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Grex > Agora46 > #166: visiting Washington, DC -- need tips | |
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jep
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visiting Washington, DC -- need tips
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Aug 21 00:11 UTC 2003 |
My son and I are vacationing in Washington, DC next month and I need
some help planning our trip. This item is about that.
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| 72 responses total. |
jep
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response 1 of 72:
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Aug 21 00:15 UTC 2003 |
First of all, I've heard it's a bad idea to try to drive in Washington,
DC, but also that it's not really necessary. You can use public
transportation and easily get to everywhere you want to be.
That sounds good to me. But... that's assuming you stay in a hotel
from which you can get to the public transportation. How far away from
the city can I stay, and still get to the buses and subways? Or can I
drive easily from a hotel, park somewhere, and then ride the buses or
subways?
The further away from the city you stay, the cheaper the hotel rates...
inside the city they look really horrendous. If I can stay someplace
for $60 per night, I'll be fine. If it's $80 per night, I'll get by.
If it's $120 per night, I might want to change where we're going on
vacation.
So... help me out here if you can? I'd sure appreciate it. I've lived
in Michigan all my life, and have no experience with public
transportation.
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jep
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response 2 of 72:
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Aug 21 00:17 UTC 2003 |
The public transportation thing really has me concerned. I assume if I
can get around the city, I'll have no trouble finding everything I want
to see. I mean, I'm not the only person who's ever wanted to see
Washington, DC for the first time. Quite a lot of people have done it
and even enjoyed it. But that was them. This is *me*. I'm completely
inept at public transportation.
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jep
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response 3 of 72:
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Aug 21 00:21 UTC 2003 |
Things to see... heh. I don't know much about Washington, DC. I
figure on having maybe 4 or 5 days to spend. I know I want to see the
Smithsonian (and understand it's really big, like multiple-days big),
National Zoo, and stuff like the Lincoln Memorial and Washington
Monument. I'll be towing a 7 year old boy. What are some things I
gotta see, and that he's gotta see?
How much does it cost to see things? I'd rather not run out of
money... I can always sell the kid, but I guess I'd rather not.
I've heard it takes like half a day, standing in line, to get to the
White House. Is that true? If so, we'll skip it. Is there other
stuff that, really, it'd be great to see, but it's too much effort to
be worthwhile?
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tpryan
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response 4 of 72:
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Aug 21 01:10 UTC 2003 |
Find out if you can make an advance reservation for things
like Washington Monument, White House, etc.
/tpryan cue up Cledus Maggard and The $300 vacation.
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slynne
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response 5 of 72:
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Aug 21 01:29 UTC 2003 |
Most of the museums are free which is nice. check out hotwire.com. They
have some good deals in DC.
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rcurl
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response 6 of 72:
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Aug 21 01:34 UTC 2003 |
Include a visit to the Capitol. You might be able to get your picture taken
with your representative or senator - especially with a child in tow.
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happyboy
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response 7 of 72:
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Aug 21 01:40 UTC 2003 |
take him to meet spencer abraham and tell junior that he is
the anti-santa clause and eats children
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jep
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response 8 of 72:
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Aug 21 02:08 UTC 2003 |
Hotwire.com, priceline.com... they make me nervous because you're
always picking blind. Hotwire says they can't even guarantee a non-
smoking room. I guess I have a few weeks to check my nerve supply,
but buying things blindly from a WWW site isn't easy for me.
re resp:6: Do you need reservations to meet your government officials?
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glenda
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response 9 of 72:
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Aug 21 03:32 UTC 2003 |
orbitz.com you don't pick blind, and can cancel if plans change.
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gelinas
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response 10 of 72:
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Aug 21 04:05 UTC 2003 |
Not so much 'reservations', but appointments would probably help; they _are_
busy people. They may also be home in Michigan while you are in Washington.
When I lived in the area, I never had much trouble finding parking.
The last time I was there, the National Zoo had lots of parking, so
driving to it wasn't that difficult. Same for Arlington National Cemetary.
