Gravelly point

Went to my favourite outdoor spot in DC today - Gravelly Point.  At the edge of Ronald Reagan National airport in the heart of the city, it flanks the Potomac river, on the other side of which are the Washington Monument, and Jefferson Memorial.  Gravelly point boasts expansive, sprawling lawns, and today, when we parked and got out into 66 degree sunshine (yes, unbelievable for this time of year!), it was just plain glorious.  N started chasing pigeons, as we walked to the edge of the water and plonked on the grass to watch the planes land.  After a bit of that, we were joined by J, M and A, and we started walking towards the lawns, frisbee and soccer ball in hand.  After that it was a couple of hours of pure fun.  We threw the frisbee around, and kicked the ball around.  The boys rolled around on the grass.  The planes started coming in to land, one every thirty seconds or so by now.  It was surreal even after the nth plane flew over us.  We could hear it when it was about half a mile away.  It would then make what looked like a precarious 45 degree tilt and turn, as it aligned to make a precise landing on the runway which was about 100 meters from where we were running around.  Apparently, pilots require special training to land into Reagan.  They have to align the plane ever so precisely to make sure to avoid the river running right next to the landing strip, of course taking into consideration wind effects, etc.  Also, just before that, they are supposed to angle completely away from the White House and then the Washington monument, all within a radius of a mile from the airport.  And then the last minute tilt and turn to align exactly with the runway.  Fascinating.  And when the planes made that final descent and roared over us towards the airport, it felt like we could almost touch the wheels if we stretched our hands out just a little bit!  Totally cool.  It felt like a nice warm summer day (at the end of November!) with people jogging, riders riding, children playing, and everyone just enjoying the awesome weather.