The circus is coming to town (the MCI Center to be exact), and that means it’s time for the Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey animals to parade across Capitol Hill. On Monday, March 21, at approximately 1:30 p.m., the elephants (and, for the first time, a donkey — “in order to celebrate the non-partisan event of the circus and the spirit of the Nation’s Capital”) will make the trek from 32nd and D Streets, S.E. to the MCI Center along the following route:
– 32nd & D Streets, SE to Minnesota Avenue to East Capitol Street, NE.
– Cross the Whitney Young Memorial Bridge.
– Continue on East Capitol to C Street, NE to Massachusetts Ave, NE to Columbus Circle, NW in front of Union Station.
– Columbus Circle, NW to Louisiana Avenue, NW to the intersection of Constitution Avenue, NW in front of the US Capitol (Senate Side).
– Constitution Avenue, NW to 3rd Street, NW to G Street, NW to the loading dock of the MCI Center.
The start time is approximate; parade day updates will be provided on a special hotline, 202-448-9297. This tour marks the 134th edition of “The Greatest Show on Earth.” The circus will run from March 24-28 at the MCI Center, March 30-April 3 at the Patriot Center, and April 6-17 at the D.C. Armory. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster. The parade of animals (and probably even a protestor or two) should be quite a sight to behold. Our blog overlords extremely kind and generous parent figures at Gothamist took some pictures (from which the above image was snagged) when the parade made its way through New York’s snowy streets last March.
