Spent a few days last week in the I-95 corridor, shuffling between Philadelphia and Washington, D.C. I hadn't been to D.C. for about 20 years, and never traveled there by car. Some observations of the 30 or so hours spent there:
* Visiting the Smithsonian museums seems like it should be more interesting than it is. The Air and Space Museum is very cool, but the others are.....museums. Art and history aren't really that much fun.
* I highly recommend taking the tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. It's only about 30 minutes, and to see and hear the details behind how money is printed is the opposite of the Smithsonian Museums, meaning it's more interesting than it sounds.
* The respectful silence of the hundreds / thousands of tourists at Arlington National Cemetery is deafening.
* The other monuments, in my order of interest: Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, World War II Memorial. The Washington Memorial was being repaired, and while it's tall, it isn't all that compelling. Didn't get to the Jefferson, MLK, or Iwo Jima Memorials.
* The White House is neat to look at but if you could tour it, or be there at the right time to see dignitaries or cars or choppers coming or going, it would be a lot better. The Capitol and the Supreme Court are the same way.
* The Metro (subway) is a safe, clean, efficient way to get around D.C. But it isn't necessarily cheap, and you still end up walking a long way to see the tourist attractions.
* The drive on I-95 between Philly and D.C. (through Baltimore) is ridiculous. Packed with cars and tolls. So many people in a hurry to get somewhere else, every day. It's OK if there's no next time for that.
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