Great trip to D. C. for Planes, Baseball and Beer
May 12th, 2015, 11:25 AM
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Great trip to D. C. for Planes, Baseball and Beer
2 of us decided to meet in DC for the Arsenals of Democracy Flyover on Friday. We each booked Amtrak tickets arriving at Union Station approximately the same time. We hadn’t seen each other in a couple of years so it was going to be good to catch up. After a lot of back and forth, we opted for the Embassy Row Hotel – our first time staying in DC rather than on the outskirts.
I got on Amtrak much too early on Thursday morning and was ready for a relaxing ride. Unfortunately, this was not to happen. Between Newark and Trenton, I stood up to go to the rest room and gashed my left leg on something under my seat. It was bleeding badly so I grabbed a bunch of paper towels and someone got the conductor. He got me more paper towels and a bandage. By the time, we reached Trenton, the bleeding had stopped and I was fine. A station manager met us and wanted to see if I needed medical assistance. I showed him my leg and he agreed I was fine – not woozy or anything. He said that someone would check on me in Philly – someone turned out to be 2 Philly Cops and 2 EMTs. They looked at my leg and agreed I was fine and could stay on the train. However, the Philly station manager decided I needed to get off the train. After some back and forth with her, she decided to let me stay on since I was only going to DC. I realize they were being extra cautious and careful but it was just her attitude that really got to me. The Quiet Car definitely had some added excitement that morning. I got to Union Station and immediately headed to a restroom to attempt to wash the blood off of my legs, shorts and shoes. It looked like I had gone 10 rounds with a rose bush and lost.
By now, Mark had gotten there and we met up. He shook his head and said he didn’t want to know what happened when he saw the blood I couldn’t get out. We jumped on Metro to Dupont Circle and walked down Massachusetts Avenue the opposite way from our hotel – accidentally. This was my first time in this area. What a great neighborhood. We couldn’t have asked for a better hotel location. Once we got turned back around, we walked to our hotel and checked in. No issues at all. I’ll give my hotel review at the end.
Refreshed after a shower and a break, we called Uber (first time using it) and headed to the Museum of American History. Within 10 minutes, I realized why I never came to DC in May before. The hordes among hordes of school groups. It was atrocious how many were behaving in the museum. We could not enjoy the museum with their behavior around us. They should have been outside on the Mall, not in a museum. We did the carriage that brought Lincoln to Ford’s Theatre the night of his assassination. We went through a few other exhibits but decided we had had enough given the amount of people there.
We took a bus to ChurchKey DC for a few drinks and dinner. This bar has been on my list for many trips and we finally made it here. It is upstairs from Birch & Barley. What a beer list! We each had a few flights (4 oz samples) and an appetizer. Some of the beers we had were rare so it was great to finally have some of them. Others were just local so we had never heard of them. Doing the flights enabled us to try quite a few. Not a cheap meal but well worth it. While here, I got an email about a DC Craft Beer fest on Saturday night so we started debating it. After enough drinks, we headed back to our hotel and crashed.
I got on Amtrak much too early on Thursday morning and was ready for a relaxing ride. Unfortunately, this was not to happen. Between Newark and Trenton, I stood up to go to the rest room and gashed my left leg on something under my seat. It was bleeding badly so I grabbed a bunch of paper towels and someone got the conductor. He got me more paper towels and a bandage. By the time, we reached Trenton, the bleeding had stopped and I was fine. A station manager met us and wanted to see if I needed medical assistance. I showed him my leg and he agreed I was fine – not woozy or anything. He said that someone would check on me in Philly – someone turned out to be 2 Philly Cops and 2 EMTs. They looked at my leg and agreed I was fine and could stay on the train. However, the Philly station manager decided I needed to get off the train. After some back and forth with her, she decided to let me stay on since I was only going to DC. I realize they were being extra cautious and careful but it was just her attitude that really got to me. The Quiet Car definitely had some added excitement that morning. I got to Union Station and immediately headed to a restroom to attempt to wash the blood off of my legs, shorts and shoes. It looked like I had gone 10 rounds with a rose bush and lost.
