victims of Communism memorial, the fence surrounding the Capitol Building, the MLK Jr memorial and the statue of Albert Einstein. And logged 27k steps! The Spy Museum was all sold out, so we’ll have to go back and visit that another day.
Monday, we headed back home, once again avoiding the interstates and enjoying the sights as we rolled through smaller communities.
