Hello!
I'm changing. I'm becoming more organized. I write checklists, take care of my stuff better, take a shower at least once a day. These days, when I travel, I sit down with a computer the day before, mark out places I want to visit on Google Maps, figure out how I get from Place A to Place B and no longer rely on luck and Evita to travel. I have been reading a lot of travel blogs and some of them have provided great advice for shoestring travelers like me. So, I thought I would give back to the travel community by sharing some of my own experiences. In this post, I'm going to talk about my Washington DC trip. As this post is primarily targeted at travelers targeting DC, I will try not to ramble and keep it succinct.
1) HOW LONG SHOULD I STAY IN WASHINGTON?
This question troubled me a lot. I confess, I'm a stingy traveler and I hate spending on hotels. I left New York in a day simply because I didn't want to spend on hotels. So given my financial limitations and stubbornness potential, it was quite a trick question. However, I decided to stay the entire weekend rather than a flying visit to DC. Why this is actually a less retarded than idea than a one-day trip?
a) You must be a certified moron to travel 450 miles by bus back-to-back. Plus, bus fares aren't cheaper than hotel rates.
b) Ideally, appreciating Washington for all it has got, takes at least 4-5 days. Washington DC is more than Obama and White House. You may achieve brag ecstasy with your million snaps of White House and Capitol Hill dome but you will fail badly as a tourist. The Holy Grail of Washington sightseeing stays locked up behind glass panels in the dozen plus museums that dot National Mall. Each museum, if viewed properly, takes a day. And, over the years, I have realized, museums are actually pretty cool and exciting and make a wonderful learning experience. Try out the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and the even the worst museumophobe will hate to walk out.
2) TRAVELING TO DC
Unless you got a Rockefeller strand in your genetic code, it is always a good idea to travel cheap. You can book into Peter Pan/Greyhound from Boston to Washington DC. It is an arduous 8 hour journey, and Greyhound can toss your plans for a DLF Sixer, but you will save almost 150 USD (read: Two nights stay at the Sheraton) as compared to flying AA or traveling Amtrak.
3) WHERE SHOULD I STAY?
McDonalds. Starbucks. Union Station. National Mall. Wherever you like, as long as the DC Police don't mind.
Jokes apart, it might be worthwhile to check hotwire.com. They got great deals on hotel prices. Hotels in downtown DC might be heavy on your wallet. Crystal City, which is like 15 minutes by Washington Subway from the Smithsonian, has a lot of posh hotels at affordable prices. Our room at the Sheraton costed us 75 USD for a night.
Words of wisdom I gleaned from a blog - "Don't visit the places that look the same as in TV". Example: White House. The closest you can get is five hundred odd meters away (from the South Side at least) and it is ultra crowded and isn't worth more than five minutes of clicking away.
Unless you are traveling from Dulles Airport, it is a sensible idea to start from US Capitol and walk down National Mall and look at the different museums. This will save you plenty of time crisscrossing Constitution Ave. and Pennsylvania Av. This is the plan we adopted.
a) Start off with a visit to US Capitol. Click pictures to your hearts outside the dome. Then, shutter away your cameras and walk in for the guided tour of the Capitol Hill. Given US security paranoia, it would save you a couple of dollars if you didn't bring your cool Axe deos (The security guard accurately describes it as you aren't hooking up with anyone out here), Washington DC water bottles and definitely, no weapons, etc. The security is friendly but they mean tough business. So, be forewarned.
The guided tour is almost 45 mins approx. Our guide was a sweet middle-aged lady called Chandni. The trip starts off with an orientation movie 13 mins long (no videography allowed) and then you go up to the Rotunda where the Senate art/sculpture collection is on display. You also get to see gifts from different states to the Congress. See if you can locate your State's gift. On working days, you can actually see the Senate meetings but you need to have a pass for doing this (this is available free of cost at the Info Desk). The Capitol Store and the Cafeteria are nice places to hang out. When in the Senate, live like a Senator!
b) Visit the Library of Congress. There's a tunnel from the Capitol to the Library of Congress. According to rumors (I didn't see all of it), the Library of Congress has the biggest collection of books in the world. Some interesting don't-miss-stuff are the Gutenburg Bible, another really huge Bible and Thomas Jefferson's private library of 6000 books.
