Wake up: 7:30am (again...slightly later than planned...)
Breakfast: 9:00am down the street at Marvelous Market (coffee and a myriad of breakfast-coffee shop foods to choose from)
Metro: 10:15am
first stop: the Old Postal Museum again for restrooms and shopping while dad goes to the FBI Museum to find out about tours only to be told they no longer give them. Oh well, onto the Smithsonian Castle (since we'd yet to see it). Evan, Mom and I went headed to the Castle while Dad went to the theBureau of Engraving and Printing to get tickets for the tour (tickets for 2:30). Once finished the Castle (the major part of it was closed for a conference so it didn't take long) we had time to kill so decided to run through some of the other Smithsonian museums nearby. We headed toward the Freer Art Gallery/Sackler Gallery (they along with the African Art Museum are connected by tunnels so one only has to go through security once) around noon knowing we had to leave the area by 2:00 to get to the Bureau on time. We quickly ran through Freer and Sackler but no one felt like walking around the African Art exhibits so we headed back out into the rain only to stop at the USDA's weekly farmers' market where we bought freshly popped Kettle Corn and homemade apple cinnamon bread. We still had about a half hour to kill so we stopped in the at US Park Services Building near the USDA office and saw Smokey the Bear. About 2:10 (as we had slowly been working our way toward it) we headed for the Bureau of Engraving and Printing for our ticket time. The tour finished about 3:15ish but again...another gift shop. This one was cool because one of the workers in it was actually making printings like people used to do...with steel plates, ink, damp paper, and pressure. Unfortunately, by 4:00 my knee was shot. It had been aching all day but I coul no longer deal with it so we headed for the Metro and the hotel for a break. On the way it was decided that we would go to the pub across the street (McFadden's) for dinner at 5ish. The food wasn't too bad...kind of bland and the place smelled of stale beer but other than that not too bad. We got back to the hotel about 6:30 and started packing. About 8 Evan and Dad decided they wanted to go exploring after dark so they left and went to...well, I'm not really sure.
Home tomorrow...it's time...we're all tired...but first - Ellipse/White House tomorrow (since we've yet to see it...)
Friday, June 5, 2009
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Washington, DC - Day 7
Ok, so I'll have you know I almost put that today was Day 6 in the great Washington, DC trip...we've been here too long, days are beginning to melt into one another...
anyway:
Wake up: 7:30am (oops, I was supposed to be up for 6:30...oh well)
Breakfast: 9:15am
Metro: oops...
Bus: 10:00am
National Cathedral: 10:30am
So we had to go visit the big, beautiful church. We attempted to identify the stained-glass windows with the sheet we had to "buy" for a "donation"...but that didn't work as well as planned. We waited and waited for a tour but big school groups kept coming in and they kept pushing our tour time further and further back and they were having the Holy Eucharist at noon so we had to be out by then. At 11:15 we decided to just wander around ourselves and see what there was. The stained-glass windows were difficult to distinguish from one another and by 12:30 (after visiting the gift shop, of course) we headed back to the bus stop to catch a ride to the Metro station.
After some direction from a local (we assume) we got off on the right bus stop to get to the Metro.
When we got off the bus, it was lunchtime...and there was a Whole Foods store right by the Metro stop so we decided to stop there and partake of their bountiful prepared-foods bars. Yummy!!!
2:00pm and on to the Metro to head for the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (henceforth referred to as the Basilica). A (fairly long) Metro ride later we arrive nearly on the campus of the Catholic University of America which is very close to the Basilica...unfortunately, it's raining. Out come the umbrellas and we begin walking toward the Basilica. Upon entering the (side) of the Basilica and approaching the desk we were informed that if we hung around for 35 minutes (til 3:00) we could get a free tour (yay for free!!). We hung out at the gift shop (they're omnipresent around this city) til 3-ish and then met the man (Sal Macuzzo? I'm pretty sure) at the desk to begin our tour along with a family from Kansas. We went through the upper church and the lower level/crypt church area in just over an hour. The whole thing was very informative and after all was said and done, we were impressed at how much more touring the Basilica was like going (coming?) home versus touring the Cathedral. The Basilica (like most Catholic churches) was in essence very similar to every other Catholic church we've ever been to - friendly, warm, welcoming, and beautiful. After the tour we headed back to the gift shop because now I wanted something...
