OK, so heres the second half
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Wednesday morning we were up early, hit the continental breakfast, and were out on the road early. We decided to head up to the Air & Space museums auxiliary location near Dulles airport, since we were in the car and expected to leave it in the hotel garage the entire time in DC. I was worried that we would not have enough time to check it out, get to our hotel to check in at 3:00 and then make it to the Washington Monument for our 4:00 reservations, but it all worked out. Washington is like WDW you need to plan for extra travel time all around. We arrived at the museum around 11:00 and stayed there until 1:45, including eating lunch at the McDonalds. It was a good call to stop there because it was DHs favorite thing on the trip he called it the Airplane Boneyard, lol. If you saw Transformers II, its the hanger where they meet the older plane that is an autobot that changed sides. Its chock full of planes, including a Concorde, the Enola Gay (the plane that dropped the atom bomb on Hiroshima), and the first space shuttle, which was incredible! DH works for Sikorsky, and there were a few of their copters there, so that was pretty cool.
When we left the museum, it took 45 minutes to drive to the LEnfant Plaza hotel in DC. We were able to check in a few minutes early with no delay. As we entered the hotel DH asked me if we could afford it, lol. It was very nice and being above the Metro station was very convenient. The metro station also has a mall attached to it, which luckily has a CVS because DH picked up pink eye, he thinks from the pool at the Governors Inn. His doctor called in a prescription and we were able to pick it up easily. Our room was almost twice the size as the one at the Governors Inn, clean and comfy; no refrigerator though. There was free wifi at the Governors Inn but we had to pay a fee for each day we used it at LEnfant Plaza. Not the end of the world, but considering the cost of the room, we thought it should have been free. There was no continental breakfast either, but when I inquired at the Concierge desk as to where we could get a quick breakfast they gave us free passes to their breakfast buffet, which was $18 for adults and $9 for kids. Of course we went back and paid for it another day, so that marketing worked!
After checking in, we looked at the map and decided to walk to the Washington Monument. We walked up to it at 3:55, phew! It was a nice day so the view was breathtaking. The observation level is at 550 feet. You can see out windows in all 4 directions. It was a great way to start the vacation, being able to see everything at once. Once you go up, they let you stay as long as you want to. After about 20 minutes, we were done. We went back to the hotel and decided to go to the Hard Rock Café for dinner. We took the Metro and our trusty map from the Visitors Guide and got there with no problem. Our meal was good and once again we ate too much, lol. We went back to the hotel and fell into bed.
Thursday We had an 8:15 appointment for a tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. We are not morning people so this was tough. The tour was cool though. Note that you can bring cameras in but cannot take any photos unless you want to donate your camera to the Federal government.
DH bought a new Nikon recently so he was quite the camera jockey the entire trip. After the tour we went back to the hotel for our complimentary breakfast and to plan the rest of our day. We decided to take the Tourmobile and go to Arlington that day. We got on in front of the Air & Space museum, and rode it to the Jefferson Memorial, got off there looked around, got back on, off at the FDR memorial (very nice!), got back on, went to Arlington, transferred to an Arlington tram, stopped at the tomb of the unknown soldier, watched the changing of the guard (very moving), got back on, rode back to the visitor center, got back on the regular tram, then rode back to the Air & Space museum. I had wanted to see JFKs grave but we didnt have time. We really should have gotten on the bus earlier because the buses stop running at 4:30, and like the Disney buses, there is traffic, etc. and it takes longer than you think it should to get anywhere. Our guide said it takes them about 2 hours to drive the entire route, not including stopping to look at the attractions. Note that you have to be on the bus to your final destination by 4:00. Wherever they stop on the route at 4:30 is where they kick you out and you could be stranded far from where you got on. The Arlington route keeps touring until the cemetery closes though. There is a metro station there, so you could theoretically get stuck there but take the metro back to DC. We considered that but decided not to do it. We also considered getting off at the Lincoln Memorial and hoofing it back to the hotel but by then we were hot and tired and the kids wanted to go in the pool, so we just rode back to Air & Space. When we were waiting for buses, we never waited for more than 15 minutes. Each monument has bathrooms and a vendor outside selling drinks, which you cant bring in to the monuments. There are water fountains also, which came in handy for filling empty bottles. Once we got back to the hotel, DH took a nap while I took the kiddies to the pool for an hour. After that we decided to go to ESPN Zone for dinner. We again took the metro. We probably should have gotten weekly passes but we were only there for four days and werent