The various museums that make up the Smithsonian Institution are along
the National Mall, all of which is in 'walking distance': places to sit,
when you get tired, with the Capitol at one end and the Lincoln Memorial at
the other. The Jefferson Memorial is not far from the Lincoln Memorial,
to the south, and the White House is on the north side of the Mall,
roughly across from the Washington Monument. (The Ellipsis is on the
south side of the White House, between it and the Mall.)
If you enjoy pagentry, the Marine Barracks holds a Sunset Parade at the
Marine Memorial on Tuesdays. The Sunset Parade includes music by the
Marine Band, which also performs there on Thursday evenings and at the
Capitol on Wednesday evenings. They provide the music for the Evening
Parade at the Marine Barracks at 8th and I, SE on other evenings. You can
get more information about the Barracks at
http://www.mbw.usmc.mil/newmbw/default.asp
and about the Marine Band at
http://www.mbw.usmc.mil/newmbw/default.asp
The changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is also
worth watching.
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jep
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response 11 of 72:
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Aug 21 15:21 UTC 2003 |
I love marching music, so the Sunset Parade is something I'll want to
see. Thanks!
"Appointments". Right. One does not reserve a person. (-:
Orbitz.com looks like a Good Thing. All I want from a place to stay is
the ability to sleep and take a shower. My son requires a swimming
pool. I'm definitely not interested in paying a lot for a room.
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krj
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response 12 of 72:
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Aug 21 15:31 UTC 2003 |
I grew up outside Washington DC, but that was before the subway was built,
and I haven't played tourist there in some time, so don't rely on anything I
write without doing research.
The Smithsonian is a collection of large museums, and you will want to do some
pre-trip planning to get some idea of how you want to allocate your time.
My guess is that John & John's top interest is likely to be the Air & Space
Museum, followed by either American History (which used to be called History
and Technology, and which may still have lots of gadgets) or Natural History
(the Hope Diamond, meteorites, lots of stuffed animals, model life-sized blue
whale). The National Gallery of Art is the best of the Smithsonian's art
museums, the others are more specialized.
Basic admission to the Smithsonian museums is probably still free; special
exhibits might cost extra, and Imax movies at Air and Space cost extra.
My vague recollection was that the best way to see the White House was to have
your congressperson arrange for tickets, or passes, or whatever. I've never
done that. The Capitol was completely free and open when I was a kid -- my
family would go to military band concerts on the Capitol steps and we would
dash into the building to use the restrooms. I expect those days are long
gone; while I doubt there are any admission charges, I'd contact your
congressperson to find out about any security procedures for visitors.
Once we went to Treasury to watch paper money being printed, that was neat.
Again, check 21st century security issues.
The FBI had a tour which was a famous hit among kids, which included a visit
to their firing range.
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mynxcat
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response 13 of 72:
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Aug 21 15:52 UTC 2003 |
I've visited Washington DC, one trip I relied on public transport, the
other I drove. Public transport seemed pretty good, and the cab-fare
wasn't too horrendous, at least for the places I wanted to go. Our
hotes was pretty centrally located, and didn't seem too expensive. We
walked to most places.
I didn't find driving around too bad either. And I do believe they
have park and rides at most places.
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cross
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response 14 of 72:
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Aug 21 16:18 UTC 2003 |
This response has been erased.
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albaugh
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response 15 of 72:
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Aug 21 16:41 UTC 2003 |
When you visit W-DC, you should / must be prepared to walk. A lot. A GREAT
DEAL! If you can step up to that, so to speak, you'll be OK. With a kid in
tow, you definitely need to go up the Washington Monument. And of course go
see Abe sitting, too. You might try to arrange a visit to the Mint, too -
I'm sure junior would be interested in seeing that.
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klg
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response 16 of 72:
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Aug 21 16:45 UTC 2003 |
Mr. krj was correct about the FBI and the Bureau of Engraving. Those
were our children's favorite tours. As we recall, they did not
appreciate places such as the White House or the National Archives.