4:30pm we headed out, and guess what...it's still raining. Back to the Metro to head back to the hotel (btw, the people-traffic was terrible...the first train we were on was completely packed with people in all the seats and very little standing room available).
Ahh, back to the hotel to chill...gross weather...
6:30pm: off in search of dinner...
We tried to get in at Mack Public House (I think that's what it was) but apparently at 5 it turns to a 21 and older place (only) so we walked (still in the rain) until we found Pho's...a crappy Asian food (perhaps Vietnamese) place (in comparision to the amazing food Thai we had yesterday). After dinner (too much MSG! and too much food) Mom wanted hot chocolate so we asked some random man on the street if he knew where the nearest Starbucks was (one block up and one to the left) and headed that way. We all got drinks and then went back to the hotel to crash.
don't know what we're doing tomorow...later.
anyway:
Wake up: 7:30am (oops, I was supposed to be up for 6:30...oh well)
Breakfast: 9:15am
Metro: oops...
Bus: 10:00am
National Cathedral: 10:30am
So we had to go visit the big, beautiful church. We attempted to identify the stained-glass windows with the sheet we had to "buy" for a "donation"...but that didn't work as well as planned. We waited and waited for a tour but big school groups kept coming in and they kept pushing our tour time further and further back and they were having the Holy Eucharist at noon so we had to be out by then. At 11:15 we decided to just wander around ourselves and see what there was. The stained-glass windows were difficult to distinguish from one another and by 12:30 (after visiting the gift shop, of course) we headed back to the bus stop to catch a ride to the Metro station.
After some direction from a local (we assume) we got off on the right bus stop to get to the Metro.
When we got off the bus, it was lunchtime...and there was a Whole Foods store right by the Metro stop so we decided to stop there and partake of their bountiful prepared-foods bars. Yummy!!!
2:00pm and on to the Metro to head for the Basilica of the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (henceforth referred to as the Basilica). A (fairly long) Metro ride later we arrive nearly on the campus of the Catholic University of America which is very close to the Basilica...unfortunately, it's raining. Out come the umbrellas and we begin walking toward the Basilica. Upon entering the (side) of the Basilica and approaching the desk we were informed that if we hung around for 35 minutes (til 3:00) we could get a free tour (yay for free!!). We hung out at the gift shop (they're omnipresent around this city) til 3-ish and then met the man (Sal Macuzzo? I'm pretty sure) at the desk to begin our tour along with a family from Kansas. We went through the upper church and the lower level/crypt church area in just over an hour. The whole thing was very informative and after all was said and done, we were impressed at how much more touring the Basilica was like going (coming?) home versus touring the Cathedral. The Basilica (like most Catholic churches) was in essence very similar to every other Catholic church we've ever been to - friendly, warm, welcoming, and beautiful. After the tour we headed back to the gift shop because now I wanted something...
4:30pm we headed out, and guess what...it's still raining. Back to the Metro to head back to the hotel (btw, the people-traffic was terrible...the first train we were on was completely packed with people in all the seats and very little standing room available).
Ahh, back to the hotel to chill...gross weather...
6:30pm: off in search of dinner...
We tried to get in at Mack Public House (I think that's what it was) but apparently at 5 it turns to a 21 and older place (only) so we walked (still in the rain) until we found Pho's...a crappy Asian food (perhaps Vietnamese) place (in comparision to the amazing food Thai we had yesterday). After dinner (too much MSG! and too much food) Mom wanted hot chocolate so we asked some random man on the street if he knew where the nearest Starbucks was (one block up and one to the left) and headed that way. We all got drinks and then went back to the hotel to crash.
don't know what we're doing tomorow...later.
