I recently advised not to underestimate the potential of a two day adventure, and I’ve got another data point to add to the set. A day and a half in Washington DC and I’ve rediscovered the US capital as a wonderful place to stop, even if it’s just for a short while.
To start my trip, I faced a dilemma- what time to fly out? The earlier the flight, the more you can do at the destination, but catching a 5AM flight means boarding at 4 and heading to the airport at 3. Doing that gives a few extra hours at the destination but at the tradeoff of rest. For a fun trip, adrenaline can help you push through. For this one, though, I opted for a 9AM flight which got me to DC around noon.
In this situation, it’s very important to be ready to dive right into action to avoid a lost day. I had a plan in place to avoid that situation; I booked a hotel conveniently next to a stop on the Silver Line Metro which runs from Dulles Airport to downtown Washington DC. We dropped our bags off en route to adventure and didn’t lose much time.
As a quick aside, if you’re ever going to Washington DC and don’t need to stay immediately in the downtown area, do yourself a favor and consider the Clarion Collection in Arlington, VA. It offers ~1200 square foot suites for a price comparable or less than the average chain hotel. Don’t ask me how or why- all I know is that it makes for a wonderful addition to the trip and is only a five minute walk from the metro, or less than 10 minutes to any of the famous landmarks if you choose to take a vehicle.
After dropping off our bags, we headed straight for the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum. I had passed through the building briefly during my fifty state adventure but didn’t stay long. This time around, we explored, and boy was it worth it. The Smithsonian is perhaps the most famous museum in the world, so I shouldn’t be surprised at the quality of the exhibits, but in particular I was fascinated by seeing the Wright Brothers’ very first airplane as well as the command module from Apollo 11- the mission that took Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin to the moon.
We stayed at the museum until closing time, with plenty of exhibits still completely unexplored. It just means more to do next time, especially after some new exhibits currently under construction open. After finishing at the Smithsonian, we walked out to the National Mall and saw the capitol building and Washington Monument. We walked all the way to the Washington Monument to see it up close and also see the White House and Lincoln Memorial in the distance. One of the coolest things about DC is how many world-famous monuments you can see at a single moment- a panoramic photo from the Washington Monument would capture quite a few spectacles.
After exploring the landmarks, we headed to Georgetown (an area of DC) and tried a really interesting restaurant- Curry N Pie. It had some of the most intriguing fusion dishes I’ve seen, and we had to try the saag paneer pizza. The “medium” spice level I chose was enough to melt my face a little, but I still really enjoyed it- definitely something I’ve never seen before!
After dinner we walked across the street to Escape Game DC Georgetown. We were in a mixed group – two pairs and one group of three for a total of seven playing the Titanic room. People have mixed feelings and experiences playing with strangers, but we had a BLAST with this group. Everyone communicated extremely well throughout the entire game and kept different puzzles moving in parallel, and we even set the record for the room.
Day 2, we headed to the National Archives Museum first. I had been there once before (also on my fifty state trip) and remember having to wait hours in line to get into the rotunda and see the historical documents. It might be because of the day of week this time (Sunday), but we had much better luck- there were only 20-30 people in the rotunda and we could walk right up to all the exhibits and spend as much time with them as we wanted. It stood out to me how everyone back then had meticulous handwriting – Washington, Franklin, Jefferson, etc. Lines as straight as arrows, letters all consistent, identical, and beautiful, even in correspondences and ledgers. It actually makes me embarrassed for my own handwriting- even my cursive is ugly as sin.
After the Archives, we headed to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. At this museum, my favorite exhibits were the Moai head from Easter Island and the remarkable display of gems / minerals of every kind. It almost makes me sad that most of today’s jewelry uses the same twenty or so kinds of gem!
From the Smithsonian, we took another walk, this time doing an up close walk to and around the White House. Security is too heavy to get too close to it, but it’s still really neat seeing such a famous building where so much of modern history was forged.
Our visit to the White House wrapped up our adventure for the weekend- we walked two blocks to the nearest Silver Line station and headed back to the hotel. Roughly thirty six hours in DC and we got our money’s worth. Several world class museums, great food, and a whole bunch of iconic landmarks.
This trip tested and proved one thing- it’s possible to get a rich, full day of adventure at a destination even without catching a nauseatingly early flight. It may be different in winter when it gets dark earlier, but getting to the destination city by noon and starting activities by two gives plenty of time for a meaningful experience that’ll stick with you forever.
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