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The United States of America is such an interesting country and it was amazing to visit New York and Washington D.C.

I’d first like to thank the History Department for running this trip and Mrs Bhaiyat for organising it.

Day 1: Entering the Land of the Free

A lot of travel happened on Day 1 (flight and the coach). The best thing about it was arriving in New York and seeing all the skyscrapers (The Chrysler building, Empire State building to name a few) illuminated at night, as we edged towards our hotel at Times Square.

Day 2: The highline, and Six the Musical on Broadway

This was the first full day in New York. We walked the New York highline – a walkable green space converted from an old railway track above the roads, visited Chelsea market (where we had lunch), and Macy’s (yes more shopping). Then the most exciting part of the day for all of us was going to watch Six the Musical on Broadway in the evening after having our meal. It was a great show, and everyone loved it.

Day 3: The Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, Ground Zero, and The One World Trade Centre

This was perhaps my second favourite day of the trip. The Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island were both interesting to see in person, and the 9/11 museum and memorial were rather moving. The memorial was a water fountain, and it felt so removed from the rest of the city. It was just the water and the names the victims of the attack were written around the fountain. The only thing you could hear was the flowing water. It was tranquil standing by it. We finished off this day by walking over a part of the Brooklyn Bridge.

Day 4: Empire State building, Central Park and the Modern Museum of Art

In the morning we visited Central Park. It was incredible. Then we visited the Modern Museum of Art, which is an amazing art museum (so many good paintings from Van Gogh to Monet). Afterwards, we visited the Empire State Building, a true feat of engineering, and the site of a brilliant view. The view of New York from the 80th and 86th floors was pretty immense.

Day 5: Leaving New York, visiting Gettysburg and arriving in D.C

Now on day 5 we left New York on a coach, and eventually we and the coach arrived in Gettysburg- the site of the bloodiest battle of the American civil war and the site of the first national cemetery constructed in America. We didn’t spend too much time in Gettysburg as we had to continue on to D.C.

Day 6: Washington D.C

Obviously, the final day of the trip. This was my favourite day. We walked through Washington with our tour guide Chris, who told us all about the peculiarities of D.C: like it’s governance (congress can unilaterally overrule any law passed in D.C), height limit and electoral status. It does have 3 electoral votes, but is only a federal district (the District of Columbia) not a state and therefore doesn’t have the rights of a state (representation in the Senate, and the House). We visited the Vietnam memorial, Korean War memorial, Martin Luther King memorial, and the Lincoln memorial. It’s hard to pick out a favourite seeing as each has their own merits. There was also a great view of the Washington Monument and the US capitol from the Lincoln memorial’s side of the reflecting pool. Then we visited the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which I enjoyed, and then it was the flight home to Britain.