Day 1 - FREDERICK DOUGLASS & THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER Arrive in Washington DC and meet a licensed Study Leader at Union Station. See the Philip Randolph Statue, founder of the Sleeping Car Porter’s Union. Stop at Lincoln Park. This historic park celebrates the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia and features the Emancipation Proclamation statue and the Mary McLeod Bethune statue. Visit the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site – Cedar Hill – dedicated to preserving the legacy of the most famous 19th century African American. Visitors to the site learn about his efforts to abolish slavery and his struggle for rights for all oppressed people. In the visitor center the 17-minute film ‘Fighter for Freedom’ is shown on the hour and half-hour. Exhibits, a bookstore and restrooms are also available for guests at the site. Visit the National Museum of American History where a grand staircase connects the first and second floors. The galleries display over 3 million objects including a special state-of-the-art gallery showcasing the original Star Spangled Banner. See the flag that inspired the Star Spangled Banner, Dorothy’s Ruby Red Slippers, First Ladies’ inaugural gowns, quilts, cars, locomotives, and much, much more. Greensboro Lunch Counter is a shiny chrome lunch counter from the old Woolworth’s store in Greensboro and is enshrined today behind plexiglass in the Smithsonian. Every day, thousands of visitors walk past the counter’s turquoise and pink seats. See the Roy Wilkins NAACP Wedgewood Anti-Slavery Medallion and anti-slavery almanac. Also see the hand-modeled and molded, unglazed red earthenware pitcher honoring Frederick Douglass. Take a glimpse at Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids lunchboxes before enjoying a scrumptious buffet dinner. Stop at the U.S. Air Force Memorial and the U.S. Marine Corps Memorial (Iwo Jima Statue) before checking in to our local hotel. (Meals: D)

Day 2 - I HAVE A DREAM & LINCOLN THEATRE Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning. Drive by Freedom Plaza, and the Willard Hotel where Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote the finishing touches to his I Have A Dream speech, the Whitlaw Hotel, and other significant historic African American Heritage sites. Stop for a photo opportunity of The White House. Arrive at the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, to see the King Mural by Don Miles, a pictorial documentation of the life and legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. Take a Docent Led Tour of the African American Civil War Museum and see the African American Civil War Memorial. At the center of a granite-paved plaza, encircled on three sides by the Wall of Honor, is the Spirit of Freedom sculpture. Continue with an African American Heritage Tour of The Shaw Neighborhood, named after Robert Gould Shaw who was the white commander of the famed black 54th Massachusetts Regiment. Drive by the Thurgood Marshall Center, located in the historic Twelfth Street YMCA building, the former home of the first full service YMCA for African Americans in the nation. Drive by Howard University, one of the most prestigious, historically black universities in the country. Drive by Lincoln Theatre, which went through renovations to restore it to the magnificent facility originally known as “Black Broadway” between 1920 and 1950. Drive by Ben’s Chili Bowl, with its high-arched ceilings, character, and plenty of history. Built in 1909, the building first housed a silent movie house, the Minnehaha Theater. Later, Harry Beckley, one of D.C.’s first Black police detectives, converted it into a pool hall before the Ali family bought it on August 22, 1958, and Ben’s Chili Bowl was born. Drive by Bohemian Caverns. In 1926 a little jazz club was opened in the basement of a drugstore located at 11th and U St. called Club Caverns. The Caverns have brought a great many artists to its stage, but it was the immortals that built this house and its legacy, Washington's Sons: Duke Ellington, Cab

An African-American Heritage Trail

™

2Night/3 Day from $359/

To receive a detailed or customized proposal of this tour, call

800-769-5912 ext. 3; or email: mars@takeafuntrip.com

Mid-Atlantic Tours & Receptive Services Post Office Box 1390 Stephens City, VA 22655 Phone: 540-869-1864 Fax: 540-869-1826

