What do George Washington, Willard Scott, Jim Morrison, and Alison Kogut all have in common?

This is Alison, kids. I never expected to put myself on a list with folks who are as well recognized as George Washington, Willard Scott, or Jim Morrison. Obviously I do not have the fame nor the notoriety of our first president, I am not as ubiquitous nor legendary as the weatherman who now reads the names of centenarians off of Smuckers jars, and I certainly do not remind many of the musician who begs us to “light” his “fire”.

Yet I have something in common with the aforementioned. We all have a connection to a little city that we call home, Alexandria…not Louisiana or Egypt but Virginia. As you may know, I was born, raised, and lived most of my adult life in the City of Alexandria – a mere few miles from our nation’s Capitol. Alexandria is not a bastard stepchild of Washington, DC or a suburb that sprung up to accommodate the growing city of Washington, DC but a city with its own unique characteristics, history, culture, and entertainment.

Our first President, George Washington called Alexandria, specifically Mount Vernon, home. In the U.S. Capitol Rotunda there is a picture entitled General George Washington Resigning His Commission,…General George Washington resigned his commission as Commander-in-Chief of the Army to the Congress, which was then meeting at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, on December 23, 1783. This action was of great significance in establishing of civilian rather than military rule, leading to democracy rather than dictatorship. Washington stands with two aides-de-camp addressing the president of the Congress, Thomas Mifflin, and others, such as Elbridge Gerry, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and James Madison. Mrs. Washington and her three grandchildren are shown watching from the gallery, although they were not in fact present at the event.

Martha Washington and the grandchildren were not present because they were at Mount Vernon preparing for George’s return for Christmas since his resignation was on December 23rd. At the time, George Washington had no desire to lead the nation and wished to spend the rest of his life farming and living at his home in Mount Vernon. Thankfully, it didn’t quite turn out that way.

Hollywood put a bright spotlight on Alexandria when Disney decided to make a movie called, Remember the Titans. The movie is based on T.C. Williams (where I went to high school) and follows the school’s high school football team during the 1970’s desegregation of the school and its winning season.

Needless to say, I am proud of where I came from and couldn’t have imagined a greater place to grow-up. So while you are in town for our wedding and if you have some free time and want to head out of the District, consider visiting a little place that I like to call home.

***Alexandria is easily accessible by the Metro System on the blue line. In addition, if you fly into DCA you are flying into Alexandria so you can already say you have been to my hometown. ***

DCA, IAD, or BWI?

Yep, it's airport code bingo, folks. This isn't the most exciting topic to kick off the Pearson and Alison wedding blog (a term I'm told ellicits scores of laughs around the country), but it's one I've received questions on over the last few months. Do I fly into National Airport (DCA), Dulles Int'l Airport (IAD), or Baltimore-Washington Int'l Airport (BWI)?

I know many of you have already made your decisions, but I thought I would give you a bit of background so you know what to expect.

First, if you are flying into DCA, you should have no problems getting to your hotel using DC's Metro train system. The station is right outside baggage claim and with a transfer will get you downtown to either the Dupont Circle station or the station closest to your hotel. If you haven't made your reservations and can afford the extra $50-100, fly into DCA.

If IAD is your choice, you are gonna need to decide whether to shell out a few clams for a cab ride or cobble together a trip using public transport. The latter is easier than it sounds, involving a bus to the West Falls Church Metro station. That will then take you into downtown DC.

Now, onto BWI. BWI is a bit of a misnomer in that it is nowhere near Washington. It's kinda like calling LAX "LASDX", as if San Diego is in LA. That's the bad news. The good news is that there is a "MARC" train that runs from just off the airport right to Washington's Union Station, which connects directly to the Metro's Red Line. It requires you to grab a 5 min bus to the MARC train, then hop that train for the 30 min ride to DC. Not bad. Bad news? On the weekends, you have to use Amtrak, which doubles the cost from roughly$6 to $18.

In sum, go through DCA if at all possible. It's worth the extra $50-100, at least until rail service gets going directly to IAD and BWI. Despite that, going through IAD or BWI aren't that BAD.

Later,
PFC

Alison and Pearson Wedding Blog Kickoff

For the past several months, Alison and I have kicked around the idea of launching a "website" to provide information on our upcoming wedding. While I am technology proficient to a degree, I don't have the time nor the energy to build one.

One easy way to communicate to the masses is through a blog. So, I've decided to communicate any pertinent information about the wedding, including hotels, venue, weather, etc. I'll include fun little anecdotes about our relationship and its connection to the Washington, DC area.

Please check back every day or two and I'll have an update.

Take care!
Pearson and Alison