Trip Report Oct 19-21

We just got back from a great trip to DC and I wanted to post our report: First of all, our accomodations were through a relative who arranges corporate living and so we stayed free in a 2 bedroom condo in the Pentagon Row area. The area is great! Many shops, a nearby Starbucks for morning coffee, a nearby pharmacy , grocery and best of all the Metro is right there at the Pentagon City Mall. Our first evening we went to Flat Top Grill in the Arlington, Va (Ballston) area. GREAT food, especially if you let them choose the mix of sauces (it%26#39;s stir-fry done right!) Great service, and it was about $20 per person with one glass of wine.

The next morning (Friday) we met for coffee and muffin, and then 6 of us climbed on the Metro and went to Union Station in DC. Beautiful and right by the Capital for a good photo op. We had already purchased our trolley tickets online and this is where we got on the Trolley for a good overview of all the monuments and the city. We had a SENSATIONAL tourguide ';Mr. Orr'; who regaled us with some pretty good stories and info. The trolley is a great way to see the city, especially as we had a guy with heart disease touring with us and it saved him walking alot. We decided what to see ';upclose'; based on the trolley tour. We all decided it was well worth the money.

We then got upclose and personal with the mall monuments:the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Wall, and the wonderfully done Korean War Monument, the WW II monument, etc. We had lunch at a street cart, not great but convenient. We discovered that though they may SAY on the cart that they have something, they may not.

The next day (Saturday) we headed out to the museums after the usual Starbucks breakfast. There were many many more people (tourists) out. We got to the National Mall via the Metro and walked to the National Art Museum. It was my 3rd time to DC but I had never been to this one.What a fastastic collection exists there! I love art and could not get anyone interested in seeing this museum before. I announced in the planning stages that I was going here or I wasn%26#39;t going, and all agreed to appease me. Everyone enjoyed it! I saw only the west building! Great works are held there!

We had acquired our Holocaust tickets ahead of time and I am glad we did. There was quite a line to get them! We again ate at a street vendor for convenience%26#39; sake and not great! It filled us though. We then headed into the Holocaust Museum. I have done it before and my opinion is that it is the best museum in the city. Some in our party had not been, my husband one of them. So we went. If one read, saw, or heard everything in there, it would take all day. And it really is such a serious subject, I find I can only take it for about 2 hours at the most. Not for the small kids, although I did see some in there. It is pretty amazing.

We went from there to the Natural History Museum which was absolutely crawling with people! And the hissing cockroaches! I saw but refused to touch. Again so much to see!

We had dinner reservations at Clyde%26#39;s in the Gallery Place area right near the Verizon Center. The food was good, and the service was terrible! They really have a problem there. We did end up finding the manager as we could not get anyone to come and pick up our check to run the credit card. The server never came back to offer a refill on drinks, or coffee. The manager ran the credit card to process our payment of the check but did not respond to the basic problem of poor service. They have a good product going there and a great location, but wow it needs some work! I will be emailing corporate to let them know too. I had read somewhere on this forum that they had service issues, but someone else had already made this reservation! It turns out to be true!

I cannot say enough about the Metro in DC. Easy, clean, safe, efficient, it is totally wonderful! What a great system! I learned too when going up or down the escalator and if one is wqlking on it, stay to the left, and if you just stand and let the escalator do the work, stay to the right!

Everyone, and I mean EVERYONE was more than willing to help with directions to anything!

Also, a great way to see the city lit up is to walk to the roof of wherever you are staying! Usually it is where the outdoor pool is and/or deck. Beautiful!

We had a great time! We were told that 200 million people visit DC every year! I believe it! Well worth time and effort!

Genoagirl

Trip Report Oct 19-21

Great trip report! Sorry to hear that you had bad service at that particular Clyde%26#39;s. IMO, there%26#39;s better service at other locations. Did you post your restaurant reviews under the ';dining'; section? If not, may I suggest that you do so? They will be helpful to others.

Trip Report Oct 19-21

I will post on the dining forum, thanks! Genoagirl

Great trip report . Genoagirl! Glad to know tourists appreciate it when we stop to give them directions! :-)

Visitors are probably going to want to know what kind of Metro tickets did you buy, and would you recommend they did the same!

We talked about what Metro tickets to buy.........we were with two people who live there and they recommended we just put a $5 in the machine and add to that ticket if/when needed. So that is what we did. It worked out fine. Those ticket machines are right there in the Metro and extremely easy to use. I ended up with $2 left on my ticket and I handed it over to someone! What a cheap and easy way to get around. Yes, I would recommend this method when staying for just a few days. I probably would get the pass for a longer stay (a week for instance).