Rene Cizio's Blog, page 10

6 Must-See Monuments and Memorials in Washington D.C.

Planning will be your best friend if you want to see the monuments and memorials in Washington D.C. The city has hundreds of monuments, memorials, statues, and historic sites. Deciding which ones to see can be mind-boggling, but it doesn’t have to be. There may be hundreds of monuments and memorials in Washington DC, but only a few are required viewing. Deciding which monuments and memorials in Washington D.C. to see may be easier than determining whether you’ll see them at night or the day because the monuments have a different look depending on the sun or moon above. I’ve been to the city several times, and these are the monuments that take my breath away any time of day or night. 1 Washington Monument There are roughly a dozen monuments and memorials in Washington D.C. dedicated to U.S. presidents. These, not surprisingly, are also among the most elaborate and visually stunning. The most spectacular and famous of all monuments and memorials in Washington D.C. is the Washington Monument. Because of its height, you can see this monument from all over the city. It’s a 555 feet tall Egyptian-style stone obelisk honoring the United States’ first President, George Washington. A […]

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Attend a Rare Van Gogh exhibit in Detroit Until Jan. 22, 2023

The Van Gogh exhibit in Detroit titled “Van Gogh in America” at the Detroit Institute of Arts displays 74 paintings, drawings, and prints by the Dutch Post-Impressionist Vincent Van Gogh. It’s one of the largest exhibitions of his work in this century, and unless you travel to the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, it’s the only way to see so many Van Goghs in one place. They will be displayed from Oct. 2 until Jan. 22, 2023. If you’ve read my stories, you know I’m a huge Van Gogh fan. I’ve been anticipating this exhibit for two years – since the original date was pushed back due to COVID-19. Previously, I’ve visited the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and many others worldwide to see his work and traveled to the places he painted in Paris, Auver, St. Remy and Arles. Still, when I attended the member preview, I was floored by the extensive impression collection the museum has curated. Van Gogh In America “Van Gogh in America” celebrates the DIA’s status as the first public museum in the United States to purchase a painting by Van Gogh, his Self-Portrait (1887). Though Van Gogh died in 1890, it took his sister-in-law, […]

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Five Presidential Homes in Virginia You Can Visit

There are nine presidential homes in Virginia, and I visited several. The homes belonged to President George Washington (Mt. Vernon), Thomas Jefferson (Monticello and Poplar Forest), James Madison (Montpelier), and James Monroe (Highland). William Henry Harrison’s Berkeley Plantation and John Tyler’s Sherwood Forest Plantation are not open to the public. Less formally, there is also Theodore Roosevelt’s rural cabin (Pine Knot) and the Woodrow Wilson Presidential Library and Museum. When I spent a month visiting the Commonwealth state, I didn’t expect to review my U.S. history teaching, but in the end, it was unavoidable. That’s a good thing because the history books left out a LOT. The history books highlighted these men’s great acts but were less good about mentioning the negative or contradictions. After visiting these presidential homes in Virginia, I began to see a fuller picture of the men who shaped the United States. Being up close and personal with their most intimate objects – their homes – gives them a new context as people, not just famous first presidents. Contemporary historians at these presidentical homes now focus on the complete stories, not just the accomplishments, and it’s enlightening beyond measure. Even if you’ve visited before, you’re likely […]

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3 Travel Trends From Airbnb’s CEO

Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky spoke with Skift founder and CEO Rafat Ali at the Skift Global Forum in New York City on September 21. Skift is a news source for business travel. During the event, Chesky shared his perspective on the future of travel. He spoke on several topics related to Airbnb’s business and his insights on travel. Here are three travel trends he talked about in the interview. 1 The Need for Human Connection In an era of remote work, Chesky says travel will be the reason people need to leave their houses in the future. In the interview, Chesky said that he believes that travel analysts are underestimating the comeback the industry is about to have as we enter a “golden age of travel.” As people become more connected online and remote work expands, fewer reasons to leave our homes will exist. “You have hundreds of millions of people that are glued to screens all day,” Chesky said. “They want to leave their house. Travel’s going to be the way to do that.” He envisions a future where living and traveling combine as the source of most human connection. Whereas today, when travel is about seeing major landmarks, […]

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Let’s go on a Historic Road Trip through Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown

In Virginia, they call Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown the “Historic Triangle” because these three iconic colonial towns are within a few miles of each other. If you mapped them, the space between would form a triangle. This makes them a perfect couple-of-day adventure for anyone with interest in American history. Even if you’re not already a history buff, you’re bound to leave with new insight and appreciation you never expected. I spent two days exploring Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown. History nerd that I am, I was dying to see if these old towns could live up to my imagination and my teachers’ descriptions. They did more than that – they gave me an entirely new perspective. But there’s so much to see and do in the area, and the National Park Service and private entities manage the sites, so it can be a Bermuda Triangle of confusion if you’ve never been there. Here’s how I navigated Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown. Jamestown Do you know the story of Pocahontas, John Smith and the first settlers? Like me, you’re probably most familiar with the Disney version. But there’s another, more accurate version, which took place at Jamestown. This is where the Powhatan […]