By now, Mark had gotten there and we met up. He shook his head and said he didn’t want to know what happened when he saw the blood I couldn’t get out. We jumped on Metro to Dupont Circle and walked down Massachusetts Avenue the opposite way from our hotel – accidentally. This was my first time in this area. What a great neighborhood. We couldn’t have asked for a better hotel location. Once we got turned back around, we walked to our hotel and checked in. No issues at all. I’ll give my hotel review at the end.
Refreshed after a shower and a break, we called Uber (first time using it) and headed to the Museum of American History. Within 10 minutes, I realized why I never came to DC in May before. The hordes among hordes of school groups. It was atrocious how many were behaving in the museum. We could not enjoy the museum with their behavior around us. They should have been outside on the Mall, not in a museum. We did the carriage that brought Lincoln to Ford’s Theatre the night of his assassination. We went through a few other exhibits but decided we had had enough given the amount of people there.
We took a bus to ChurchKey DC for a few drinks and dinner. This bar has been on my list for many trips and we finally made it here. It is upstairs from Birch & Barley. What a beer list! We each had a few flights (4 oz samples) and an appetizer. Some of the beers we had were rare so it was great to finally have some of them. Others were just local so we had never heard of them. Doing the flights enabled us to try quite a few. Not a cheap meal but well worth it. While here, I got an email about a DC Craft Beer fest on Saturday night so we started debating it. After enough drinks, we headed back to our hotel and crashed.
May 12th, 2015, 11:27 AM
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I meant to add the website for ChurchKey http://www.churchkeydc.com/ and say how great their bartenders were for recommending different beers or pairings for the flights.
May 12th, 2015, 03:26 PM
#5
Great start, tchoiniere, opening with your bloody battle with the train seat.
My god didn't it hurt? You up to date on tetanus? Glad you got the OK by some EMT types.
Looking forward to your next installment.
My god didn't it hurt? You up to date on tetanus? Glad you got the OK by some EMT types.
Looking forward to your next installment.
May 13th, 2015, 06:34 AM
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My leg throbbed for a little while but was ok. Yes, I am up to date on my tetanus shots.
We got up early Friday morning and had breakfast at the hotel. They have a small coffee shop with pastries, etc available for purchase. We walked up Embassy Row to look at some of the embassies before using Uber to get close to the Washington Monument. This was a good call with the amount of traffic there to not use a regular taxi. It was around 9:45 when we got to the Mall. We walked up to the base of the Monument to grab seats looking straight at the Lincoln Memorial, figuring this would be a great location to watch the flyover from. We had awhile to wait but we spent it catching up. Seeing the WW2 Memorial always makes me think of my Grandparents. It is 10 years that my grandfather passed away from ALS and 5 years
for my grandmother so it was emotional seeing the WW2 Memorial. We could hear part of the ceremony that was ongoing at the WW2.
By noon, crowds had filled in around us and it was time for the flyover. What an amazing site that it was. They did it in order that the planes were used in the war. The trainers were first. They came in behind the Lincoln Memorial and flew around 1000 feet above the ground. From the B25’s to the B29 among many others, it was great to see this. My favorite were the P51 Mustangs as it is my favorite WW2 era plane. This was a once in a lifetime shot to see all of these planes flying at the same time. I am glad they one plane that had diverted away from the flyover landed safely at Reagan with just hydraulic issues. The flyover took around 45 minutes. When it ended, we walked around the Mall more really aimlessly talking about it just enjoying the good weather. We then were supposed to head to Ford’s Theatre for timed entry but opted against it and just hung out some more.
We then jumped on Metro to Nationals Park. We got there as the gates opened and headed to the Red Porch for a few beers. They have a really good beer selection here at typical ballpark prices but we always enjoy it. We then headed to our seats. We were in Section 416 which was above first base but a mile up (or so it seemed). We saw Bryce Harper continue his record week as he hit 2 HRs. Nationals hit 5 total in routing the Braves. Once again, I really enjoyed Nationals Park as it has become one of my most frequent and favorite ballparks to visit. Walking out I bought a new Nationals hat and we took Uber back to our hotel.
