The Jefferson Memorial used to be one of the most beautiful monuments in Washington, but in recent years its dome has been attacked by a biofilm that apparently can’t be killed. One section of it (not in view) has been cleaned, but the efforts to preserve it seem to have stopped. For a view of what it’s supposed to look like, click on the picture below, which I took in 2009, when the memorial was in pristine condition.

Best to view in "Original" because other versions resized by Pbase are decidedly unsharp.

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Wednesday was a spectacular day, and Tim was off, so we decided to brave the gridlock on the streets and crowds of people to view the cherry blossoms on the Tidal Basin, although it certainly wasn’t as packed as last weekend.

The city of Tokyo gifted 3,000 cherry trees to the US capital 107 years ago, in 1912. Despite the hassles of getting to the Tidal Basin, many DC area residents honor the tradition of visiting during peak bloom, and people come from all over the country to see this gorgeous sight.

The “real” Jefferson Memorial: