Washington DC "must see"?

Tim's decided that we're going to go to DC for the first full week he's here.  We're planning on taking the train down on Monday (the 20th) and then will have half of Monday, and all day Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday to wander around DC.  I *think* we're going to stay out in Vienna, since it's a bit cheaper and near a Metro station.

What are the "must see" locations?  I've been to DC loads of times, so I'm having problems picturing it from a foreigner's eyes.  I showed Tim the website for the Smithsonian, and he's interested in the Air & Space (my favourite!) and the American History Museums.  He's a big train and industry geek, so if there is anything pertaining to that I should take him to, please let me know!

Also, if there are any UK-Yers in the DC area that want to meet up for Lunch or Dinner, let me know!  We'll be in DC 20 July - 24 July. 

Tour of the White House, but those can be a bit tricky to get: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/tours_and_events/.

National Zoo: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Audiences/Visitors/?hpout=visit_link&xtr=

and

Arlington National Cemetery: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.org/.

These were my favorites when I visited from California in 2001 (before 9/11). Having never been to DC before I was kinda a foreigner of sorts.

Tour of the White House, but those can be a bit tricky to get: http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/tours_and_events/.

National Zoo: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Audiences/Visitors/?hpout=visit_link&xtr=

and

Arlington National Cemetery: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.org/.

These were my favorites when I visited from California in 2001 (before 9/11). Having never been to DC before I was kinda a foreigner of sorts.

Hmm. Joe Pitts has an office right in downtown Lancaster. Wonder if it's worth stopping by to find out about a White House Tour?   I've actually never been on one, either!

Goodness:

Prohibited items include, but are not limited to, the following: handbags, book bags, backpacks, purses, food and beverages of any kind, strollers, cameras, video recorders or any type of recording device, tobacco products, personal grooming items (make-up, hair brush or comb, lip or hand lotions, etc.), any pointed objects (pens, knitting needles, etc.), aerosol containers, guns, ammunition, fireworks, electric stun guns, mace, martial arts weapons/devices, or knives of any size. The U.S. Secret Service reserves the right to prohibit any other personal items. Umbrellas, wallets, cell phones and car keys are permitted.

So...where exactly is a woman who doesn't have pockets in her trousers (because half the trousers designed for women seem to skip on pockets!) supposed to put her wallet if handbags aren't allowed?

Hmm. Joe Pitts has an office right in downtown Lancaster. Wonder if it's worth stopping by to find out about a White House Tour?   I've actually never been on one, either!

I highly recommend it and it's worth a shot, you never know you just might be able to get one.

I took a tour of the Pentagon once, that was pretty cool.  And I think that everyone should go to the Lincoln memorial and walk down the mall to the Washington monument and the pool.  It's such a movie-scene thing to do, people get a kick out of it. 

I took a tour of the Pentagon once, that was pretty cool.  And I think that everyone should go to the Lincoln memorial and walk down the mall to the Washington monument and the pool.  It's such a movie-scene thing to do, people get a kick out of it. 

Haha totally off topic, but Tim's brother wants to visit Philly just to "run the rocky steps".

I hadn't thought about the Pentagon....I didn't even know you could tour it!

I hadn't thought about the Pentagon....I didn't even know you could tour it!

Well, you could in 1996.  I can't guarantee that you still can, but it's worth looking into. 

If you contact your Congressman's office, they should be able to schedule some tours for you (including the White House, but there used to be a limited number of tickets per Congressional office and they go very quickly!), and send you a packet of information.  I'm not sure if they still do Capitol tours for constituents (private ones rather than the big public tours) since they stopped them for a while after 9/11, but it might be worth enquiring about.  I think the Library of Congress is beautiful and worth a visit, and the monuments at night are really nice.

Edited to add: Found this on Joe Pitt's website: http://www.house.gov/pitts/servicesindexl-z.shtml#Tours  It's definitely worth phoning because we used to be able to book individual tours for loads of places that you'd otherwise have to queue for.  Not sure how much things have changed in seven years, though!

You can tour the Capitol without special tickets.  It's the White House, I believe, which is more complicated.

Been to DC several times with several different people.  My favorite is the Holocaust Museum, but I'm a bit bias & realise it's not everyone's thing.  However, it IS very impressive (from a museum point of view) and extremely worth spending some time there even if you're not initially very interested in the Holocaust.

Ummm...I usually wind up walking from Lincoln down to the Capitol and seeing whatever's along the way, so you've probably got your bases covered!

If y'all are interested in history, you can see the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence at the National Archives.  If I remember correctly, to see them and take a look at the other historical displays there would take about an hour or so.

http://www.archives.gov/nae/visit/

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Park

http://dc.about.com/cs/restaurant1/a/Canalsites.htm

Spy Museum (I've heard it's expensive but excellent)

http://www.spymuseum.org/

There's an industry museum in Baltimore:

http://www.thebmi.org/

Newseum:

http://www.newseum.org/

I used to go to DC every year and spend all my time in the Smithsonian. Don't know if it's still there, but my favorite was the exhibit in the Smithsonian Castle itself. They had the entire centennial exhibition of 1876, which showed the state of the art (well, all the arts) in the US at the time. Every state had a glass case showing the best it had to offer (my home state of Tennessee had a coonskin and some tree rings. Yay us!).

Tell him: stationary steam engines!

Also, say hello to Smithson on the way in. They dug the poor bastard up, shipped him to the States and walled him up in the Castle. He never saw the place in life.

If y'all are interested in history, you can see the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence at the National Archives.

you can also see the magna carta here, as well!  my fiance looked at me and said "what are you guys doing with THIS?" when he saw it!

i second what everyone else has already suggested. i thought the national zoo was fantastic, and i normally hate zoos. 

you can also see the magna carta here, as well!  my fiance looked at me and said "what are you guys doing with THIS?" when he saw it!

I thought that too!    Turns out they made a lot of copies, and more copies every time they amended it.

There's no way two booklovers can avoid the Library of Congress!

Thanks for the suggestions. I don't think we'll be headed to Baltimore, since we're a) taking teh train to DC and b) Baltimore's been having some serious gang issues recently and I'd rather not risk it. 

Lincoln Castle has the Magna Carta on display and I was pretty much in awe when I saw it.  I think I'm going to skip on the constitution and declaration of independence though. I live close to Philly and we're planning a trip out to Old City, so we'll see plenty of Revolutionary stuff then.