Briefly visited Washington earlier this week. I took the Megabus down/back for ~$26 with reserved seats in front (which lets you arrive at the last minute without fear of being stuck with a terrible seat).

The purpose of the trip was Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network-related, specifically a meeting with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and speaking at a gathering of peers on our mission and perspective.

The USCCB headquarters are right down the street from Catholic University and the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. I stopped to snap this photo of the shrine while catching up with Ben Novak on the phone, and just before walking a few more blocks over to visit with Michael Novak over dinner—he’s back in Washington this year, teaching as part of Catholic University’s Institute for Human Ecology.

After Ubering back to my hotel near Union Station, I went for a run across the mall from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and then back through nearby streets. It was a hot and muggy night, and beautiful to be with Lincoln at nearly 11pm with so many reverent tourists milling about the memorial. Being there at that moment felt like living inside an old painting.

The next day’s conference and speaking went well, and then I caught an evening Megabus back to Philadelphia.