Adventures in Washington DC!

I am so glad our family was able to experience our nation's Capitol- what an amazing experience for our family!

Day 1: Tuesday
Wouldn't you know it - the day we had scheduled to go to DC it was raining, windy and cold. Luckily the second day we went (Thursday) was gorgeous, so it all worked out in the end. BUT- for the first half of our first day there- I had some pretty miserable kids! We certainly had a bit of an adventurous day. Even though we planned to do the indoor things, we still had to do quite a bit of walking around outside. So- note to self- don't go to DC on a rainy day unless you really are willing to brave the wetness. The one advantage was that we were able to get tickets for the ever popular Bureau of Engraving and Printing, which is hard to do on a normal day unless you are in line early. On this rainy morning, there was NO line.

Anyway, we decided to ride the metro into the city (though looking back, driving in would have been better this day). The kids loved it! They thought it was so cool to ride the subway. Going in was great, but coming home was a bit of a nightmare, during rush hour- I have never seen so many people crammed into a small space. Shudder- I am so glad we don't live in a place like that- later when we drove in, the traffic was aweful.

Riding the metro- - and we even got a great picture of Tyler "reading" the paper on the trip in . . .



Our adventure (to put it nicely) began as we rode the escalator up into the rainy streets of DC. We walked to get tickets to the Bureau of Engraving and printing and back to the metro to ride over to the Capitol, thoroughly getting SOAKED in the process.

The "James Wilson" arch we saw on the way!!


I am realizing how poorly I planned things out this day, not knowing how it would be to walk around DC in the rain with little children. Looking back, I should have sent Jon to run to get tickets, while we waited in the metro station - - but I guess we were all anxious to start seeing the sights. Just the city itself and the classic historical buildings are cool to look at. The next part of our journey was probably the worst part of the day- - and where my planning should have been better. It was lunch time, and knowing that there really isn't any place to eat along the National Mall or Smithsonian that costs less than $10 per person (for a hot dog and chips, none the less), I packed our lunch in a backpack. The biggest problem, is that instead of taking time to make sandwiches ahead, I packed all the makings for the sandwiches (which usually works great- who wants a soggy sandwich anyway!). I realized once lunch time came around, that there was NO place to sit and eat that lunch. It was pouring rain, and there is no food allowed in the dry metro stations. Even when the rain did stop, there aren't nice picnic tables- just soggy grass and maybe a few wet park benches. Not knowing what to do- we truged over to the Capitol, since that was next on our list, hoping to be inspired as to what we should do about lunch. We get to the Capitol Visitor Center, and realize we can't even go in there because of our packed lunch. It's like the airport security- no liquids or gels (that includes pudding, yogurt and condiments I had packed in our lunches), or even food at all. Hmmm- so now what- of course there aren't lockers or something like that to store things while you go inside. At about this time, no one was having fun- the kids were all crying and I was so disappointed about not being able to see the Capitol Visitor Center (which I heard was awesome), and embarassed at not planning better - - we almost called it a day. So- we ended up just getting a few shots on our camera outside and continued on.



Luckily we pushed on and the day got MUCH better, especially once we were able to eat our lunch! The very first thing we came to after leaving the Capitol Grounds was the National Botanical Gardens. This looked cool, but wasn't on my MUST SEE list. At that moment, we just wanted the first place that would get us out of the cold rain, and we weren't disappointed! It was BEAUTIFUL, green and warm. We picked a quiet corner and made/ ate our lunch. I don't know if we were supposed to eat in there or not, but since we didn't see any signs, and were a bit desperate, we did it anyway. We all felt much better after eating and getting out of the cold.



By the time we came out, the blowing rain had at least stopped (though the weather still wasn't great- just tollerable). The rest of the afternoon we popped in at a few of the museums - mainly the National Air and Space Museum, and the Museum of Natural History. We didn't have much time at either of these- just a peek was still pretty cool, though really crowded! Since there was no food or drink allowed (and we still had condiments and more left from our lunch that I wasn't willing to throw away), AND they were super crowded and hard to navigate with at stroller, we just took turns- one parent would go in, and one would sit out and wait with Tyler and the back pack. My biggest complaint about the Smithsonian museums, is that there are no lockers to store items that can't be brought into the museums. The museums are free, but you still have to wait in line to go through security and have your bag checked.

Treats outside the National Archives:
(only kids would want POPCICLES on a day like that!)



We then rushed back over to the Bureau of Engraving and Printing for our ticket time. It was almost worth the crazy day of rain to be able to see this! The kids were facinated by watching money being printed- so cool. It was a great way to end the day.

A million dollars in $10's in un-cut sheets:


Could you imagine having this bill? They said it is actually illegal to have one- they only use it for in-house purposes:


How tall are YOU in dollar bills?



** MORE TO COME!!! We spent another AMAZING day in DC during spring break!


Lessons learned and notes for anyone else planning on visiting DC:
1. Don't go in the rain, if you do- drive in or plan to take taxis or buses around the city. There is a lot of walking you still have to do outside, even if you ride the metro!
2. Pack a lunch (the little consession stands are REALLY expensive) - - BUT plan to eat it before going in any museums or buildings. Have everything made in advance, so you can easily eat it as you walk, and throw away your left overs. I am guessing a few small snacks in a purse or something is OK to keep while going into the buildings, but not a huge packed lunch.
3. Driving in wasn't as bad as they say (we drove in the second day we went). Riding the metro is just as crazy- parking at the metro stations is also really hard to find. Sure, traffic was HORRIBLE, but with little children driving in was so much easier. There is free parking around the mall, but some of it is only 3 hour parking, so we just had to move our car a couple of times. It helps that Jon is a good runner and could run back to our car and move it.
4. The best thing to do is plan months in advance when you are going to go- - so you can contact your Senator or State Representative's office to get tickets for things like touring the Capitol or the White House. Marcus was disappointed that we didn't get to do those things.
5. Remember that the Zoo is free, but the parking is NOT (it was $5 an hour this time)- - if you plan on riding the metro in at all- that would be a good day to see the zoo since there is a station right by the zoo.
6. Another tip about the zoo- start at the TOP (the north west end, I think? Off Conneticut Ave- parking lot A, the entrance by the visitor center) and go downhill. We started at the bottom and walked uphill the entire time. At the other end, Jon ran and got the car to pick us up because we were so exhausted. It would have been so much better if we had done it the opposite way- the way it was intended, I think!
5. Overall, plan for crowds- and enjoy the amazing sights! It really is worth it!