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Let’s go a Historic Road Trip through Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown

In Virginia, they call Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown the “Historic Triangle” because these three iconic colonial towns are within a few miles of each other. If you mapped them, the space between would form a triangle. This makes them a perfect couple-of-day adventure for anyone with interest in American history. Even if you’re not already a history buff, you’re bound to leave with new insight and appreciation you never expected. I spent two days exploring Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown. History nerd that I am, I was dying to see if these old towns could live up to my imagination and my teachers’ descriptions. They did more than that – they gave me an entirely new perspective. But there’s so much to see and do in the area, and the National Park Service and private entities manage the sites, so it can be a Bermuda Triangle of confusion if you’ve never been there. Here’s how I navigated Jamestown, Williamsburg and Yorktown. Jamestown Do you know the story of Pocahontas, John Smith and the first settlers? Like me, you’re probably most familiar with the Disney version. But there’s another, more accurate version, which took place at Jamestown. This is where the Powhatan […]

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Butterfly Migration and Wanderlust

It’s monarch butterfly migration season, and as these fantastic critters travel south, I cannot help but think about my wanderlust. Long before I was a nomad, I used to fantasize about travel. My earliest wanderlust fantasy was of hopping in my car and driving off into the western sunset. My arm would hang out the window on a warm sunny summer day, and I’d laugh as I headed off to places unknown. Even as a child, I always wanted to be somewhere else. Back then, books transported me; later, it was frequent travel, and now it’s life on the road. For almost the last two years, I’ve been a nomad traveling solo, making my way through the U.S., Mexico and Canada. But it took a lifetime to accept my wanderlust and live the life I wanted instead of the one I was sold. I used to believe I was defective. I was supposed to want stability and known things, not constant change and the new, unknown. So, instead of traveling, I followed my parent’s blueprint and lived an entire life. I’ve become a woman, raised my daughter, and built a career. I checked all the boxes; I even excelled. Still, […]

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Discovering the Secret Cemeteries in Shenandoah National Park

After three weeks of looking for cemeteries in Shenandoah National Park, it still stunned me how much the trails could change in mere days. When I first arrived, most of the trees and bushes were nearly bare, and it was easy to find old ruins and gravestones. Now, the foliage is denser, and the forest is overtaking everything. As I hiked alongside the babbling brook in the dying light of day, parts of the path were thick with tall grass and bugs. The bugs swarmed me when I stopped to look at my map or take a drink of water. But I was struggling to find the old, hidden graveyard, so I must stop and hope there’d be something of me left once the bugs finished. I looked around at the narrow trail, once a road, stretching out before and behind me like a tightrope. Lush green covered everything, and my map was useless. The graveyard, if there was one, was staying hidden. When I rented a little white cottage for a month-long stay nearby the Shenandoah National Park, I didn’t know much about it. Certainly not that it had once been home to hundreds of displaced families, and definitely […]

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Visiting George Washington’s Mount Vernon

Mount Vernon, the home of America’s first president, is one of the most popular places to visit in America. Each year 1 million people tour George Washington’s Mount Vernon, making it a top United States attraction. I recently took a tour and was surprised by how many things there are to do. Mount Vernon is special because it was the beloved home of America’s first President and an American landmark. More than that, it’s historically essential preservation of colonial America depicting a way of life long gone. Not only is the original home preserved, but so are the grounds and the artifacts of the plantation community. It is also the site of Washington’s grave. Washington inherited the home and lived at it before he became a Revolutionary War General and after serving two terms as President. He worked to renovate, preserve and add to the home throughout his lifetime. Today, over 500 acres surround the house, but in Washington’s time, there were about 8,000 acres. Arriving at George Washington’s Home Because it is one of the most visited historic homes in the country, they’ve developed a lively welcome center to engage, educate and showcase information about Washington and Mount Vernon. Fun Fact: […]

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Visiting Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and Poplar Forest

As a nomad, I frequently detour on my travels to view the homes of writers and artist offering tours. It goes without saying when I was near the homes of Thomas Jefferson – Monticello and Poplar Forest – I stopped. As the author of the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson is one of the most revered writers of the United States. He’s also a genius and polymath, cultivating much knowledge and many skills. Like most founding fathers, he was also an enslaver and, like most human beings, a contradictory, complex person. Many people are aware of Monticello in Charlottesville, Virginia, but fewer know about his private retreat Poplar Forest just 1.5 hours south in Bedford County, Virginia. Jefferson was the 3rd President of the United States and a founding father of the Virginia plantation aristocracy. Most of the presidential homes in Virginia are plantations too, though in the past, much of the American enslavement history has been a side note while historians focused on these men’s accomplishments. That is changing. Today, in these historical museum homes a greater focus is given to the enslaved people who lived in and around these homes, especially at Monticello. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello Located in Charlottesville, […]

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