Tucked between Howard University and Shaw, LeDroit Park is one of Washington, DC’s most captivating historic neighborhoods. Established in 1873, it was one of the city’s first planned suburban communities. Its quiet streets are lined with beautifully preserved Victorian…
Updated: April 16, 2026 (now includes behind-the-scenes insights from my weekly volunteer work at the stables) The U.S. Park Police Horse Stables & Education Center on the National Mall opened in 2023 as a rare behind-the-scenes look at the…
This DC holiday tree walk connects Washington DC’s most accessible Christmas trees—indoors and outdoors—through Capitol Hill, downtown, and President’s Park. The route works well after dark, stays mostly flat, and pairs architecture with seasonal displays rather than crowds or…
Riding the Amtrak Coast Starlight overnight train from Portland to Los Angeles has been a bucket list goal of mine. When I retired this year, I decided to make this dream come true. I booked my train ticket in…
Mission San Jose is less than a mile from the San Antonio River, which meanders through the city’s Pearl, Downtown, and Garden District neighborhoods. Because it was the largest (and most beautiful) mission in San Antonio, it was nicknamed…
RIP Stumpy! How do you say goodbye to a friend that is always waiting for you to visit in any season at any time? In March 2024, Washingtonians learned that the National Park Service (NPS) would remove their beloved…
DC cherry blossoms fever hits me each year during the last cold weeks of March in Washington DC. Paint my city pink! Frail white Yoshino petals rain down in flower showers on the bumpy path along the Tidal Basin…
When I visited Cedar Hill estate, the last home where Frederick Douglass lived for 17 years, I thought I saw his ghost. I had just finished the National Park Service’s docent tour of the home in Anacostia. My brain…