Historical 5 Day Trip to the Nations Capital

Description:

If you favor the offbeat and personal over cookie-cutter chains, try the Tabard. Named for the hostelry in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the Tabard is three Victorian town houses that were joined in 1914 and have operated as an inn ever since.

The heart of the ground floor is the dark-paneled lounge, with worn furniture, fireplace, the original beamed ceiling, and bookcases. Washingtonians come here for drinks, jazz on Sundays, or to linger before or after dining in the charming Tabard Inn restaurant.

From the lounge, the inn leads you up and down stairs, along dim corridors, and through nooks and crannies to guest rooms furnished with antiques and flea-market finds. Perhaps the most eccentric room is the spacious top-floor "penthouse," which has skylights, exposed brick walls, an ample living room, and the feel of a New York City loft. The inn is not easily accessible to guests with disabilities.

Facilities: Restaurant (regional American) w/lounge (free live jazz Sun evenings); free access to nearby YMCA (w/extensive facilities that include indoor pool, indoor track, and racquetball/basketball courts); laundry service; fax, hair dryer, iron, and safe available at front desk; free computer access in lobby.

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Take a rare opportunity to see the interiors of stately old Georgetown homes, which are opened to the public just once a year during a late April weekend. Admission includes afternoon tea with homemade sandwiches and cookies at the parish hall at St. John's Church.

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Arlington National Cemetery sits on the Virginia banks of the Potomac River and overlooks Washington DC and the monuments clustered around Lincoln Memorial. More than 300,000 people are buried on the rolling 200-acre grounds of Arlington Cemetery including veterans from all of America's military conflicts, American explorers, astronauts, literary figures, presidents, Supreme Court Justices, and prominent figures from Black and Hispanic history. Visit the eternal flame of President John F. Kenney's grave, see the Changing of the Guard ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns, or simply walk the grounds and explore the final resting place of so many of America's own. Enjoy quiet pristine views of the Potomac and DC from the front lawn of the Arlington House (also known as Custis-Lee Mansion). Paid parking is available, accessible from Memorial Drive at $1.75 - $2.00/hour. The Metro blue line stops at the Arlington National Cemetery station during visitor hours. Tourmobile also services Arlington Cemetery.

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Chef R. J. Cooper tied with Palena chef Frank Ruta for the James Beard Foundation's 2007 award as the best chef for the Mid-Atlantic region, and both the restaurant and its chefs frequently win prestigious culinary awards. You'll understand why when you dine here. Vidalia's cuisine marries tastes of various regions of the South, with an emphasis on New Orleans. Featured dishes might include a roasted young pig with braised savoy cabbage or rockfish filé with succotash and turnip greens. A signature entree is scrumptious sautéed shrimp on a mound of creamed grits and caramelized onions with tasso ham in a cilantro butter sauce. Corn bread and biscuits with apple butter are served at every meal. Vidalia is known for its lemon chess pie and pecan pie, but always check out alternatives, which might be an apple napoleon or caramel cake. Vidalia offers an extensive wine list; at least 30 are offered by the glass, in both 3-ounce and 6-ounce pours.

If you're hesitant to dine at a restaurant that's down a flight of steps from the street, your doubts will vanish as soon as you enter Vidalia's tiered dining room. There's a party going on down here. Arrive between 5 and 7pm weeknights and you'll get in on the extremely popular wine tastings in the cozy wine bar. The chef sends out little canapés, like miniature BLTs; and both the wine tastings and the hors d'oeuvres are complimentary!

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This art house has eight auditoriums for your viewing pleasure, seven of which feature stadium seating. For a more enjoyable experience, sit back and relax with an espresso and a freshly baked pastry from the gourmet refreshment stand. For film times, ticket prices and further information please see their website.