We got up early Friday morning and had breakfast at the hotel. They have a small coffee shop with pastries, etc available for purchase. We walked up Embassy Row to look at some of the embassies before using Uber to get close to the Washington Monument. This was a good call with the amount of traffic there to not use a regular taxi. It was around 9:45 when we got to the Mall. We walked up to the base of the Monument to grab seats looking straight at the Lincoln Memorial, figuring this would be a great location to watch the flyover from. We had awhile to wait but we spent it catching up. Seeing the WW2 Memorial always makes me think of my Grandparents. It is 10 years that my grandfather passed away from ALS and 5 years
for my grandmother so it was emotional seeing the WW2 Memorial. We could hear part of the ceremony that was ongoing at the WW2.
By noon, crowds had filled in around us and it was time for the flyover. What an amazing site that it was. They did it in order that the planes were used in the war. The trainers were first. They came in behind the Lincoln Memorial and flew around 1000 feet above the ground. From the B25’s to the B29 among many others, it was great to see this. My favorite were the P51 Mustangs as it is my favorite WW2 era plane. This was a once in a lifetime shot to see all of these planes flying at the same time. I am glad they one plane that had diverted away from the flyover landed safely at Reagan with just hydraulic issues. The flyover took around 45 minutes. When it ended, we walked around the Mall more really aimlessly talking about it just enjoying the good weather. We then were supposed to head to Ford’s Theatre for timed entry but opted against it and just hung out some more.
We then jumped on Metro to Nationals Park. We got there as the gates opened and headed to the Red Porch for a few beers. They have a really good beer selection here at typical ballpark prices but we always enjoy it. We then headed to our seats. We were in Section 416 which was above first base but a mile up (or so it seemed). We saw Bryce Harper continue his record week as he hit 2 HRs. Nationals hit 5 total in routing the Braves. Once again, I really enjoyed Nationals Park as it has become one of my most frequent and favorite ballparks to visit. Walking out I bought a new Nationals hat and we took Uber back to our hotel.
May 13th, 2015, 11:56 AM
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Cold, I am a Sox fan first so we usually try this with the Sox but I don't care who I see either. You doing it at Fenway?
Saturday morning we got up and got off to an early start yet again. We ended up cabbing it to Foggy Bottom to grab the Silver Line out to Wiehle-Reston Metro Station to transfer to the 983 Bus to Udvar-Hazy Air Museum. Overcast and dreary morning unfortunately. This was a long but easy ride to the museum – eliminating a transfer at Dulles airport that we had used in the past and significantly cheaper too. On the way out there, we decided to buy tickets to the Beer Fest that night so bought them on our cell phones. Some of the planes from Friday were supposed to be at the Museum outside but they had gotten grounded at Culpepper or Manassas (the two staging grounds used). This was disappointing but fitting at the same time given the weather difficulties they faced in WW2 with getting planes airborne. We still enjoyed the Museum as there are some amazing planes housed here. From the SR71 Blackbird to the Discovery Space Shuttle and to the Enola Gay, etc. We just walked around in amazement. There were a lot of WW2 Vets here this day and they were really enjoying it. They had a Glenn Miller Tribute Band playing so it was a lot of fun regardless of the grounded planes. We spent a good 4 hours walking around. It was the busiest I have ever seen it here. The line for the McDonalds wrapped around the restaurant a few times.
When we left, it was back onto the 983 bus and we actually helped a few other people that still thought you needed to transfer to the 5A bus so we saved them a lot of time and money as well. We took the Silver Line back to Foggy Bottom and walked around for a little while before heading to our hotel and freshening up. We Uber’ed it to the Walter Wash. Convention Center and the Beer Fest. We enjoyed this Beer Fest but given the $65 admission charge, it felt a little sparse in the number of breweries. This might have been a factor in it being the 2nd session so some breweries may have left. It was also in too big of a hall so it was spread out and felt like nobody was there. But we really enjoyed some of the ones we sampled. Lot of local breweries we had never heard of plus some we had. We spent about 2.5 hours here sampling. But we got through all of them and headed to the Hard Rock down the street. Tourist trap but we always enjoy it. After this, it was back to the hotel and to the hotel bar for a few more. The hotel actually had a really good beer selection for once so we had a few every night.