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Washington, DC - Day 6
Wake up: 7:45am
Breakfast: 9:30am
Metro: 10:20am
Newseum: 11:00am
The day has begun...
The Newseum was interesting...the first 3 hrs, the next hr and a half...not so much. We decided to skip having lunch there and have an early dinner (though that didn't happen either) and have a snack and drink at the newseum. At 4:30pm it started raining...and i mean real rain like it does back home. By 4:50 it had slacked off enough for us to head out, so we did. The original plan of the day was to go to Twilight Tattoo at 7:00pm but because of the rain that was cancelled so instead we went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. We got there at 5 and the museum closed at 7:30 so we already knew we wouldn't have time to do the whole thing. We hit the Ocean Exhibit and of course the Gems to see the Hope Diamond (which I personally think is rather ugly, btw) and then decided to head out about 6:30 in search of some dinner (again, not exactly early). Unfortunately, it was raining...no, pouring...so we hung out in the entry of the museum for a while til it slacked off enough to go in search of sustenance (since we had no clue of where we were going...all we knew was Evan wanted non-American, non-home, non-chain food...preferably Thai). So we walked and walked through the rain and wind and people (yes, there were still quite a few people out despite the rain) and eventually ended up at Kanlaya which happened to be a Thai restaurant obviously frequented by locals so we went in. That was the best food everrrrrrrrrr. It may have been because we were do hungry but it really was good. Evan and I had fried rice, mine with pork, his with chicken. Mom had some sort of veggie dumpling thingy, and Dad had Thai Traditional Panang. Combine the sweet Thai soy sauce mom had with hers with my fried rice...omg!! Definitely my new favorite!! Sooo tired. Back to the Metro to head for the hotel. But first, another stop at the 7-11 for drinks and Milano cookies (cuz I wanted chocolate). Now, we're back at the hotel and it's raining outside...again.
Who knows what we're doing tomorrow...later.
Breakfast: 9:30am
Metro: 10:20am
Newseum: 11:00am
The day has begun...
The Newseum was interesting...the first 3 hrs, the next hr and a half...not so much. We decided to skip having lunch there and have an early dinner (though that didn't happen either) and have a snack and drink at the newseum. At 4:30pm it started raining...and i mean real rain like it does back home. By 4:50 it had slacked off enough for us to head out, so we did. The original plan of the day was to go to Twilight Tattoo at 7:00pm but because of the rain that was cancelled so instead we went to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. We got there at 5 and the museum closed at 7:30 so we already knew we wouldn't have time to do the whole thing. We hit the Ocean Exhibit and of course the Gems to see the Hope Diamond (which I personally think is rather ugly, btw) and then decided to head out about 6:30 in search of some dinner (again, not exactly early). Unfortunately, it was raining...no, pouring...so we hung out in the entry of the museum for a while til it slacked off enough to go in search of sustenance (since we had no clue of where we were going...all we knew was Evan wanted non-American, non-home, non-chain food...preferably Thai). So we walked and walked through the rain and wind and people (yes, there were still quite a few people out despite the rain) and eventually ended up at Kanlaya which happened to be a Thai restaurant obviously frequented by locals so we went in. That was the best food everrrrrrrrrr. It may have been because we were do hungry but it really was good. Evan and I had fried rice, mine with pork, his with chicken. Mom had some sort of veggie dumpling thingy, and Dad had Thai Traditional Panang. Combine the sweet Thai soy sauce mom had with hers with my fried rice...omg!! Definitely my new favorite!! Sooo tired. Back to the Metro to head for the hotel. But first, another stop at the 7-11 for drinks and Milano cookies (cuz I wanted chocolate). Now, we're back at the hotel and it's raining outside...again.
Who knows what we're doing tomorrow...later.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Washington, DC - Day 5
Wake up: 5:30am (again, didn't need to be up til 7:30...)
Breakfast: 9:00am (running a 1/2 hr later than planned)
Metro: 10:30am (running an hr behind now) [we finally rode a line all the way to the end!]