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DuPont circle is one of Washington's hubs of nightlife, shopping, and dining. The circle itself is filled with Washingtonians day and night, relaxing on the benches, snacking, or playing music or a game of chess. Around the circle, the neighborhood is filled with interesting museums, shops, restaurants and bars. DuPont, and more specifically 17th street off of DuPont, is considered the center of Washington DC's gay and lesbian community. The Brickskeller, home of the world largest beer list, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, is located in DuPont. DuPont is also home to a large number of embassies, and one can easily access Embassy Row by simply walking north-west on Massachusetts Avenue, which intersects the circle. DuPont is also home to some of the most important think-tanks in the country, including the Brookings Institution and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, and the Johns Hopkins University's Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS).

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As much a destination as a place to eat, Ben's Chili Bowl remains one of the few (non-governmental) things in DC that remains unchanged since the 1950s. The food is good – standard diner breakfast items in the mornings plus home-made chili, chili-cheese fries, burgers, coleslaw, veggie burgers, shakes and half-smokes (the fantastic DC and Baltimore local food that lives somewhere between sausage and hotdog). The place oozes history. Ben's opened on U Street in 1958 and fed luminaries such as Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis and Martin Luther King Jr. Ten years later riots raged through DC after the assassination of King, closing much of the city. U Street was particularly hard hit. Like a beacon on rocky shores, Ben's was able to stay open past curfew and feed the community leaders, firefighters and police who worked to save the neighborhood. Since that time Ben's Chili Bowl has served a community gathering place as the city contracted and then grew again. Ben's Chili Bowl is still Ben's after fifty years. The stools, long counter, and bright booths are all original, and so is the experience. Parking during the weekdays is not too bad (two hour limit for non-neighborhood residents), but weekends and evenings are difficult. Ben's is directly across the street from the U Street/African American Civil War Memorial/Cardozo station (Green/Yellow lines). Exit via 13th street.

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Located on the National Mall a few blocks from the Capitol Building, the National Air and Space Museum appeals to all ages. See the Wright 1903 Flyer, the Apollo 11 command module Columbia, and a lunar rock sample which visitors can touch. Children delight in the many hands-on demonstrations while IMAX Theater presentations and flight simulators engage the whole family. Fascinated with space? Explore the universe at the Albert Einstein Planetarium! Whether you visit for one hour or five, the large solarium-style food court makes this a convenient mid-day museum stop. Free admission. There is no museum parking, but public lots are within a few blocks (rates vary). Metro stations nearby: L'Enfant Plaza (blue/orange and yellow/green lines) and Smithosonian (blue/orange lines).

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Twenty-five million people from 100 different countries have visited this museum since it opened in 1993, and the museum continues to be a top draw. In the busiest months, April through July, if you arrive without a reserved ticket specifying an admission time, you'll have to wait in line to get one of the 2,000 day-of-sale tickets the museum makes available each day.

Before you visit the museum, you might want to access its website, www.ushmm.org, and download copies of the Visitors Guide and the Permanent Exhibition Guide. These are also available at the museum, of course.

As you enter the museum, you may find the noise and bustle of so many visitors disconcerting, or at odds with the experience you expect is coming. But things settle down as you start the tour. When you enter, you will be issued an identity card of an actual victim of the Holocaust; at several points in the tour, you can find out the location and status of the person on your card -- by 1945, 66% of those whose lives are documented on these cards were dead.

From its collection of more than 12,435 artifacts, the museum has organized some 900 items and 70 video monitors to reveal the Jewish experience in three parts: Nazi Assault, Final Solution, and Last Chapter. The tour begins on the fourth floor, where exhibits portray the events of 1933 to 1939, the years of the Nazi rise to power. On the third floor (documenting 1940-44), exhibits illustrate the narrowing choices of people caught up in the Nazi machine. You board a Polish freight car of the type used to transport Jews from the Warsaw ghetto to Treblinka and hear recordings of survivors telling what life in the camps was like.

The second floor recounts a more heartening story: It depicts how non-Jews throughout Europe, by exercising individual action and responsibility, saved Jews at great personal risk. Denmark -- led by a king who swore that if any of his subjects wore a yellow star, so would he -- managed to hide and save 90% of its Jews. Exhibits follow on the liberation of the camps, life in Displaced Persons camps, emigration to Israel and America, and the Nuremberg trials. At the end of the permanent exhibition is a most compelling and heartbreaking hour-long film called Testimony, in which Holocaust survivors tell their stories. The tour concludes in the hexagonal Hall of Remembrance, where you can meditate and light a candle for the victims. The museum notes that most people take 2 to 3 hours on their first visit; many people take longer.

