...and just like that. DC is behind us.

Sea Dragon Families,

After a quick and wonderful visit


to the  Spy Museum and the National Cathedral, the DC portion of the "DC trip" slowly slipped from our view as we made our way to Philadelphia. But before we move on we must say that our first visit to the Spy Museum was a hit with students and adults alike. It offered interactive as well passive features giving an extensive history of espionage through the ages. As for the National Cathedral, only a picture can do it justice.

Once on the bus we took a short 3 hour drive north east to Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love. True to form, we were met by a host of folks that were more than interested to meet us.

As this will be the last night of our blog (due to an extremely late night planned for both Thursday and Friday) we will do our best to continue to supply (not words) as they come.  Before we go, and just in case you wondering, today was an "easy" day on the feet. We only logged a meager 9.423 steps today...pitiful.

BAM! Dc is almost done... and it has been phenomenal Day 3 is in the books.

As you can see we had another great day here in DC!

We kicked off the morning with a visit to the White House. Although the actual size of the house is sometimes surprising to students, the atmosphere was both electric and quite literally "awesome."

After the White House we hit Ford's Theater, the site of Lincoln's assassination. This year we were fortunate enough to have a member of the theater offer a great bit of history and insight into both of the events leading up to the assassination and after. Once again, we managed to retrace the steps of our early history.

We then took a jaunt through town and wound up at The National Portrait Gallery.  Here, the students were able to see some of the official portraits of their favorite past Presidents. They were also able to see a beautiful portrait of the only four women that have held a seat in the Supreme Court, including RGB.

After lunch, we headed to the Holocaust Museum.  It was clear from the conversations with our students, the museum had the appropriate impact. 

We wrapped up the day with an incredible view from the JFK Center. 

We did our 7+ miles today, which continues our 7+ average miles per day of the trip.

Monday the 18th another great day!

Sea Dragon Families,

It is amazing what a good nights rest, a great breakfast, a fabulous plan can do for 103 kiddos!
We started the morning the morning with a sobering reminder of what it costs to build a nation. Our visit to Arlington Cemetery was breathtaking. The gorgeous setting juxtaposed with headstones commemorating the lives that helped  to build our nation provided a wonderful opportunity to learn our history; culminating with the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknown soldier.

The second part of the day including visits to the physical manifestation of our nation; the Capitol Building. Our guided tour kicked off with a brief film about the History of the building itself. The tour included visitation of previously used congressional rooms. While our tour was held both the House of Representatives and the Senate were in session in the very same building!

Following the extensive tour of our Nations Capitol we headed to the National Mall to explore the Smithsonian Complex. This included both the National Museum of American History as well as National Museum of Natural History. American History Museum houses the song inspiring original Star Spangled Banner, Dorothy's ruby slippers, and of course the original Batmobile. While Natural History is home to the newly anointed fossil hall.

We wrapped up the day by visiting the Vietnam, Korean War, and Lincoln Memorials. Once again we had the opportunity to visit historic sites commemorating our nations history.

It was a great day to be a Sea Dragon in Washington DC!

November 16th 2019....what a day(s) it was!

Sea Dragon Families,

It has been a phenomenal 24 hrs (or so.) We hit the ground running by getting all Sea Dragons onto the departing flight. We are currently "batting a 1000." Although we hit DC a little late we definitely hit the ground running. We started the day with a visit to the  Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial. The memorial was breathtaking, chronicling the life and contributions of FDR through the mediums of stone and water. To say that the morning was brisk would be an understatement. It took a little while to acclimate to the 37 degree temperatures.

Our next stop was the Martin Luther King Junior memorial. The memorial is filled with inspirational quotes and prominent statues to commemorate Dr. King on the forefront of the Potomac. It was quite brisk and crisp, but the students enjoyed exploring the quotes and taking pictures in front of the memorial. They also were able to enjoy stunning views of the Washington Monument across the Potomac.

From Dr. King, we walked through the fabulous fall colors in the National Mall on our way to the World War II Memorial and the Washington Monument. The students were moved by the scale of the monuments and  the history the represent.

Good evening DC families,

Please remember that all monies, tip money ($55.00 per student) and spending cash to be dispensed by Mr. Moran if necessary, are due to me by Thursday, October 31st.

Please do not be late. This simply creates much more work for Mr. Moran:(

Additionally, below is a link to the Google Form for those students who will need any kind of medications carried on the trip and or require specific nutritional accommodations.  You can also contact our health assistant, Yolanda Figueroa, by phone or email (info below). If we already disperse medications, or hold an inhaler or epi pen etc.. for your student currently, we would still like you to fill out this quick reference form.

Yolanda Figueroa, AJHS Health Care Assistant

Yolanda_Figueroa@pvusd.net 

(831) 728-7834, ext: 5480

Google Form Link:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdhnZqJTWSy5QC6wfSAe0UCENZe0BljqhYtF3DkCXtsnizBDg/viewform  

Thank you again for all of your effort and preparation!

Final Parent Meeting 10/22/19

A BIG Thank you to all that attended tonight's final Mandatory DC Parent Meeting.

I trust that you found it informative. Please remember that all monies are due to the main office by Thursday, October 31st; whether you are submitting the $55.00 for tips in the white envelope (labeled with student first name, last name, bus #, and total amount) or submitting both tips (white envelope) and spending money allotments (6 sealed white envelopes labeled with student name, bus# and day; each one. Then sealed in the manila envelope.)

Additionally, please get used to monitoring this blog and email for more information as we get closer to our departure date.

It is going to be a blast!
Sincerely,
Rich Moran

I want to thank all of you that were able to attend our mandatory parent meeting on Tuesday, September 24th 2019 at 6:00 pm in the AJHS Gymnasium. I am confident that you found this meeting to be informative and even perhaps a bit entertaining. These meetings are essential to the success of our trip and to your student's preparation. Thank you again for taking the time to come. Please keep an  eye on this Blog! It will also prove to be quite useful. rfm (9/24/19)