Besides
the monuments and museums, what kind of entertainment (theatres,
nightlife,
etc.) is available in Washington
DC?
DC has
one of the strongest and most active theater scenes on the east coast. DC
is not NY or
London, but what is??? I did a simple search and
found not less than 70 performing arts events that
are currently
happening within the DC city limits.
Washington DC has an amazing array
of "hip" night spots. We have multiple neighborhoods with
loads of exciting night life, including Georgetown, Dupont Circle,
Adams Morgan, Barracks Row,
Downtown (MCI Center), Woodley Park,
Clarendon, Bethesda, etc,
Not to mention, we have teams in every
major sports league. I have been to a lot of cities in this
country and very, very few can compete with the likes of DC in terms
of quality and quantity of
restaurants, night life, theater, and
entertainment. To get more info about these topics, you can go
to www.washingtonpost.com and do a search.
What hotels do you recommend in
Washington DC?
This advice is completely
impartial; neither I nor anyone in my family works for Marriott. I always
urge
my guests to stay at the Marriott at Metro Center in
downtown Washington DC. (“Downtown” is the
area around the Mall.)
The address is 775 12 St NW, and Metro Center is where 3 of the subway’s 5
lines converge. However, you’ll pay for its convenient location
-- the rooms are about $300 a night.
Generally, hotels are less
expensive the farther away from downtown DC they
are.
What’s “The
Mall”?
The
Mall is a 2-mile strip of land in lower DC that runs east/west from the
Potomac River to Capitol
Hill, with a northern spur of land where
the White House sits. Other major tourists sites found here
are:
The Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Washington
Monument, the
Smithsonian Museum, the Air and Space Museum, and
the National Galleries of Art. You’ll find lots of
less-well-known sights here, including the newest addition: the
National Museum of the American
Indian. The Jefferson Memorial is
just south of The Mall across from the Tidal Basin. By the way,
everything is free; there is no admission charge because we’ve paid
for these sites via our taxes.
I’ve read that it’s hard to
tour the White House. Is that true?
Yes, tours of the White House
are limited for security reasons. The best way to arrange a tour is to
be a big donor to your local Congressperson and nag for a favor, or
be a big donor to the President’
s campaign. (You tend to get a
little cynical about politics when you live here.)
What is your favorite tourist
spot in Washington DC?
I love the Lincoln Memorial
because of its serenity, its powerful message, and the view down the Mall.
It’s a huge, three-sided structure with an enormous statue of
Lincoln in the middle, but the effect is
dignified rather than
extravagant. Lincoln’s eloquent words are etched on the walls, reminding
you
why historians always rank him in the top three of our
greatest Presidents. Finally, ever since Martin
Luther King, Jr
gave his “I Have A Dream” speech here, the view down the Mall from the
steps on this
Memorial has become a classic. Don’t miss
it.
Search for more
info:
For other Destinations, go to
www.askaresident.com