In addition to its permanent and temporary exhibitions, the museum has a Resource Center for educators, which provides materials and services to Holocaust educators and students; an interactive computer learning center; and a registry of Holocaust survivors, a library, and archives, which researchers may use to retrieve historical documents, photographs, oral histories, films, and videos.

The museum recommends not bringing children 11 and under; for older children, it's advisable to prepare them for what they'll see. You can see some parts of the museum without tickets, including two special areas on the first floor and concourse: Daniel's Story: Remember the Children and the Wall of Remembrance (Children's Tile Wall), which commemorates the 1.5 million children killed in the Holocaust, and the Wexner Learning Center. There's a cafeteria and museum shop on the premises.

Holocaust Museum Touring Tips -- Because so many people want to visit the museum (it has hosted as many as 10,000 visitors in a single day), tickets specifying a visit time (in 15-min. intervals) are required. Reserve as many as 40 tickets in advance via Tickets.com (tel. 800/400-9373; www.tickets.com) for a small fee. If you order well in advance, you can have tickets mailed to you at home. You can also get as many as 20 same-day tickets (if available) at the museum beginning at 10am daily (lines form earlier, usually around 8am).

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This gallery is a wonderland for kids and adults alike - it has everything from dinosaur skeltons to diamonds and insect zoos.  Kids are especially big fans of the Discovery Room, which encourages their participation in the form of touching and smelling various exhibits.  The museum also boasts an IMAX theater, so be sure to check the schedule and see what's playing.

Our Local Expert Says:

Many DC locals think this is the best of the National Art Museums.

Description:

Famous and distinguished Americans are honored here in portraits, photographs and other visual media. A wide variety of politicians, artists, scientists and social activists are represented. This gallery is a remarkable testimony to the diverse figures the United States has produced, from Grace Kelly and Boris Karloff to George Washington, Mickey Mantle and Gertrude Stein. Photographs, prints, drawings and sculptures supplement the paintings. Of particular interest is the Hall of Presidents, which features a portrait or sculpture of each chief executive.

Admission is free.

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The name is a mix of French and Russian, while the food is exclusively from the Francais side of the Mediterranean. From the zinc bar offering classic wines to the filling and delicious meals, the place is a resounding success. Chef Yannis Felix puts together the likes of French Onion Soup, Homemade Country Pâté, Mussels in Garlic Butter, and Steak Tartare with remarkable finesse. Don't forget to ask for the dessert of the day before you leave.

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Local 16 is a restaurant that makes you feel at home. As one enters the restaurant, you are greeted with a casual atmosphere, unpolished floors, hanging lamps and bordello-red walls. The restaurant has a bar on the second floor which serves drinks and martinis that are worth a try. French bread is served in plenty and lamb couscous for the main course is a crowd puller. There is a lot of seafood on offer and for the non-meat eaters there is always an assortment of salad entrées and vegetarian dishes. Moving on to desserts, the restaurant does perform above average, but the nine flavors of gelato cannot be missed.

Description:

If you favor the offbeat and personal over cookie-cutter chains, try the Tabard. Named for the hostelry in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the Tabard is three Victorian town houses that were joined in 1914 and have operated as an inn ever since.

The heart of the ground floor is the dark-paneled lounge, with worn furniture, fireplace, the original beamed ceiling, and bookcases. Washingtonians come here for drinks, jazz on Sundays, or to linger before or after dining in the charming Tabard Inn restaurant.

From the lounge, the inn leads you up and down stairs, along dim corridors, and through nooks and crannies to guest rooms furnished with antiques and flea-market finds. Perhaps the most eccentric room is the spacious top-floor "penthouse," which has skylights, exposed brick walls, an ample living room, and the feel of a New York City loft. The inn is not easily accessible to guests with disabilities.