The next morning, it was breakfast at the hotel and to Union Station to head home. We said our goodbyes and headed in opposite directions. Mark is meeting me in DC again in August so it won’t be a long wait this time.
I’ll add my hotel review and some other thoughts later.
Saturday morning we got up and got off to an early start yet again. We ended up cabbing it to Foggy Bottom to grab the Silver Line out to Wiehle-Reston Metro Station to transfer to the 983 Bus to Udvar-Hazy Air Museum. Overcast and dreary morning unfortunately. This was a long but easy ride to the museum – eliminating a transfer at Dulles airport that we had used in the past and significantly cheaper too. On the way out there, we decided to buy tickets to the Beer Fest that night so bought them on our cell phones. Some of the planes from Friday were supposed to be at the Museum outside but they had gotten grounded at Culpepper or Manassas (the two staging grounds used). This was disappointing but fitting at the same time given the weather difficulties they faced in WW2 with getting planes airborne. We still enjoyed the Museum as there are some amazing planes housed here. From the SR71 Blackbird to the Discovery Space Shuttle and to the Enola Gay, etc. We just walked around in amazement. There were a lot of WW2 Vets here this day and they were really enjoying it. They had a Glenn Miller Tribute Band playing so it was a lot of fun regardless of the grounded planes. We spent a good 4 hours walking around. It was the busiest I have ever seen it here. The line for the McDonalds wrapped around the restaurant a few times.
When we left, it was back onto the 983 bus and we actually helped a few other people that still thought you needed to transfer to the 5A bus so we saved them a lot of time and money as well. We took the Silver Line back to Foggy Bottom and walked around for a little while before heading to our hotel and freshening up. We Uber’ed it to the Walter Wash. Convention Center and the Beer Fest. We enjoyed this Beer Fest but given the $65 admission charge, it felt a little sparse in the number of breweries. This might have been a factor in it being the 2nd session so some breweries may have left. It was also in too big of a hall so it was spread out and felt like nobody was there. But we really enjoyed some of the ones we sampled. Lot of local breweries we had never heard of plus some we had. We spent about 2.5 hours here sampling. But we got through all of them and headed to the Hard Rock down the street. Tourist trap but we always enjoy it. After this, it was back to the hotel and to the hotel bar for a few more. The hotel actually had a really good beer selection for once so we had a few every night.
The next morning, it was breakfast at the hotel and to Union Station to head home. We said our goodbyes and headed in opposite directions. Mark is meeting me in DC again in August so it won’t be a long wait this time.
I’ll add my hotel review and some other thoughts later.
May 13th, 2015, 12:08 PM
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Tchoiniere yes at Fenway. I stood outside the walls when I was about seven years old but have never been inside. One son is a huge Red Sox fan. I am secretly hoping the Red Sox don't have a great record this summer so that ticket prices are reasonable if we have to buy them on the resale market.
May 16th, 2015, 03:46 PM
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I need to be more of a tourist in my own town! Nice report.
How did you get on an email list for a beer fest - or rather, what mailing list was it, as I'd like to join - sounds like it must have lots of other local social activities?
How did you get on an email list for a beer fest - or rather, what mailing list was it, as I'd like to join - sounds like it must have lots of other local social activities?
May 18th, 2015, 04:24 PM
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Flygirl, I just got the email for the beer fest via the Untappd app I have on myphone where you can check in the beers you drink.
Embassy Row hotel was a great hotel to stay in. It was recently renovated and you can tell. Different decor than most hotels. The employees were cheerful. Only complaint I had was a mandatory $9.99 charge per night of wifi and phone. The hotel bar had a great selection of beers which felt much better than the typical hotel bar with limited selections. I would definitely stay here again.
I loved Dupont Circle. This was my first time in this area but it won't be my last. From the Embassies to the stores etc, it was such a fun neighborhood to spend time in.
