Marco

Besides The white house, Washington Monument etc, what else shouldn't I miss on my trip to DC in May ?

Ilisa

Contact your congressperson's office and see if he or she has tickets available for the White House when you are in town. Each office receives a certain amount of tickets each month. If you can obtain those, you will save a ton of time standing on line for tickets. Additionally, your tour through the White House will be guided. Otherwise, general public tours are self-guided. However, you need to call about the tickets soon, because they go fast. You should also obtain passes from your congressperson for the House and Senate galleries (if they are in session at the time). Do not miss the Smithsonian. Each museum has so much to offer and they are all FREE! I am a docent at the Air and Space Museum and must say that it is the best museum. I don't know what your interests are, but Air and Space currently has the Star Wars exhibit. At this moment, the Washington Monument is closed to the public for some renovations. It will open again briefly in May or June and then close again. Try to avoid driving around the city. We have an excellent and convenient metro system. Have fun!

Shanan

the national zoo is also a must see. if you have time you can take a trip to baltimore. the inner harbor has a lot to see & do.

the metro is a great way to get around the city & suburbs.

have fun!

Neal Sanders

Marco, you don't say anything about preferences, or whether this is a first trip to the DC area from Kazahkstan or an annual sojourn from Philadelphia, but if I had four things to recommend to a first time visitor, these are what they would be. First, I would plan a couple of days to see the Smithsonian Institutions. Sure, everyone goes to Air & Space and looks at the Gemini capsule, but how about the Museum of American History, where there are usually a dozen "special" exhibits that focus on one area of American culture or people (a turn-of-the century general store, for example, explaining why it stocked what it stocked)? Last week at the National Portrait Gallery, I stumbled into an unpublicized exhibit of artwork used for covers of Time magazine... including the papier mache model of the Beatles that adorned a cover in September 1967. Incredibly, it's all free. My other three ideas all have to do with history in one way or another. I'd block out part of a day to see the Holocaust Memorial and Museum. This is not a fun place, nor is it intended to be. But it is a vivid memorial and one that educates about the consequences of intolerance and totalitarianism run amok. Then, I would plan to spend an afternoon and evening in Old Town Alexandria (accessible via Metro's Blue and Yellow lines). Old Town is a placed that, by all rights, ought not to exist... a fully populated 19th century port village that is very much alive and well at the end of the 20th century. To appreciate Old Town, walk east from the King Street Metro, stopping in the one-of-a-kind shops on and just off of King Street like Quimper Faience and the Bookband. When you get to Washington Street, you're at the northwest corner of what is called the Southeast Quadrant. Start turning right and left on streets at random until you reach the Potomac River, a mile away. You're seeing the model of "small town America" that architects try (usually in vain) to recreate in new developments. It is a delight to experience, and to know that real people live here. Cap it off with a dinner at one of the restaurants along King Street, then go back to the Metro. My fourth recommendation involves a car... take yourself out to the Manassas Battlefield 30 miles west of Washington along I-66. It is one of the two or three best-marked and explained Civil War battlefields in the country, and it gives you an awesome sense of history, as well as of the stupidity of which men are capable. That's four ideas... I'm sure wiser readers than myself can come up with lots of other suggestions.

tabitha glenn

I would also recommend doing a tour of the monuments (especially Jefferson and Lincoln) at night. They're very beautiful all lit up at night. Also, if you're going in the next month or so, a walk along the tidal basin is very beautiful with the cherry blossom trees in blossom. I would also go to the roof of the Hotel Washington and order a drink or something -- you can sit outside on the terrace and it has beautiful views of the city.

Polly

Sorry, the cherry blossoms are already gone, but the tidal basin is always beautiful. Don't overlook the National Cathedral. It has wondrous gothic architecture (really neat gargoyles) and fabulous overlooks of the city. The short guided tour (mininsule donation required, I think) is very informative and the Bishop's Garden on the grounds is nice in any season. There is a very nice gift shop inside the cathedral and another one (with more reasonably priced trinkets) adjacent to the garden.

Mary

What are some specific suggestions about places in Baltimore and around the Harbor?

Thank you

Debbie Wade

In Baltimore - major attractions are National Aquarium and Science Center (both in Inner Harbor area - along with shops and restuarants, the major tourist area) Also Camden Yards is a must if you like baseball. Check the Orioles schedule. One full day.

In DC - MUST SEE Smithsonian, pick your favorite subject (science, history, art) and pick a museum. Can spend days there!! Jefferson Monument & Lincoln Memorial best at dusk. Washington Monument OK. Line up early for the white house. Call ahead or line up VERY early for Holacaust Museum (timed tickets) which is emotionally exhausting but a MUST, as is Vietnam Veterans Memorial (worth a passby, unless you know someone on the wall)also see exhibit at Smithsonian of articles left at the wall.

Georgetown fun at night. Union Station food court or Old Post Office for quick cheap food.