Facilities: Restaurant (regional American) w/lounge (free live jazz Sun evenings); free access to nearby YMCA (w/extensive facilities that include indoor pool, indoor track, and racquetball/basketball courts); laundry service; fax, hair dryer, iron, and safe available at front desk; free computer access in lobby.

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A stunning tribute to the 16th president of the United States, this memorial sits at the western end of the reflecting pool and the national mall. This famous memorial is featured on both the penny and the back of the five dollar bill. The Lincoln Memorial is also the historic site of the famous March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, where Martin Luther King, Jr., delivered his "I have a dream" speech. A true must visit for any trip to Washington, DC. Inside the temple-like structure you will find a 19-foot tall statue of Lincoln seated, with a number of memorable speeches inscribed in the walls that surround him.

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When this memorial was dedicated on May 29, 2004, 150,000 people attended: President Bush; members of Congress; Marine Corps General (retired) P. X. Kelley, who chaired the American Battle Monuments Commission, the group that spearheaded construction of the memorial; actor Tom Hanks and now-retired news anchor Tom Brokaw, both of whom had been active in eliciting support for the memorial; and last, but most important, thousands of World War II veterans and their families. These legions of veterans, some dressed in uniform, many wearing a cap identifying the name of the veteran's division, turned out with pride, happy to receive the nation's gratitude, 60 years in the making, expressed profoundly in this memorial.

Designed by Friedrich St. Florian and funded mostly by private donations, the memorial fits nicely into the landscape between the Washington Monument grounds to the east and the Lincoln Memorial and its reflecting pool to the west. St. Florian purposely situated the 7 1/2-acre memorial so as not to obstruct this long view down the Mall. Fifty-six 17-foot-high granite pillars representing each state and territory stand to either side of a central plaza and the Rainbow Pool. Likewise, 24 bas-relief panels divide down the middle so that 12 line each side of the walkway leading from the entrance at 17th Street. The panels to the left, as you walk toward the center of the memorial, illustrate seminal scenes from the war years as they relate to the Pacific theater: Pearl Harbor, amphibious landing, jungle warfare, a field burial, and so on; the panels to the right are sculptured scenes of war moments related to the Atlantic theater: Rosie the Riveter, Normandy Beach landing, the Battle of the Bulge, the Russians meeting the Americans at the Elbe River. Architect and sculptor Raymond Kaskey sculpted these panels based on archival photographs.

Large open pavilions stake out the north and south axes of the memorial, and semicircular fountains create waterfalls on either side. Inscriptions at the base of each pavilion fountain mark key battles. Beyond the center Rainbow Pool is a wall of 4,000 gold stars, one star for every 100 soldiers who died in World War II. People often leave photos and mementos around the memorial, which the National Park Service gather up daily for an archive. If you are lucky, you will have the chance to talk to World War II veterans here to tour the memorial. For compelling, firsthand accounts of World War II experiences, combine your tour here with an online visit to the Library of Congress's Veterans History Project, at www.loc.gov/vets.

From the 17th Street entrance walk south around the perimeter of the memorial to reach a ranger station, where there are brochures as well as registry kiosks for looking up names of veterans. Better information and faster service is available online at www.wwiimemorial.com.

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Designed by John Russell Pope, this Roman-style monument to Thomas Jefferson, the nation's third president and author of the Declaration of Independence, is elegant and simple. Jefferson's 19-foot statue stands within, surrounded by some of his most inspirational writings. This is a perfect after-dinner destination. At night, the view of the Washington Monument across the tidal basin is one of the most attractive in Washington, especially when the cherry blossoms are in bloom. Admission is free.

Description:

One of the most powerful and moving sights in the District of Columbia is the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, located near the National Mall and the Lincoln Memorial. The main portion of the memorial, dedicated in 1982, was designed by architect Maya Ying Lin and contains 58,256 names of soldiers who either died or were classified as missing in action as a result of the conflict in Vietnam. The memorial consists of two long black granite walls that are sunk into the ground, inscribed with the names of the fallen. Visitors can walk along a path, viewing both the names on the wall and their own reflection simultaneously. In addition, a smaller bronze statue named The Three Soldiers stands at the end of the wall, looking back on their comrades. This addition was a compromise due to the negative reaction to the original design, and was dedicated in 1984. The final addition came in 1993 in the form of the Vietnam Women's Memorial, dedicated to the women of the United States who served in the Vietnam War.