Calloway, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughn, Louis Armstrong, Ramsey Lewis, Les McCann, Miles Davis, Shirley Horn, John Coltrane, Eric Dolphy, Wynton Marsalis, Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, and Bill Cosby. Tour the National Museum of African Art, the only museum in the United States dedicated exclusively to the collection, exhibition, and study of the traditional arts of sub-Saharan Africa. Enjoy dinner this evening at a local favorite. Stop at the new Martin Luther King, Jr. National Memorial illuminated at night. Stop at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial. Stop at the National World War II Memorial. (Meals: B, D)

Day 3 - NMAAHC After breakfast enjoy a full day at the National Museum of African American History and Culture. NMAAHC is the only national museum devoted exclusively to the documentation of African American life, history, and culture. It was established by an Act of Congress in 2003, following decades of efforts to promote and highlight the contributions of African Americans. To date, the Museum has collected more than 36,000 artifacts and nearly 100,000 individuals have become members. Enjoy lunch on own while visiting the Museum. An included dinner tonight at a local DC favorite establishment. (Meals: B, D)

Day 4 - HARREIT TUBMAN & MARYLAND STYLE CRAB FEAST Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning. Meet our guide at Sailwinds Visitor’s Center and embark on the journey of the “Underground Railroad,” past Stanley Institute, Church Creek, and Madison. Next, it’s on to Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, to see up close the terrain slaves traveled under the cover of night. Enjoy lunch included at the Pavillions at the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad Visitor Center. Other sites will include Bucktown and Scott’s Chapel, and Harriet Tubman historical landmarks. Bucktown General Store is where Harriet Tubman displayed her first public act of defiance against slavery. On our way back to the City, enjoy a Maryland Style Crab Feast complete with steamed hard shell crab, hush puppies, fried chicken, corn on the cob, and plenty of cold beer! (Meals: B, D)

Day 5 - MARYLAND AFRICAN-AMERICAN HISTORY MUSEUM & TOUR Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning prior to departing for Baltimore. Meet our Baltimore Guide and visit the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History, Baltimore’s newest premier facility highlighting the history and accomplishments of Maryland’s African American community. Enjoy lunch and free time today at The Inner Harbor of Baltimore. Baltimore’s Harbor place, a twin glass pavilion, offering some of the finest shopping and food in the city. The Inner Harbor offers many attractions and wonderful waterfront photo opportunities. Meet our guide at Aquarium Drive and begin an African American Heritage tour of Baltimore. The Baltimore Civil War Museum features exhibits, interpretive programs and living history presentations focusing on Baltimore's roles in the Underground Railroad and the Civil War. The Orchard Street Church has housed the Baltimore Urban League since 1992. On Pratt Street, outside the Edward A. Garmatz Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse, stands the statue of Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, a Baltimore native son and civil rights lawyer who reached the pinnacle of the U.S. justice system. On her visits to Baltimore, Billie Holiday sang at a variety of nightspots, including the Club Astoria. It is said that when Billie performed, she demanded absolute attention from her audience. A statue and park named in her honor, The Billie Holiday Park, are located in Baltimore. See the Frederick Douglass – Isaac Myers historic building. Drive by the Frederick Douglass Row Houses. Enjoy a Seafood dinner on Baltimore Inner Harbor. (Meals: B, D)

Day 6 - AFRICAN AMERICANS AT ARLINGTON CEMETERY Enjoy breakfast at the hotel this morning prior to checking out. Baggage handling included. Meet our Guide to tour Arlington National Cemetery, where there are 17 African American Medal of Honor Recipients buried, including Brig. Gen. Benjamin O. Davis Sr., the first African American General in the U.S. Army. The list includes educators, scientists, men of medicine, Civil Rights leaders, Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, Tuskegee Airmen, and many more who dedicated service to The U.S. Enjoy lunch on own at Pentagon City Mall before departing for home. (Meals: B)

FROM $599 pp double occupancy