We suggest that you investigate the need for tickets/reservations
wherever you go. Last summer we attempted to visit the Denver Mint.
We called for same-day tickets and were told that one needed to do so
at least two weeks in advance in order to allow time for a security
check. Not even a call to the local congressman helped. (Thank you,
al Qaida.)
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gull
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response 17 of 72:
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Aug 21 16:52 UTC 2003 |
When I was out west, I was disappointed to find that you can no longer
tour the Hanford Site. Nor can you tour the inside of Hungry Horse Dam,
like I did when I was out there in 1994.
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scott
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response 18 of 72:
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Aug 21 17:58 UTC 2003 |
Probably the best way to get a photo-op with your legislator is a nice bribe.
Since the Republicans are in power this would best take the form of some shady
business deal. ;)
Hey, it's summer, it's DC, it's freakin' hot. Hotels can't be *that*
expensive. Some of the web sites should let you sort by distance to public
transit, which would be nice. Last time I was in DC (business meetings) our
hotel was connected through a building or two to a subway stop. The subways
are modern, safe, and clean, too.
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rcurl
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response 19 of 72:
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Aug 21 18:30 UTC 2003 |
I think I was about 7 when my family visited DC and went to the FBI building.
I was absolutely thrilled to be fingerprinted! Little did I know.....
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happyboy
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response 20 of 72:
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Aug 21 20:55 UTC 2003 |
lol
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tod
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response 21 of 72:
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Aug 21 23:34 UTC 2003 |
This response has been erased.
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gelinas
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response 22 of 72:
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Aug 22 00:54 UTC 2003 |
Last time I was there, the Main Reading Room was open, but the stacks weren't.
To read something from the Library of Congress, figure out what you want and
submit a request. It helps to have something to read while waiting for the
object of your desire to be delivered.
Yes, my brother and I enjoyed the tours of the Bureau of Engraving and
Printing and of the FBI when we were there in '73 or '74.
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jep
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response 23 of 72:
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Aug 22 02:12 UTC 2003 |
We're going in mid-September, so I'm hoping it won't be in the 90s
then.
Thanks for all the advice on things to see! I think my son will be
interested in seeing money being printed, if we can do that. I'll
check into advance tickets. I think the Air and Space Museum is a
must-see. I don't care if he hates the idea, dangit; I'm going and
I'm not leaving him behind. I would imagine something at the
Smithsonian has dinosaurs. This will be a hit with any 7 year old boy.
Regarding the White House... they schedule tours for school kids and
military groups from 7:45 to 10:30 Tues-Sat. There's no information
on whether you can just walk up at other times, or can't get in at
all. Anyone know?
The Bureau of Engraving and Printing has a page titled "Locations and
Tours" which says you can only tour the site in Washington, and that
on a tour you'll see millions of dollars being printed. There's no
word on hours, days, reservations...
Oops. There's more information under some of the links. Sigh.
Oh, wow. Through my congressman's WWW site, I can request tickets for
a bunch of things, during the range of days I'll be in Washington.
I'm asking for Bureau of Engraving and Printing, House Gallery, US
Capitol, Kennedy Center, Library of Congress, and Supreme Court
tickets. So there's probably our whole trip, right there. (-: We
may not get all the tickets we request; we might not get any, but we
can try.
We can also stop by the congressman's office, according to the WWW
site. There's no information at all about actually meeting him, but
if we wanted to do that, we could probably go to one of his local
meetings here at home.
According to Senator Levin's page, Bureau of Engraving and Printing,
and also the Treasury, are currently cancelled. Senator Stabenow's
office agrees with that. Oh, well, maybe they're out of date or the
cancellations will end by the time we're there.
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gull
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response 24 of 72:
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Aug 22 13:15 UTC 2003 |
I have my doubts. 9/11 seems to have been used as a convenient excuse
to cancel tours of all kinds of things where tours were popular but seen
as an annoyance or potential embarassment. (Does anyone really think
terrorists will get useful information from touring a reactor that's
been obsolete for 50 years? Or a hydroelectric dam that's been there
even longer?)
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