sure how much we would actually use the metro. It was easy to use and fairly clean. DH was initially skeptical because he hates the NYC subway, but lets just say the metro, uh, smelled better than NY, lol. The only bad thing was that all the stations looked exactly the same and sometimes we had to be careful of which direction we were going in. Once we walked out the wrong exit of the LEnfant Plaza station and were nowhere near the hotel! It was night so that was not cool, but luckily there was another couple who had done the same thing so we were not alone. Anyway, there was an hour wait at ESPN Zone but they have a 10,000 square foot arcade on the bottom floor, so lets just say that was a winner for DS. The food was OK, but the atmosphere was cool. We liked watching the Mets on one of the feeds while we ate. DH bought a beer mug, and after dinner we went back to the arcade for a bit before returning to the hotel to crash.
Friday we had an appointment to meet our Representative in the House of Representatives (whose office set up all our appointments for tours) at 9:30, followed by our 10:15 tour of the Capitol. We all had snacks, then went down to the Metro. Of course there was technical issue on our line and our train was delayed. We started to panic but the train came, we got out on Capitol Hill, walked to our Reps office building, and got there for 9:30 but there was a huge line of people ahead of us to get through security. I remarked that they were all wearing the same shirt and wondered aloud if they were all from a group. The gentleman ahead of us said they were and offered to let us go in front of their group, so we walked right in, found the Reps office, said hello, took a picture, and then she said she had to go to debate health care, so we left to head for the Capitol visitor center. We completely missed it because it was down a flight of stairs but we got there eventually. I was freaking out because we were supposed to get there 20 minutes early to get through security and we got there at 10:10 but we still ended up on the right tour. They corralled a LOT of people into a theatre for an introductory film that was very patriotic, then separated us into several small groups led by a tour guide. There were a LOT of tours going on simultaneously so it was important to stay together with the guide. Camera jockey DH got separated a few times. For most of the trip I was trying to keep DS (who has ADHD) from running ahead of DH, who was stopping to take pictures like mad. In crowded places like the metro and museums it was very nervewracking keeping everyone together. When the tour was over we ate lunch in the Capitol cafeteria. It was expensive but at least it was good. Then we used passes that our Rep had given us to view the Senate from the visitor gallery. You have to leave pretty much everything with security - all electronics (cell phones, hand held games, cameras), although they let me bring my purse in after x-raying it. The Senate was empty except for one senator we didnt know, so we saw the room but not much action. We would have gone to the House next but they were debating health care so there was action in there, and the line was at least an hour long. The employee monitoring the line suggested we just watch C-SPAN, lol. We couldnt wait on the line because we had to be at the White House for a 2:00 tour. We had to take the metro back to the hotel to drop off everything. You can only bring your keys, wallet, cell phone and umbrella to the White House. We had to be there 20 minutes early to get through security and of course we were almost late for that tour too, lol. We got in line at the entrance gate just in time. I had my paperwork out but they never asked what time our tour was for, our reservation code or for our IDs, as our Reps office said they would. We just got in line, went through security and did the self guided tour. There were security folks in every room who could answer any question, and there were brochures with a map of the rooms we could see. DH and I enjoyed it but the kids were bored. No, we did not see any Obamas, lol. After that we were shot so we went back to the hotel to regroup and decide on our dinner plans. We decided to go to Chinatown for Chinese food. On the way to dinner, we decided to stop at the National Archives. It closes at 7:00 and we got there at 6:30, just in time to be part of the last group! The Declaration of Independence is very faded, but it was really cool to see. It made me want to watch National Treasure again so I could see how they stole it, lol. A friend who lives nearby had recommended a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown called Full Kee it is on H and 5th, and we were able to walk there from the Archives. He said it was a hole in the wall but had great, cheap food. OMG it was awesome! We all ate like pigs for $50. It is where the local Chinese community goes to eat. In the window there were Peking Ducks hanging, so we all cracked up thinking about the scene in A Christmas Story where they go out for Chinese Christmas dinner, lol. When we left it was dark and we saw police arresting someone as we were walking back to the metro, and another arrest at the entrance to the metro. That was the only time we felt uneasy. We noticed a lot of police in the area, so it made us feel better. We took the metro back to the hotel this was the time we came out the wrong entrance, and it was kinda unnerving but the streets were empty and we found the hotel a few minutes later.