Bus: 12:02pm (well, we got to the station at 11:07 and there had been a bus at 11:03 so we had to wait for the next one...an hr later - now we were running an hr and a half behind)
Arrival at Mount Vernon: 12:30pm
We watched a decent intro video and then were released onto the estate (which seems really big but the part the public is allowed on isn't really because we walked most of it) about 1:00pm.
The mansion was only worthwhile because of the employees (volunteers?) who were giving (very) short talks about the different rooms, but other than that, the model in the Ford Center was really more interesting (I found) because it was an exact replica (working door knobs and windows) that could be looked at up close (well as close as the case would allow) and looked kinda like a doll house because it was so small yet so detailed. We had been through most of the grounds and the mansion by 4:15pm so we headed toward the exit (the museum, shops, restaurant, and learning center) and spent a while looking around in there til they closed at 5:00. The plan had been to eat a late lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant but since we were running so late and weren't sure how long the tour of the estate would take we decided to skip on the lunch and continue exploring. Fortunately, the restaurant stays open later than everything else so we actually had dinner there. It was decent food but a lot of it you could tell was pre-prepared and therefore not technically period-authentic as the atmosphere of the restaurant was trying to set. We caught the bus back to the Metro Station at 6:30pm and caught the Metro back to DC about 7:00pm on which we decided to go see the monuments (Lincoln and Washington) at night. We got off at the Arlington Station and walked across the Potomac to the Lincoln Memorial and hung out there til after sunset. While we were waiting a (really knowledgable about Lincoln) park ranger told us all about the man...it was crazy how much this ranger knew about our former President (down to what he usually ate and the arguments between him and Mary Todd). There were still a couple hundred people at the Lincoln Memorial so we took a few pictures of it and the Washington Monument (across the reflecting pool) lit up and then headed down the street (a good walk but the shortest route) to our hotel, stopping only at the 7-11 to pick up drinks and ice cream. bedtime...walking around in the sun is tiring
sleeping in tomorrow...probably some museum...more later
Breakfast: 9:00am (running a 1/2 hr later than planned)
Metro: 10:30am (running an hr behind now) [we finally rode a line all the way to the end!]
Bus: 12:02pm (well, we got to the station at 11:07 and there had been a bus at 11:03 so we had to wait for the next one...an hr later - now we were running an hr and a half behind)
Arrival at Mount Vernon: 12:30pm
We watched a decent intro video and then were released onto the estate (which seems really big but the part the public is allowed on isn't really because we walked most of it) about 1:00pm.
The mansion was only worthwhile because of the employees (volunteers?) who were giving (very) short talks about the different rooms, but other than that, the model in the Ford Center was really more interesting (I found) because it was an exact replica (working door knobs and windows) that could be looked at up close (well as close as the case would allow) and looked kinda like a doll house because it was so small yet so detailed. We had been through most of the grounds and the mansion by 4:15pm so we headed toward the exit (the museum, shops, restaurant, and learning center) and spent a while looking around in there til they closed at 5:00. The plan had been to eat a late lunch at the Mount Vernon Inn Restaurant but since we were running so late and weren't sure how long the tour of the estate would take we decided to skip on the lunch and continue exploring. Fortunately, the restaurant stays open later than everything else so we actually had dinner there. It was decent food but a lot of it you could tell was pre-prepared and therefore not technically period-authentic as the atmosphere of the restaurant was trying to set. We caught the bus back to the Metro Station at 6:30pm and caught the Metro back to DC about 7:00pm on which we decided to go see the monuments (Lincoln and Washington) at night. We got off at the Arlington Station and walked across the Potomac to the Lincoln Memorial and hung out there til after sunset. While we were waiting a (really knowledgable about Lincoln) park ranger told us all about the man...it was crazy how much this ranger knew about our former President (down to what he usually ate and the arguments between him and Mary Todd). There were still a couple hundred people at the Lincoln Memorial so we took a few pictures of it and the Washington Monument (across the reflecting pool) lit up and then headed down the street (a good walk but the shortest route) to our hotel, stopping only at the 7-11 to pick up drinks and ice cream. bedtime...walking around in the sun is tiring
sleeping in tomorrow...probably some museum...more later
Washington, DC - Day 4
Wake up: 5:00am (well, I didn't have to be up til 7:00, but you know how that goes...)