Description:

This privately funded memorial, founded in 1995, honors those who served in Korea, a 3-year conflict (1950-53) that produced almost as many casualties as Vietnam. It consists of a circular "Pool of Remembrance" in a grove of trees and a triangular "Field of Service," highlighted by lifelike statues of 19 infantrymen, who appear to be trudging across fields. A 164-foot-long black-granite wall depicts the array of combat and support troops that served in Korea (nurses, chaplains, airmen, gunners, mechanics, cooks, and others); a raised granite curb lists the 22 nations that contributed to the UN's effort there; and a commemorative area honors KIAs, MIAs, and POWs. Plan to spend 15 minutes for viewing.

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Many visits to Washington DC center around the expansive National Mall & Memorial Parks. Public park space was one of the cornerstones of the original plan for the District of Columbia and today the National Mall helps fulfill that vision. At 1,000 square acres, and roughly 2.4 miles long, the Mall & Memorials provides open space for relaxation, reflection, celebration, and national expressions of First Amendment rights. Annual festivals and events held on the Mall: National Cherry Blossom Festival, National Black Family Reunion and Smithsonian Folklife Festival. The National Park Service offers walking and bike tours a few days a week and Military Band Concerts are held during the summer. The national museums line the eastern side of the Mall and the monuments occupy the west end (Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, Ward War II Memorial, Korean War and Vietnam Memorial to name a few). Parking spaces are sparse and driving around the west end of the Mall is extremely confusing (it's easy to end up in Virginia and not know how to return). Various Metro stations service the Mall. Tourmobile Sightseeing provides a convenient option and it's authorized by the National Park Service. Tickets and tours vary ($7.50 - $20) but you can get on and off the busses at will. The Mall & Monuments are free and open 24 hours. Dramatic lighting makes nighttime monument viewing breathtaking (less crowds too!).

Our Local Expert Says:

This is one of the best monuments to view at night.

Description:

Located between the Lincoln and the Jefferson Memorials, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial (FDR) is unlike any other memorial in DC. Commemorative both the life and the times of FDR, the memorial includes four areas, each designed to remind visitors of the key events during each of FDR's terms. Unlike the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials that are confined by buildings, this memorial spreads out over a large, uncovered area. The memorial makes generous use of water and unique lighting techniques to bring to life to each of the outdoor rooms. The original memorial included a statute of FDR in a wheelchair partially covered by a cloak. More recently, a group of disability advocates commissioned an additional statue of FDR, clearly in a wheelchair. This statue now stands at the entrance to the memorial.

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The highest tribunal in the nation, the Supreme Court is charged with the power of "judicial review": deciding whether actions of Congress, the president, the states, and lower courts, in other words, of all branches of government and government officials, are in accordance with the Constitution, and with applying the Constitution's enduring principles to novel situations and a changing country. Arguably the most powerful people in the nation, the Court's chief justice and eight associate justices hear only about 75 to 100 of the most vital cases of the 8,000 to 9,000 petitions for writ certiorari submitted to the Court each year. The Court's rulings are final, reversible only by an Act of Congress.

Hard to believe, but the Supreme Court -- in existence since 1789 -- did not have its own building until 1935. The justices met in New York, Philadelphia, and assorted nooks of the Capitol until they finally got their own place. Architect Cass Gilbert designed the stately Corinthian marble palace that houses the Court today. Best known for his skyscrapers, like New York's 761-foot-high Woolworth Building, Gilbert was an interesting choice for the Supreme Court commission in a city where Congress restricts building height to 160 feet.

You'll have plenty of time to admire the exterior of this magnificent structure if you're in town when the Court is in session and decide to try seeing a case being argued because -- yup, you guessed it -- you have to wait in line (sometimes for hours) on the front plaza of the building. But do try! The experience is totally worth the wait. People queue in every city for tickets to concerts and sports events. But only in Washington does a wait in line grant one the privilege of watching and listening to the country's nine foremost legal experts nimbly and intensely dissect the merits of both sides of an argument, whose decisions can affect profoundly both the person and the nation. The standing-in-line itself brings with it the same sort of thrill that builds in collective anticipation of a great performance.