Uber was very convenient and cheaper than cabs. We used it quite a bit. Drivers were great. Hit the surge price a few times but would wait a few minutes and get a lower rate. Only issue we had is our phone GPS kept showing the drivers we were on the opposite side of the street and that is where they would show up. Some of the times it was a block or two away. After talking with drivers, its better if you punch in a name of place rather than just hitting "go to pin" and letting the GPS locate you.
I cannot wait for August to come back. Hopefully we can get a similar deal for the hotel but otherwise we may fall back to the Americana as we have it booked at $70 per night which is tough to beat.
Embassy Row hotel was a great hotel to stay in. It was recently renovated and you can tell. Different decor than most hotels. The employees were cheerful. Only complaint I had was a mandatory $9.99 charge per night of wifi and phone. The hotel bar had a great selection of beers which felt much better than the typical hotel bar with limited selections. I would definitely stay here again.
I loved Dupont Circle. This was my first time in this area but it won't be my last. From the Embassies to the stores etc, it was such a fun neighborhood to spend time in.
Uber was very convenient and cheaper than cabs. We used it quite a bit. Drivers were great. Hit the surge price a few times but would wait a few minutes and get a lower rate. Only issue we had is our phone GPS kept showing the drivers we were on the opposite side of the street and that is where they would show up. Some of the times it was a block or two away. After talking with drivers, its better if you punch in a name of place rather than just hitting "go to pin" and letting the GPS locate you.
I cannot wait for August to come back. Hopefully we can get a similar deal for the hotel but otherwise we may fall back to the Americana as we have it booked at $70 per night which is tough to beat.
May 19th, 2015, 09:45 AM
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Only complaint I had was a mandatory $9.99 charge per night of wifi and phone.
Ugh - if it's "mandatory", why isn't it just included in the price of the room!!!!
My DS and DDIL live in Dupont Circle so that's where we stay most often now (we've stayed all over the city on past trips). Looking forward to our next trip, when we will see the Giants at the Nats!
Ugh - if it's "mandatory", why isn't it just included in the price of the room!!!!
My DS and DDIL live in Dupont Circle so that's where we stay most often now (we've stayed all over the city on past trips). Looking forward to our next trip, when we will see the Giants at the Nats!
May 20th, 2015, 10:57 AM
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Sounds like you had a lot of fun. I have to say that our Uber experience in DC was much different than yours. We used them twice during our stay last September. Both times the drivers did not know how to get where we wanted to go. This would be understandable if we were going to an obscure place but one was to the Captiol Visitors Center from the White House and the other was from U Street to the W Hotel next to the White House.
May 20th, 2015, 11:11 AM
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Sf, I agree with you. Just include the fee in the rates. But why charge a fee for phone usage? Just bill for any calls.
Garden diva, that was not an issue for us. Since their entire system is based on GPS, it shouldn't be an issue for anybody...
Garden diva, that was not an issue for us. Since their entire system is based on GPS, it shouldn't be an issue for anybody...
May 20th, 2015, 04:15 PM
#15
There is a separate but mandatory $9.99 nightly charge for wifi paired with a requirement to check a box on the website acknowledging the policy before you can complete a reservation? That would pi$$ me off. Charging for wifi is pure profit for the vast majority of hotels, especially one that has just completed a monster renovation. I agree that it should be either buried into the cost of the room or made a optional charge. Preferably the former.
If you don't get chosen for email feedback from the hotel, I'd be tempted to drop the CEO of Destination a polite letter raining all over that.
If you don't get chosen for email feedback from the hotel, I'd be tempted to drop the CEO of Destination a polite letter raining all over that.
May 21st, 2015, 05:26 AM
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NewBe, I really enjoyed it. One comment about it is that it is very dark in there at night. I used my cell phone for light. Not a big deal but be aware of it. They have an amazing beer list. I will be coming back in August and will head here again.
Obx, since I had booked it on a 3rd party site I didn't see anything about it until I read reviews on Trip Advisor. It felt like nickel and diming. I don't agree with charging for wi-fi at all.
Obx, since I had booked it on a 3rd party site I didn't see anything about it until I read reviews on Trip Advisor. It felt like nickel and diming. I don't agree with charging for wi-fi at all.