Breakfast: 9:00am
Metro: 9:45am
...and we're off...
First we had to stop at Metro Center to exchange our passes for fare cards so we could add money to our SmarTrip cards. Then off to Arlington...
Arlington: 10:30am
Arlington is huge, so we didn't walk around the whole thing. We saw Kennedy's grave then the graves of high ranking officials. We caught the changing of the guard at 11:30 and explored that area. Then on to the USS Maine where we sat and took a break (it really is huge). We decided that we had had enough of Arlington and headed to the Iwo Jima/US Marine Corps Memorial (by walking through Arlington). The Iwo Jima Memorial was much bigger than I thought and there were a lot of people there too (tour groups...grr). Our plan for the day was to walk across the Potomac but we were too tired so we caught the Metro and headed for our next destination.
Chinatown: 1:45pm
Lunch was at Fuddruckers' (anyone ever heard of it? I hadn't). It was ok for burgers but we accidently caught the end of the lunch rush so there were a bunch of people there too.
Next stop...
The International Spy Museum: 3:00pm
The first part wasn't like any other museums we'd been too this trip. It was very interactive, very middle-school-aged geared (and there at least 2 school groups to go through while we were there). You picked a cover, got briefed, and then explored how spies work and the tools they used. We watched a video on how to pick a lock and how to bug a room (both useful skills but I don't think we should be teaching kids that...). The second part of the museum was all history. How spies help, women and spying in the war, etc. That part was slightly too long. It was more like the other museums. Finish: 5:00pm, but wait there's a spy store (of course there is, there are stores in every place here). Leave: 5:30pm.
We're all tired (me especially as we've been walking around all day) so we head back to the hotel and crash.
About 7:30 Evan was hungry and Dad was sleeping so Mom and I walked down the street to CVS to get dessert and then up the street back to Subway to get dinner. Back to the hotel, dinner, dessert, crash.
Next up...Mt. Vernon/Old Alexandria...
Breakfast: 9:00am
Metro: 9:45am
...and we're off...
First we had to stop at Metro Center to exchange our passes for fare cards so we could add money to our SmarTrip cards. Then off to Arlington...
Arlington: 10:30am
Arlington is huge, so we didn't walk around the whole thing. We saw Kennedy's grave then the graves of high ranking officials. We caught the changing of the guard at 11:30 and explored that area. Then on to the USS Maine where we sat and took a break (it really is huge). We decided that we had had enough of Arlington and headed to the Iwo Jima/US Marine Corps Memorial (by walking through Arlington). The Iwo Jima Memorial was much bigger than I thought and there were a lot of people there too (tour groups...grr). Our plan for the day was to walk across the Potomac but we were too tired so we caught the Metro and headed for our next destination.
Chinatown: 1:45pm
Lunch was at Fuddruckers' (anyone ever heard of it? I hadn't). It was ok for burgers but we accidently caught the end of the lunch rush so there were a bunch of people there too.
Next stop...
The International Spy Museum: 3:00pm
The first part wasn't like any other museums we'd been too this trip. It was very interactive, very middle-school-aged geared (and there at least 2 school groups to go through while we were there). You picked a cover, got briefed, and then explored how spies work and the tools they used. We watched a video on how to pick a lock and how to bug a room (both useful skills but I don't think we should be teaching kids that...). The second part of the museum was all history. How spies help, women and spying in the war, etc. That part was slightly too long. It was more like the other museums. Finish: 5:00pm, but wait there's a spy store (of course there is, there are stores in every place here). Leave: 5:30pm.
We're all tired (me especially as we've been walking around all day) so we head back to the hotel and crash.
About 7:30 Evan was hungry and Dad was sleeping so Mom and I walked down the street to CVS to get dessert and then up the street back to Subway to get dinner. Back to the hotel, dinner, dessert, crash.
