Day at the Museum

May 28, 2011
Fredericksburg VA & Washington DC
Day #16

We rose early and were on the road to Washington DC by nine o'clock.  Traffic traveling on I95 south was very heavy, but much better in the northbound lanes, the direction we were headed.  The Metro station closest to us is Franconia/Springfield, about 45 miles north of here.  From there we took the Metro into the city. 

The Metro is easy to maneuver, even if you are totally unfamiliar with a rapid transit system.  If not, there are people to help when purchasing a ticket.  We chose a day pass for $6 each.  The parking at the Metro parking garage was free, it being a weekend.  The ride into the Smithsonian station took a little more than  a half hour.

When we climbed out of the Metro, we realized that we'd just followed everyone else...should have taken a different stairway, meant a little longer walk.  Fortunately, there are tall landmarks (like that big ol Washington Monument) so you can orient yourself if you get turned around.  Problem is that with large structures, they seem closer and just a short walk away....NOT!








It looks a LOT closer than it really is!



We made our way to the Mall area and the Smithsonian.  First, American History, then Natural History, my favorite.  There were huge crowds, mostly families with kids...kids LOVE dinosaurs and the t-rex skeleton was a major draw.  We've been here before, and it was so hard to make our way through the crowds, that we only spent an hour or so in there.  However, I DID make the effort to see that little chunk of carbon - the Hope Diamond.  It sooooo doesn't suck!





The ultimate bling!


By this time, we were very hungry so we decided to just go down to the Natural History cafeteria.  We both had a sandwich (bleh) and spilt a small onion ring,  and two cold drinks...$32.  Not going back there...

They come alive at night, right?



Lastly we walked down to the Air and Space Museum.  Some amazing machines, but that building is a guy thing.  *I*  would rather look at bones.  We were giving our poor feet a rest when we saw the lady next to us reading a Washington DC guide.  Jim wanted one, so I asked her where she bought it.  She didn't know quite what to say for a second, then answered,  "In my country."  She was from Holland, her next stop was Colorado.  The Europeans seem to see more of this country than many Americans.

First hang glider?

We were rapidly running out of steam...can't walk around for 4 hours anymore.  BOTH of us, so I didn't feel like I was a drag.  After a final forced march to the Metro station we were on our way back to get our car and drive the 45 miles back to Fredericksburg.  

Tomorrow we will be a repeat of today...but with bigger crowds.  The Rolling Thunder motorcycle riders are in town...over 100,000  strong!