Thanks for Your D.C. Suggestions
Last week, I asked for your advice. I was taking my family (kids are 10 and 9) on their first trip to D.C., and wanted some tips. Your suggestions were fantastic, and it was too bad I could only follow up on a fraction of them.
We had a great time (in only 2.5 days). The highlight was a White House tour (thanks to those who made it happen), even though we didn’t catch sight of any Obamas. In no particular order of how much we enjoyed them, we also covered:
+ The Spy Museum (my daughter loved learning her cover story; my son loved looking for real spies in our hotel afterward)
+ The Lincoln Memorial and Vietnam Veterans Memorial (for both of these, it was great to have iPad handy to learn so much about each place; this trip was the most useful my iPad has ever been; e.g., we read about the 8 women memorialized on the Vietnam wall, and were able to read about each of them; and my kids were blown away by learning that more Americans died in the Civil War than in the Vietnam and Korean Wars, World War I and World War II combined). Also nice to read about Maya Lin, and to later see her portrait at the …
Ginny Stanford's portrait of Hillary Clinton
+ National Portrait Gallery. One of my very favorite museums in D.C., or anywhere for the matter — for the major stuff but also the minor stuff. Always neat to note how many great people (investors, artists, athletes) came out of Pennsylvania. I particularly liked Ginny Stanford‘s portrait of Hillary Clinton
Ray Kinstler's portrait of Tom Wolfe
And Ray Kinstler‘s portrait of Tom Wolfe:
Bar in the Hotel Scribe, by Floyd Davis
And perhaps my favorite painting in the joint: Bar in the Hotel Scribe, by Floyd Davis:
+ As many of you promised, lunch at the National Museum of the American Indian’s cafeteria, the Mitsitam Cafe, was outstanding. Some of you warned it was too expensive; what I found is that it was so crowded that it must not be expensive enough!
+ The Smithsonian American History wing, Ford’s Theatre, and the American Building Museum (which had a family day to launch the Cherry Blossom Festival) were all worthwhile. Given the recent earthquake/tsunami devastation in Japan, It was also a moving time to be in D.C. for the Festival.
As promised, I’ll send along some swag to a couple of you whose tips we used — Maji and Justin. And thanks to all for making this such a good family trip.
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