I doubt it would be Dupont Circle. Maybe Freedom Plaza? Its surface includes a map of the heart of DC.

Drive in and visit the National Zoo on Connecticut. There is parking there. The parking is expensive but you can reserve it and the zoo is free. Then drive up to Hillwood which is just off Connecticut and has free parking but you have to pay for admission.

https://www.parkingpanda.com/nationa...lse&daily=true

http://www.hillwoodmuseum.org/

Have a fun day

In the original plan many of the streets radiated out from both the Capitol and the White House

Birdie is it a "good" zoo? I grew up with the San Diego Zoo and the Dallas zoo was such a let down. :-(

Ah, maybe that is what is meant, the streets intersected in the original plan by L'enfant. And the Capitol and/or WH would make sense.

Meant to say - thank you for all the replies - not sure the tour sounds great if it is not a smaller one... I will wait to hear back from the rep.

The National Zoo is not the San Diego Zoo by any means. (I haven't been to the Dallas Zoo, so I can't compare the National Zoo to it.) It's a nice zoo to visit if you've already seen the monuments and memorials and it's a pretty day for walking outside. I'm not sure I would recommend it if you're paying $16 to $22 in parking fees just for yourself because there are not a great number or variety of animals, e.g. there are no North American bears or bison.

< We did love seeing the small intersection where all the streets in DC stem from.>

Sorry not to be more clear before. If you do the Capitol Tour, the guide will show you this little circle which the founders of Washington DC plotted all the streets to originate from. It is downstairs, in the marble floor, sort of like a giant compass.

Okay, I checked Wikipedia and officially it's in the crypt of the Capitol. "A marble compass was set into the floor of the chamber to mark the point where the four quadrants of the District of Columbia meet."[5]

"A marble compass was set into the floor of the chamber to mark the point where the four quadrants of the District of Columbia meet"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_..._Capitol_crypt

Image:

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-zV3aIiW5_G...apitol-161.jpg

from:
http://expressthejess.blogspot.com/2...ur-part-2.html

Four quadrants - that makes sense.

Mount Vernon.

I don't think I read anyone addressing getting to McLean by 6pm. Traffic can be a bear getting out of the city in the afternoon rush, esp on a Friday. Please allow yourself enough time (both metro and driving) and also that 66W is HOV-2 from 4pm to 6:30pm (meaning at least 2 ppl in the car in this timeframe, in case you're unfamiliar with DC's acronyms).

Purple - hummm...yes, this is true. I need to be changed and black tie ready by 6:00 ish.... seems I will really have a short time in DC...

If it's a nice day think about driving to Mt Vernon as suggested above. You could easily spend several hours there. They have a restaurant where you could stop for lunch. I think you may find less traffic. If you decide to go into DC, and you need to be back in McLean 4-5ish you should leave downtown DC 3'ish and that should give you enough time to explore at least one if not two museums/ galleries.

Mt. Vernon also has a nice gift shop. Do some Christmas shopping.

Loved Mt. Vernon. So beautiful.

I've never been to mt Vernon going to look into it!

We went in March. It was very cold, no leaves on the trees, but I still loved it. Such a beautiful setting.

I found out last night that we are staying at the Ritz in McLean ... (usually it is the Marriott)
I've never been there...

maybe I will just go to the spa :-))

The Ritz Hotel in McLean is at the Tyson Galeria which is a very nice upscale mall. The area around it is extremely congested. If you decide to forego a day at the spa, factor in the traffic around the area.