Here's what you need to know: Starting the first Monday in October and continuing through late April, the Court "sits" for 2 weeks out of every month to hear two to four arguments each day, Monday through Wednesday, from 10am to noon and from 1 to 2 or 3pm. You can find out the specific dates and names of arguments in advance by calling the Supreme Court (tel. 202/479-3211) or by going to the website, www.supremecourtus.gov, where the argument calendar and the "Merits Briefs" (case descriptions) are posted.

Plan on arriving at the Supreme Court at least 90 minutes in advance of a scheduled argument during the fall and winter, and as early as 3 hours ahead in March and April, when schools are often on spring break and students lengthen the line. (Dress warmly; the stone plaza is exposed and can be witheringly cold.) Controversial cases also attract crowds; if you're not sure whether a particular case has created a stir, call the Court information line to reach someone who can tell you. The Court allots only about 150 first-come, first-served seats to the general public, but that number fluctuates from case to case, depending on the number of seats that have been reserved by the lawyers arguing the case and by the press. The Court police officers direct you into one line initially; when the doors finally open, you form a second line if you want to attend only 3 to 5 minutes of the argument.

The justices may release opinions throughout the term, on every third Monday during the Supreme Court term and on argument days (if any opinions are ready). The opinions are delivered before the arguments begin. Mid-May to late June, you can attend brief sessions (about 15 min.) at 10am on Monday, when the justices release remaining orders and opinions for the term. Again, you must stand in line on the front plaza to enter the building.

Leave your cameras, recording devices, and notebooks at your hotel; they're not allowed in the courtroom. Note: But do bring quarters. Security procedures require you to leave all your belongings, including outerwear, purses, books, sunglasses, and so on, in a lower-level checkroom where there are coin-operated lockers that accept only quarters.

Once inside, pay close attention to the many rituals. At 10am, the marshal announces the entrance of the justices, and all present rise and remain standing while the justices take their seats (in high-backed, cushioned swivel chairs, by the way) following the chant: "The Honorable, the Chief Justice and Associate Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States. Oyez! Oyez! Oyez! All persons having business before the Honorable, the Supreme Court of the United States, are admonished to draw near and give their attention, for the Court is now sitting. God save the United States and this Honorable Court!" Unseen by the gallery is the "conference handshake"; following a 19th-century tradition symbolizing a "harmony of aims if not views," each justice shakes hands with each of the other eight when they assemble to go to the bench. The Court has a record before it of prior proceedings and relevant briefs, so each side is allowed only a 30-minute argument.

When the Court is not in session, you can tour the building and attend a free lecture in the courtroom about Court procedure and the building's architecture. Lectures are given every hour on the half-hour from 9:30am to 3:30pm. After the talk, explore the Great Hall and go down a flight of steps to see the 24-minute film on the workings of the Court. On the same floor is an exhibit highlighting the "History of High Courts Around the World," on display indefinitely. Allow about an hour to tour. A gift shop and a public cafeteria are open to the public.

Description:

The national library of the United States, this library houses one of the largest and most important collections of books in the world. Among the 130 million items held at the library is one of only four perfect vellum copies of the Gutenberg Bible. For visitors the Library offers tours, in addition to a rotating collection of some of the most interesting exhibits in Washington. Be sure to check online http://www.loc.gov/loc/events/index.php for the latest information on the collections and exhibits at the library. Viewing the great halls and spaces of the library is an experience that should not be missed on any visit to Washington, DC.

Description:

If you're planning to spend some time on the Hill, Belga Cafe is a great spot to take a break and enjoy some artfully prepared Belgian fare.  Steak and frites are the most commonly ordered dish here - and you have several different steak sauces available from which to choose.  If you stop in for brunch, be prepared to leave with a VERY full stomach - the Belgian waffles are to die for.