c) Unless you are Super Man, eat. We were famished at this point of time. Although we didn't exactly do this, experiment in local cuisine. You didn't travel to DC to eat what you could have easily had at home.
d) Undisputedly, go visit the Newseum. The ticket for an average adult (no Medal of Honors, no Obama-chaddy-buddy, no wheelchair and no guns) is 21 dollars. And it is worth every penny. The Newseum is a museum entirely dedicated to news, press freedom, social media and journalism. Start it with a scan of the headlines in newspapers all over America and the world. The Berlin Wall, 9/11 and FBI sections have some pretty impressive stuff to watch out for (real samples from Berlin Wall, 9/11 fragments including a smashed door of a NYPD car; damaged installations from the Twin Towers and evidence from biggest FBI investigations). If you have a thing for smart pretty girls like I do, check out Camelot. Like millions of Americans in the 1960s, I lost my heart, soul, breath looking at Jacqueline Kennedy. Watch some amazing shots of JFK and Jackie in the Camelot exhibition. Other things you should check out at the Newseum are the 4-D movie about risk-taking journalists, 9/12 headline section, JFK section and press freedom wall. Go out to the top floor for a breathtaking view of the US Capitol Dome. Let the clicking away begin.
e) Skip the International Spy Museum. It is boring, juvenile and unattractive. There is an outdated glorification of James Bond included in the package. It isn't worth the 20 dollars you spend getting an entry ticket. And it definitely isn't worth wasting 2.5 hours walking around. In terms of stuff you expect from museums, the ISM is just about right. But post-Newseum-effect, the ISM is a terrible let down.
f) Do a 360 degree flip on a F-16 simulator at the National Air and Space Museum. It is a superb experience. Worth every bit of the 8 dollars you spend and few minutes you stand waiting in the queue. You and your friend take the roles of pilot and gunner in a F-16 and you have five minutes to kill enemy airplanes. Ready, steady, fire!
Simulators apart, the Air and Space Museum is a true delight. There is so much aviation, physics related information out there that it would be an insult not to take a look. It has got cool missile models both US and USSR style and got some awesome birds right from that flown by the Wright Brothers to Predator drones. There is simply so many exhibitions. Early aviation, Wright Brothers Exhibition, Black Pilots, Aviation races across the world, World War aviation, commercial aviation, space museum, planetarium...so much of it that you simply don't want to walk out. Screw memorials and Houses, go see the NASM.
g) Gatecrash at the Mammal Reunion at Museum of Natural History. This is second best only to the NASM. If you loved the Night at the Museum, this is THE place for you. Re-discover evolution, decode genomics, go awww! at the Hope Diamond, explore the deepest oceans, flirt with the butterflies, say hello to dinosaurs...watch your secondary school science text book come alive. Again, this museum takes 1/2-1 day in its own right. Don't miss it! :)
h) Check out the other half a dozen museums that dot National Mall. Museum of American History, Museum of African American History (under construction), National Galleries and National Archives (visit the famed Declaration of Independence), all those Smithsonian Art Galleries.
g) Visit the walls that house and protect the most powerful One among us. Enough delays. This is probably your most anticipated building of this trip. You really want to go tell folks back home that you came this close to meeting President Obama. Try out the Pennsylvania side of the White House if you really want to see it up close. The South Side is nice and green but there is a huge garden in between you and the WH. Unless you got those cool DSLRs which every Tom Dick and Harry seems to have these days, it might be a smart idea to try the North Entrance.
h) Others.
Washington Monument. (currently under renovation. Nothing but a huge block of stone with a lot of historical sentiments).
The Holocaust Museum - We wanted to go to this Museum but couldn't squeeze it in. Given America's considerable Jewish population and how informative this Museum's website is, I guess it would be a very good idea to check it out.
Memorials - The Lincoln Memorial is historically important. As you might well be aware, Abraham Lincoln is buried here. Here's also where Martin Luther King Jr. made his "I Have A Dream" speech before 250,000 African-American supporters of racial equality in the USA. The Vietnam War Memorial & Korean War Memorial are other places worth seeing.
i) Arlington.
