DC Cycling Concierge

08/27/2026

Hannah’s high school graduation present was a trip to DC and doing a bike tour. So honored and delighted to show these two around many of DC’s iconic spots and a few bonus sites (including the original Lincoln Memorial). Ashley is a nurse and nursing professor and Hannah is starting college to become a nurse so I was psyched to thank them and show them the Vietnam Women’s Memorial.

08/27/2026

Ashley asked her daughter, Hannah, what she would like for her high school graduation present. This super smart young woman from the Seattle region chose DC and doing a bike tour with me! Honored and delighted to show these two around many of DC’s iconic spots as well as a few special ones (including the original Lincoln Memorial). Ashley is a nurse and nursing professor and Hannah is starting in college for her nursing degree so I was able to thank them and show them the Vietnam Women’s Memorial. They also were itching to do a little tribute with the video selfie of us saying “Semiquincentennial!“ and we figured no better place to do it than at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial.

08/27/2026

When Ashley asked her daughter, Hannah, what she would like as her high school graduation present, this smart young woman from the Seattle region chose DC and doing a bike tour with me! I was honored and delighted to show these two around many of DC’s iconic spots and a few bonus sites (including the original Lincoln Memorial). Ashley is a nurse and nursing professor and Hannah is starting college to become a nurse so I was psyched to thank them and show them the Vietnam Women’s Memorial. They also were itching to do a little Ryan Trahan tribute with the video selfie of us saying “Semiquincentennial!“ and we figured there was no better place to do it than at the Thomas Jefferson Memorial. Thanks Hannah for requesting this special present and thanks Ashley for helping make it possible. Thomas Jefferson Memorial

08/07/2026

Sarah & Scott brought their kiddos to DC and we had a grand time. Claire had some advice (or a secret?) for Albert while the whole family enjoyed exploring the Korean Veterans Memorial. There was still a bit of water in the reflecting pool as they had just started draining it the day before. And of course we had some fun with the scale of the Washington Monument.

07/23/2026

Oren & Guy came all the way from Israel to ride around DC with me! They already had plans for the US (New England) this summer, but when they saw the Ryan Trahan video with me they added DC to their itinerary. Since they were coming straight in from Israel (7 hrs ahead) I proposed we meet at 6am which gave us cooler temps and many sites to ourselves (or just a few others). Over our 7 hour ride we got to see a ton of fun places around our great city. (Yes, this was earlier this month before they drained the again. What wonderful humans these two are - in addition to showing them around DC I gained two new friends.

07/16/2026

Kim, Gerry, and their wonderful son Owen found me because of the fun Ryan Trahan video on YouTube biking around DC with me. We all had a ton of fun. Kim’s good eye spotted the semiquincentennial date signs in front of the State Department. Then we spent some more serious time at the where we found the name of a relative. We made it around a lot of the deconstruction of the barricades from the 4th of July and made it to the US Capitol and Jefferson Memorial too. I’m so honored to show families around the sites and help connect American history with the next generation.

07/02/2026

“Annapolis!” was Julius’s lightning-fast answer when I asked if anyone knew one of the other cities that had been the Capitol of the US besides Philadelphia and New York. “Correct!” And then I learned Julius is a student at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis. THEN I learned his parents, Joanne and Daniel met at the United States Naval Academy when they were students themselves! So I felt very fortunate to show this Navy family around some of DC’s iconic memorials. Naomi (twins with Julius) is studying engineering and is a goalie for the soccer team at Elon University. Miles, their younger brother, is an awesome kid who brought full on wonder and some strong biking legs. Next time when there is a lot less fencing for the 4th of July holiday, I’m going to take them to a bunch of Navy sites and memorials around DC.

06/20/2026

For years* I’ve been telling guests why the Lincoln Memorial was under construction — to build a new visitor center, theater, and bathrooms under the memorial. I’ve also shared I was most excited about the glass wall in the back to show off the Undercroft of this memorial -- something only the construction workers and authorized personnel ever got to see. Today, I got to be part of a test group to go through the newly completed space and we were not disappointed. The many many years* of work the National Park Service and their contractors have done has paid off beautifully. Kudos to everyone who was involved and for helping create a space and interpretive materials to help people appreciate this memorial even more! In the photos you can see the wood grain of the boards used for forms when the concrete columns were constructed over 100 years ago (construction was 1914-1922). I also like the interactive chair that guests can sit in AND the sweet detail that you can lift the seat and roll a wheel chair into it! Another impressive surprise was that the Undercroft IS the theater! Finally some great posters for Marion Anderson’s concert** and the March on Washington where Dr. King gave his most famous speech.

*not “Four score and seven years ago” 😉

** Yes! Marion Anderson’s concert was “Four Score and seven years ago”!!!

Lincoln Memorial National Park Service

06/04/2026

06/04/2026

Food influencer Goodeatsonlynyc was my guest along with her sister and they were psyched to do our Civil Right Tour of DC. Convenient that I was able to blend the amazing civil right history to DC WITH food at Ben's Chili Bowl. The highlight for all of us was that we had a sit down visit with Ben’s widow Virginia Ali (92 yrs young!) who shared her story of hanging with John Lewis and Dr King as they were planning the famous March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. I also got to show them so many other amazing sites like The African American Civil War Memorial and Museum Carter G. Woodson Home National Historic Site and the , Mary McLeod Bethune Council House National Historic Site and so much more. So honored to represent our great city and Destination DC