My Washington D.C. Top 10
A few years back, we stopped by Washington D.C. for New Years. Our annual tradition is to pick a new city to stop in on our way home from visiting family for Christmas. I had been to D.C. once as a kid and Ali had never been, so it was great to explore the city as an adult. There were a lot of great things to see. Here are my top 10 things we saw, in no particular order.
1. National Museum of American History
The Smithsonian museums are going to be a recurring theme. Its hard to go wrong with any of the ones you visit. The Museum of American History, though, is definitely one that should be top of your list to check out. The museum hosts a wide range of things to see, from dresses of the first ladies, to pop culture memorabilia, to cars & trains. The list goes on forever. There is a little something for everyone there.
2. Smithsonian American Art Museum
Even if you're not that into art, I would still recommend a stop here. This museum features the portraits of all the presidents. Its fun to see all the presidents in one stop. And, if you do like art, there is a ton of other art to see there.
3. Ford's Theater
If you don't know what Ford's Theater is, it is the place of Lincoln's assassination. There, you take a tour, learn about Lincoln and the events of that night, and what happened after. A history lesson in the place where history happened.
4. The White House
If you plan far enough in advance, you can email you're states representative to see if you can get tickets to tour the inside. Unfortunately for us, since it was New Years, we couldn't get any tickets. But, we were still able to see it from the outside. And, not too far away is the White House Visitor's Center, where you can see some pictures and artifacts from the White House.
5. National Mall Monuments
The National Mall is the long stretch between the US Capitol Building and the Lincoln Memorial, the halfway point being the Washington Monument. If the weather is nice, I highly recommend a roundtrip walk from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. Besides those two big ones, there are many other monuments to see along the way: Korean War Memorial, WWII Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, just to name a few. And, if you take the long way around the Tidal Basin, you can also check out the MLK Memorial, Thomas Jefferson Memorial, and the FDR Memorial.
6. National Museum of Natural History
Another of the Smithsonian Museums. This museum is great for anyone who loves rocks, bones, animals, and any other nature related thing. I thought the taxidermy animal collection was pretty great. Very well done, all the animals were in nice, dynamic poses.
7. Archives of the United States of America
No pictures allowed inside, but here is where you'll find the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.
8. Spy Museum
A fun change of pace from the normal history museum. It does have an entry fee, as apposed to the free Smithsonian museums, but its pretty fun. They have some artifacts from real spies throughout history, as well as some props from some James Bond films. There is even some hands-on activities for the kids.
9. Capitol Building & Library of Congress
You'll need to book a tour for the Capitol Building. You'll get a nice look inside and learn some of the history of the capitol. Afterwards, there is a tunnel that goes straight to the Library of Congress. There, you can walk around on your own, or take one of the tours. The Library of Congress was beautiful and I would recommend checking it out, even if you don't go to the Capitol Building.
10. Arlington National Cemetery
A short train ride away, here you can visit Arlington National Cemetery. Timed just right, you can see the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Also in the cemetery is the gravesite of John F. Kennedy. You can also visit Arlington House, Robert E. Lee's former house that was turned into a hospital during the Civil War. From there is a great view of the whole cemetery. On a clear day, you should be able to see the Pentagon from there, as well.