Saturday This was the day we paid for the breakfast buffet. Since we missed the Lincoln Monument on Thursday, we decided to take the metro to Foggy Bottom and walk there. We then walked along the reflecting pool to the WWII memorial, which was very nice. We walked right past the Vietnam memorial without realizing it because it was on the other side of a hill. Once we realized we missed it, we decided not to go back because it was too hot and humid and we knew we had a lot more walking ahead of us. We then walked to the ellipse in front of the White House because DH camera jockey wanted to take pictures, but couldnt the day before. Then we went into the White House visitor center which thankfully was air conditioned. The kids took a break by coloring they had an activity table for kids while I walked around and looked at the displays. Camera jockey rested his feet, lol. Then we walked to the museum of American History and had lunch in the cafeteria. It was good but expensive. We went up to the 3rd floor to see Dorothys ruby slippers, Kermit the Frog, and Jerry Seinfelds Puffy Shirt. We also saw a Dumbo from the original
Disneyland ride, some Stradivarius violins, then went to the military history section, which was very nice. It was VERY crowded and the kids were kind of bored. DS wanted to race through, but the crowds were awful, and camera jockey was holding him back, lol, DD was getting hormonal and teasing DS, and finally we had a Griswold Family Vacation Moment.
DH decided we should separate. He went to the Natural History museum with DD while I took DS to Air & Space. They saw the Hope Diamond and some dinosaurs. All DS was interested in was the McDonalds at Air & Space. After he had some McNuggets we walked around the entire museum, ADHD style, lol. We saw it all, but quickly! The Apollo 11 display was cool. DS enjoyed it because it was kid oriented and hands on. Then we met up with DD and DH, walked around with them for a bit. I cant wait to see Night at The Museum 2 now! I wish we had time to see other museums, but if we want to see art, I guess we can just go to the Met! Then we walked back to the hotel for a break. We decided to go to Chinatown again for dinner, but to a restaurant near the metro, for minimal walking it was a sports bar called the Green Turtle. It was 8:30 and the place was empty but the food was decent and we were able to see the Mets again. We went back to the hotel and crashed. By this time I was exhausted and ready to go home and get back into my routine.
DH threatened to get up at the crack of dawn the next morning and just leave so I got up before him and jumped in the shower before he could say not to, lol. There was no way I was sitting in the car for 5 hours all sweaty and sticky from the day before.
We were in the car at 7:30 am and were home at noon! Luckily there was no traffic. We had some snacks in the car and only stopped once for a 10 minute potty break. Once we got home, I went out for groceries, made lunch and started the laundry. Then we watched National Treasure, to end our historic vacation with a patriotic movie, and to see all the places in DC that we had been to.
It was a great trip but exhausting. It would have been better in the fall when the weather is cooler and we could walk more comfortably, but we didnt want to take the kids out of school. I wish we could have seen more museums but I think the kids may have been bored by them so maybe that wasnt such a bad thing. DS whined a lot at the historic area and monuments but in a few years he will probably look back and say it was a great trip.
I also got a decent tan