Description:

The Improv features top performers on the national comedy club circuit as well as comic plays and one-person shows. Saturday Night Live performers David Spade, Chris Rock, and Adam Sandler have all played here, as have comedy bigs Ellen DeGeneres, Jerry Seinfeld, and Robin Williams. Shows are about 1 1/2 hours long and include three comics (an emcee, a feature act, and a headliner). Showtimes are 8pm Sunday, 8:30pm Tuesday through Thursday, 8 and 10:30pm on Friday and Saturday. The best way to snag a good seat is to have dinner here (make reservations), which allows you to enter the club as early as 7pm Tuesday through Thursday or after 6:30pm Friday through Sunday. The Friday and Saturday 10:30pm show serves drinks and appetizers only. Dinner entrees (nothing higher than $9.95) include sandwiches and Tex-Mex fare. You must be 18 to get in.

Description:

If you favor the offbeat and personal over cookie-cutter chains, try the Tabard. Named for the hostelry in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, the Tabard is three Victorian town houses that were joined in 1914 and have operated as an inn ever since.

The heart of the ground floor is the dark-paneled lounge, with worn furniture, fireplace, the original beamed ceiling, and bookcases. Washingtonians come here for drinks, jazz on Sundays, or to linger before or after dining in the charming Tabard Inn restaurant.

From the lounge, the inn leads you up and down stairs, along dim corridors, and through nooks and crannies to guest rooms furnished with antiques and flea-market finds. Perhaps the most eccentric room is the spacious top-floor "penthouse," which has skylights, exposed brick walls, an ample living room, and the feel of a New York City loft. The inn is not easily accessible to guests with disabilities.

Facilities: Restaurant (regional American) w/lounge (free live jazz Sun evenings); free access to nearby YMCA (w/extensive facilities that include indoor pool, indoor track, and racquetball/basketball courts); laundry service; fax, hair dryer, iron, and safe available at front desk; free computer access in lobby.

Description:

The Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Washington Dulles International Airport is the companion facility to the Museum on the National Mall. The building opened in December, 2003, and provides enough space for the Smithsonian to display the thousands of aviation and space artifacts that cannot be exhibited on the National Mall. The two sites together showcase the largest collection of aviation and space artifacts in the world. The Center was named in honor of its major donor, and features the large Boeing Aviation Hangar in which aircraft are displayed on three levels. Visitors can walk among aircraft and small artifacts in display cases located on the floor, and view aircraft hanging from the arched ceiling on elevated skywalks. Many engines, helicopters, ultra-lights, and experimental flying machines are on display in a museum setting for the first time. Among the aviation artifacts on display are the Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird, the fastest jet in the world; the Boeing Dash 80, the prototype of the 707; the Boeing B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay; and the deHavilland Chipmunk aerobatic airplane.

Description:

This rustic, down-home restaurant has been serving crab-hungry Washingtonians for decades. If you cannot make it to the beach or the Chesapeake Bay area, this is one of the best places to sample hard-shell crabs and experience the very specific ritual for getting at the rich crab meat. Expect to work a bit for your supper, and above all, dress casually. You will understand why when the mallets start flying.

Our Local Expert Says:

A popular jazz hangout in Georgetown- great for dancing, live music, and with a great selection of draft beers.

Description:

This small, friendly Georgetown jazz and blues club brings in some of the best names in the business while maintaining a down-to-earth atmosphere. The Saloun also specializes in beer, offering a vast variety of brews from many locales - both foreign and domestic. Cover charges are modest. Patrons must be 21 or older.

Our Local Expert Says:

Mount Vernon is a member of the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, so after touring the mansion, explore the working farm and meet living rare breeds representative of livestock Washington raised on the farm!

Description:

From beneath the 90-foot portico of Mount Vernon, visitors can gaze across an expanse of sloping lawn to the Potomac River, a mile wide, as its flows past George Washington's home. Costumed guides narrate the history of the elegant mansion and of the surrounding buildings, which have been preserved to reflect the days when the first president resided here. Visitors are invited to walk around the 500-acre estate, tour the buildings and participate in the 'Hand-on History' exhibits that recreate farming techniques and colonial games.