ERosetti

Will be staying in Georgetown. We want to see the Smithsoneon & the Holocost Museum as priorities. Any chances on getting into the White House and how to get tickets? Also, need some good, reasonably priced restaurants in the D.C/Georgetown area. Thank you.

ilisa

To get tickets to the White House you can do one of two things. 1) contact your member of Congress at least 3 months in advance. I assume you haven't done that. 2) go to the White House Visitors Center. This is located at 15th and E Sts. NW (at the intersection of Pennsylvania Avenue). Tickets are distributed there beginning at 7:30am for the day of the tour. You can obtain up to 4 tickets. The tickets will be for a specific time. Public tours of the White House are given Tuesday through Saturday, 10:00am to 12 noon. You say you want to visit the Smithsonian. Be advised that the Smithsonian is comprised of 14 sites in the DC area, including the National Zoo. It will be impossible to see it all, assuming you would want to. Thus, you must prioritize and determine what is most important to you. As a docent at the National Air and Space Museum, I must say I am partial to that place. However, they are all equally wonderful. Smithsonian Museums are open from 10:00am to 5:30pm. Where in Georgetown are you staying? Take note that the metro does not run into that area of town. The Holocaust Museum is a wonderful and powerful place. It is open from 10am to 5:30pm. You must obtain free, same day, timed tickets (4 per person) to see the permanent exhibition. These tickets can be obtained at the 14th street entrance. Get there early because they can be quickly distributed, especially on a busy weekend like Easter. Unlike the Smithsonian, no photography is allowed. You are visiting the city at a great time. It was just forecasted that now the cherry blossoms should be in full bloom from around April 4 to April 6. Beautiful.

ERosetti

We will be staying at the Georgetown Inn, can you recommend any restaurants in the area. We plan on driving to most exhibits, is parking a problem? It is the Air & Space Museum that we are interested in.

ilisa

Georgetown Inn is lovely. However, whatever you do, do not drive. Driving in the city can be a nightmare, especially around the Mall. Parking is very difficult to find; garages are very expensive. It will be especially difficult during Easter weekend. Check to see if the hotel has any sort of shuttle to the metro. Honestly, I can't recommend any Georgetown restaurants. It has been so long since I've actually spent any time in Georgetown; my husband and I usually try to stay away from it. A couple excellent restaurants to try are not in Georgetown - 1) Otello's (Connecticut Ave., NW) for Italian and 2)Pesce (21st and P, NW near Dupont Circle) for seafood. Regarding the Air and Space museum, naturally as a docent I recommend a guided tour. If you choose not to take a tour, there are some things you should know to make your visit go smoothly. There used to be self-guided audio tours available. However, the company that provided them has removed them from the museum. No word when they will return. The museum is currently replacing some of the windows. Thus, many galleries in the west end of the museum are closed (Air Transportation, WWII, Sea-Air Operations). The museum is divided in half. The west end concentrates on aviation, while the east end concentrates on space and astronomy. If you wish to see an IMAX film, purchase your tickets first thing. Films tend to sell out on busy weekends. The doors to the museum open up at 9:45am. If you go in then, you can wander around the Milestones of Flight gallery. The museum then officially opens at 10:00. And in case you were wondering, there is no coat or baggage check. Let me know if you have any other questions.

cheryl

Our favorite restaurant in DC is in Georgetown. Filomena's on Wisconsin Ave. (I think). Wonderful italian food with fantastic desserts and extraordinary service. It's not outrageously expensive, but I don't know what you consider "reasonable". It's not cheap, but we always find it worth it. Try the homemade ravioli in lobster sauce with shrimp and scallops.

I also suggest going to the Smithsonian Museum of American History. We can spend hours there. When we were there over the summer they had a fascinating exhibit of items left at the Vietnam Memorial. Very moving.

cheryl

Our favorite restaurant in DC is in Georgetown. Filomena's on Wisconsin Ave. (I think). Wonderful italian food with fantastic desserts and extraordinary service. It's not outrageously expensive, but I don't know what you consider "reasonable". It's not cheap, but we always find it worth it. Try the homemade ravioli in lobster sauce with shrimp and scallops.

I also suggest going to the Smithsonian Museum of American History. We can spend hours there. When we were there over the summer they had a fascinating exhibit of items left at the Vietnam Memorial. Very moving.

Neal Sanders

Georgetown is full of reasonably priced restaurants. You'll find many of them on M St., which is a sort of Restaurant Row for Georgetown.

Ever had Ethopian food? Willing to give it a try? Zed's Ethopian is at 33rd and M. Vietnamese? Miss Saigon and Saigon Inn are both excellent, inexpensive restaurants. For Indian, Aditi. All are on M St. For go bu inexpensive Thai food, try Pad Thai, on Wisconsin just above M.

As to driving, Ilisa speaks an eternal truth about not trying to drive in DC. One of Geogtown's shortcomings is that it is the one area of the city where Metro never went (local opposition). As a result, the nearest Metro station is about a mile away, though most hotels have shuttle buses.