Students and faculty from the National Capital Region took a field trip recently to the U.S. Capitol, the home of Congress and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government. Read what they had to say about their trip.
Alhumaid Abdulhamid
One of the most exciting field trips hosted by Virginia Tech since I enrolled was the visit to the Capitol Building. There, we saw many interesting things, such as the many statues, the Capitol Rotunda, and the great dome.
The trip began at the school, where we met before we walked to the Metro station. There we took the train that was going to Capitol South Station. The trip took almost half an hour. Then we walked for ten minutes to the Capitol Building. We took a group picture with my classmates and my teachers in front of the building. Then we went to the main entrance, where we went through security check. After that, we got our tickets and waited for the tour to begin. While we were waiting, we looked around the main hall that had many statues. Then the tour began, first we entered a theater where we saw a 15-minute film about the history of the Capitol. Then we met a tour guide named Norah, who showed as around the building.
The first stop was the base of the Capitol Rotunda. There, we saw the many pillars holding it. Also, the guide told us about the center point of the District of Columbia and that there is no mailing address for the building because it was the central of the capital and all the streets lead to it.
The next stop was the Capitol Dome. I was amazed by the beautiful paintings and how high it is. The guide told us that the Statue of Liberty can fit under it. Below the dome, on the walls of the Rotunda, there were large paintings, and each one of them represents a time in the American history. Also, in the Rotunda and in many places of the building there were statues that represent each state of America. These statues are either presidents or people who the states wanted to honor for their good deeds.
In conclusion, we enjoyed our time during the tour, and we learned about the history of the Capitol Building. The Rotunda, the dome and the many statues were fascinating. I would like to visit The Capitol Building again with my family someday.
Gufran Alyati
One of my greatest field trips was yesterday. I have never thought that I would visit the United States Capitol until I joined the Virginia Tech Language and Culture Institute.
The first thing we did when we gathered at Virginia Tech meeting room took the Metro from West Falls Church station to Capitol south station. Second, when we arrived at the Capitol we took some pictures of the building from outside. Then, we got our tour passes and entered the center of the hall where there many statues. There were two unique statues to me. One of them was the enormous white statute where I took a selfie with it. Also, I liked the golden statuette for the first king of Hawaii who united the island chiefdoms into a peaceful kingdom. The statue was amazing with unique golden clothe. Third, we went to the theater for a 15-minute movie. It was about how the presidents started to build the Capitol and then how they rebuild the dome after the British war. Fourth, we saw the breathtaking dome. It was vast and incredible. The dome was built from cast iron and painted by Roman painters. One of the most famous statues in the dome hall was for Dr.Norman Eborlaug. His nickname is “ The Father of The Green Revolution." This doctor brought the corn and oatmeal to the USA, South Africa, and the middle east. Fifth, we went to the Supreme Court galleria room. The design was fantastic and historical with the red sofa in the middle and dark brown wood furniture. There were many candles around in the place. Finally, the journey was ending.
It was one of my best field trips. The United States Capitol building was beautiful and full of history which I liked end enjoyed it a lot.
Anonymous Student
Today I visited the US Capitol Building. It is a very important place. The Senate and the House of Representatives come together to discuss, debate and deliberate national policy and craft the country’s lows. It is a very enormous place. it’s over 1.5 million square feet. It has more than 600 rooms and a lot of corridors. Also, this capitol building has a huge white dome. The construction of this dome took more than 11 years. It is overlooking the city of Washington D.C. and it has become an icon of the Americans people and the government. People started to be building this building in 1793. Then it was burnt and rebuild again. The capitol building is divided into five levels. Each floor is dedicated to something different. The interesting thing is that the capitol building is not only for the use of congress, also, it is a museum for the Americans arts and histories. It is open to the public. Each year the building welcomed a million of people from around the world. If you have not visited this place yet, I highly recommend it for you to know the history about the US laws.