Next up...Mt. Vernon/Old Alexandria...
Monday, June 1, 2009
Washington, DC - Day 3
Wake up: 7:45am (well, that's what time I needed to wake up...actually I was up at 5)
The plan was to go to Mass at the Basilica but Daddy discovered a church (St. Stephen Martyr) 2 doors down from our hotel the night after we got here. Mass was at 9:00 which was really cool since we were technically attending Mass the same time as usual. The absolutely best part was the priest...he was ordained for the Diocese of Baton Rouge (cool, right?) and had actually heard of Thibodaux since he was a priest for Napolonville, Vacherie, etc.!! and it was his first weekend in this parish. I thought it was so amazing...it was totally meant to be.
Breakfast at the hotel: 10:15am
Metro: 11:20am
Today's an inside day...
First stop (and i thought it would be the last too): the Smithsonian American History Museum.
Time inside: 11:45am - 5:45pm (totally not kidding and that rounding was only by a couple minutes either way)
It took Dad and Evan 2 hours to do the 1st level (it does have the most stuff) and it took just over an hour to do the second level (and it has the least stuff) and then we decided it was break time so we headed down to the ground floor to go to the same place we had lunch yesterday (the stars and stripes cafe) but it was closed so we headed back up to the first level to the consitution cafe and had soft drinks (Evan and me) and really bad coffee (Mom and Dad) and snacks.
Break's over. 3rd level...
The Documents Gallery was Jazz and there were a couple hundred people in the "Thanks for the Memories" section, [Oh, I forgot to mention that at some point between when we came in around noon and about 2pm several hundred people decided that they wanted to see the American History Museum too.] so we passed through those rather quickly to get away from people. The next part was all about the Presidents...all about the Presidents...oh and the Wars (which still has something to do with the Presidents). It was a good display, lots of information, not very well set up to accomodate as many people as were going through though. Oops, almost forgot to mention...we met some really cool Smithsonian staff. They were doing one of the touchy-feely exhibits with wartime shoes and hats from the Civil War and the WWs. We stood around and joked with them for a while (btw, the Confederate hats were used to scoop up fish and their shoes had "forks" on them, to eat the fish of course! :P) and had probably the most fun we'd had all day. At 5:45pm we were finished! (and people who like history probably would have been able to spend another 6 hours times 4 in there, but we had had enough) so we headed out. It was still to early to head back to the hotel and crash so we decided to check out the National Archives. It closes at 7 but we were hoping there wouldn't be a line that late in the day and we'd be able to get in and out fairly quickly. Success!! There were only 15 people ahead of us so we got in quickly. The Rotunda had a line that stretched all the way around it to see all the documents and what-not but it moved fairly quickly and we had finished in there by 6:30 and moved on to the Public Vaults which would have been interesting if we had had more time. They had touch screens (they're EVERYWHERE in this city) so that you could explore documents from major cases of the US Courts (Watergate, etc.) which would have been cool to explore further but we didn't really have the time. The Public Vaults is a fairly kid-friendly part of the National Archives because it has so many interactive things but it also has a lot of history and background that adults would find interesting; I was impressed that they succeeded in combining the two so well and so effectively.
Metro: 7:00pm
...but wait, there's the US Navy Memorial...
It wasn't a planned "go-see" but we did kind of stumble upon it. This Memorial, I found, was a lot like the FDR Memorial...lots of water but it was in a more peaceful part of the city and formed a circle with benches on the inside and the water features on the outer edges so it made it seem more secluded (and there were restaurants nearly surrounding it - at none of which we ate).
Ok, done with that we headed to the Metro stop nearby and back toward the hotel. Mom and I stopped at the 7-11 between the Metro stop and our hotel to get drinks and snacks which Evan and Dad went ahead (past the hotel) to the Papa John's to get us pizza for dinner.
Dinner: 8:15pm
Bed: 10:00pm - boy, was I tired!!
Arlington tomorrow...
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