If you have time, cross over the Potomac and visit the massive Pentagon complex. The 9/11 Memorial for those who died at the Pentagon is worth a short visit. The security is extremely strict. Be discreet in your photos though.
5) WOW. I READ THIS WHOLE ARTICLE AND ACTUALLY FOUND IT USEFUL. HOW CAN SHOW MY GRATITUDE?
I hate conclusions. I just don't know how to end writing. So, I thought I would end it with a question I didn't originally plan on including.
If you actually read the full length of the article and want to say "Thanks", I got yet another place for you to visit. While you are at Arlington, go to the Arlington National Cemetery (sounds creepy, I know). Before you go, hunt high and low for the most beautiful roses on sale in the East Coast of the USA. Leave these flowers as a tribute at the grave of the one of the most beautiful women to have enamored my heart, Jacqueline Kennedy. Thanks :)!
I'm changing. I'm becoming more organized. I write checklists, take care of my stuff better, take a shower at least once a day. These days, when I travel, I sit down with a computer the day before, mark out places I want to visit on Google Maps, figure out how I get from Place A to Place B and no longer rely on luck and Evita to travel. I have been reading a lot of travel blogs and some of them have provided great advice for shoestring travelers like me. So, I thought I would give back to the travel community by sharing some of my own experiences. In this post, I'm going to talk about my Washington DC trip. As this post is primarily targeted at travelers targeting DC, I will try not to ramble and keep it succinct.
1) HOW LONG SHOULD I STAY IN WASHINGTON?
This question troubled me a lot. I confess, I'm a stingy traveler and I hate spending on hotels. I left New York in a day simply because I didn't want to spend on hotels. So given my financial limitations and stubbornness potential, it was quite a trick question. However, I decided to stay the entire weekend rather than a flying visit to DC. Why this is actually a less retarded than idea than a one-day trip?
a) You must be a certified moron to travel 450 miles by bus back-to-back. Plus, bus fares aren't cheaper than hotel rates.
b) Ideally, appreciating Washington for all it has got, takes at least 4-5 days. Washington DC is more than Obama and White House. You may achieve brag ecstasy with your million snaps of White House and Capitol Hill dome but you will fail badly as a tourist. The Holy Grail of Washington sightseeing stays locked up behind glass panels in the dozen plus museums that dot National Mall. Each museum, if viewed properly, takes a day. And, over the years, I have realized, museums are actually pretty cool and exciting and make a wonderful learning experience. Try out the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum and the even the worst museumophobe will hate to walk out.
2) TRAVELING TO DC
Unless you got a Rockefeller strand in your genetic code, it is always a good idea to travel cheap. You can book into Peter Pan/Greyhound from Boston to Washington DC. It is an arduous 8 hour journey, and Greyhound can toss your plans for a DLF Sixer, but you will save almost 150 USD (read: Two nights stay at the Sheraton) as compared to flying AA or traveling Amtrak.
3) WHERE SHOULD I STAY?
McDonalds. Starbucks. Union Station. National Mall. Wherever you like, as long as the DC Police don't mind.
Jokes apart, it might be worthwhile to check hotwire.com. They got great deals on hotel prices. Hotels in downtown DC might be heavy on your wallet. Crystal City, which is like 15 minutes by Washington Subway from the Smithsonian, has a lot of posh hotels at affordable prices. Our room at the Sheraton costed us 75 USD for a night.
4) PLACES TO SEE
Words of wisdom I gleaned from a blog - "Don't visit the places that look the same as in TV". Example: White House. The closest you can get is five hundred odd meters away (from the South Side at least) and it is ultra crowded and isn't worth more than five minutes of clicking away.
