Day 7- Cherry Blossoms!

Our dream came true and we were in Washington DC for the peak of cherry blossoms.  In just 24 hours they had burst out and every tree was full of white and pink blossoms. We started the day by walking to the National Zoo.  Most animals were still inside, but we did get to see 3 highlights.  A male gorilla that woke us all up by rushing the glass and beating on it multiple times, 3 panda bears up and about, including one that had climbed a tree a good 50 feet up, and 4 Asian elephants.  Mel and I took an uber to pick up  a rental car to get us to Baltimore airport(much cheaper flights).  We were packed up and out of the AirBnb 10 min before checkout and parked the rental by the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.  We liked the gems, dinosaurs, a fun exhibit on outbreaks- in which we were scientists trying to contain an epidemic, and the mammals.  The museum has been updated a lot since Matt and I had been there 25 years ago.

After the museum we stepped out onto the National Mall to an amazing crowd of people, many flying kites for the Cherry Blossom Kite Festival.  We were going to eat lunch from food trucks, but even with over 30 the lines were at least 30 minute wait.  So we decided to take our cherry blossom walk around the Tidal Basin and then get out of town before grabbing lunch.  The crowds were insane and we only made it about a quarter of the way around to the Jefferson Memorial before the heat(80 degrees today), the crowd, and no lunch made us go back to the car.  We ended the day by swimming in the pool and having a hearty dinner at Cracker Barrel.  Relaxing end to a busy vacation!