Unless you are traveling from Dulles Airport, it is a sensible idea to start from US Capitol and walk down National Mall and look at the different museums. This will save you plenty of time crisscrossing Constitution Ave. and Pennsylvania Av. This is the plan we adopted.
 |
| US Capitol Dome |
The guided tour is almost 45 mins approx. Our guide was a sweet middle-aged lady called Chandni. The trip starts off with an orientation movie 13 mins long (no videography allowed) and then you go up to the Rotunda where the Senate art/sculpture collection is on display. You also get to see gifts from different states to the Congress. See if you can locate your State's gift. On working days, you can actually see the Senate meetings but you need to have a pass for doing this (this is available free of cost at the Info Desk). The Capitol Store and the Cafeteria are nice places to hang out. When in the Senate, live like a Senator!
 |
| Outside Thomas Jefferson's Library |
c) Unless you are Super Man, eat. We were famished at this point of time. Although we didn't exactly do this, experiment in local cuisine. You didn't travel to DC to eat what you could have easily had at home.
 |
| Newseum |
e) Skip the International Spy Museum. It is boring, juvenile and unattractive. There is an outdated glorification of James Bond included in the package. It isn't worth the 20 dollars you spend getting an entry ticket. And it definitely isn't worth wasting 2.5 hours walking around. In terms of stuff you expect from museums, the ISM is just about right. But post-Newseum-effect, the ISM is a terrible let down.
 |
| Relive every space odyssey at the Air & Space Museum |
Simulators apart, the Air and Space Museum is a true delight. There is so much aviation, physics related information out there that it would be an insult not to take a look. It has got cool missile models both US and USSR style and got some awesome birds right from that flown by the Wright Brothers to Predator drones. There is simply so many exhibitions. Early aviation, Wright Brothers Exhibition, Black Pilots, Aviation races across the world, World War aviation, commercial aviation, space museum, planetarium...so much of it that you simply don't want to walk out. Screw memorials and Houses, go see the NASM.
g) Gatecrash at the Mammal Reunion at Museum of Natural History. This is second best only to the NASM. If you loved the Night at the Museum, this is THE place for you. Re-discover evolution, decode genomics, go awww! at the Hope Diamond, explore the deepest oceans, flirt with the butterflies, say hello to dinosaurs...watch your secondary school science text book come alive. Again, this museum takes 1/2-1 day in its own right. Don't miss it! :)
h) Check out the other half a dozen museums that dot National Mall. Museum of American History, Museum of African American History (under construction), National Galleries and National Archives (visit the famed Declaration of Independence), all those Smithsonian Art Galleries.
 |
| The one and only White House |
g) Visit the walls that house and protect the most powerful One among us. Enough delays. This is probably your most anticipated building of this trip. You really want to go tell folks back home that you came this close to meeting President Obama. Try out the Pennsylvania side of the White House if you really want to see it up close. The South Side is nice and green but there is a huge garden in between you and the WH. Unless you got those cool DSLRs which every Tom Dick and Harry seems to have these days, it might be a smart idea to try the North Entrance.
h) Others.
Washington Monument. (currently under renovation. Nothing but a huge block of stone with a lot of historical sentiments).
The Holocaust Museum - We wanted to go to this Museum but couldn't squeeze it in. Given America's considerable Jewish population and how informative this Museum's website is, I guess it would be a very good idea to check it out.
Memorials - The Lincoln Memorial is historically important. As you might well be aware, Abraham Lincoln is buried here. Here's also where Martin Luther King Jr. made his "I Have A Dream" speech before 250,000 African-American supporters of racial equality in the USA. The Vietnam War Memorial & Korean War Memorial are other places worth seeing.
 |
| Saying cheese at the US Department of Defense HQ |
i) Arlington.
If you have time, cross over the Potomac and visit the massive Pentagon complex. The 9/11 Memorial for those who died at the Pentagon is worth a short visit. The security is extremely strict. Be discreet in your photos though.
5) WOW. I READ THIS WHOLE ARTICLE AND ACTUALLY FOUND IT USEFUL. HOW CAN SHOW MY GRATITUDE?
 |
| She looks much better than this :) - Jacqueline Kennedy |
If you actually read the full length of the article and want to say "Thanks", I got yet another place for you to visit. While you are at Arlington, go to the Arlington National Cemetery (sounds creepy, I know). Before you go, hunt high and low for the most beautiful roses on sale in the East Coast of the USA. Leave these flowers as a tribute at the grave of the one of the most beautiful women to have enamored my heart, Jacqueline Kennedy. Thanks :)!
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