An Alternate Universe
What I have learned while visiting Washington D.C. -
I have learned that more foreigners than Americans are interested in our nation’s capitol.
I have learned that the more expensive the hotel the more disappointing the stay. We are staying at the Hilton. Beautiful upon entry. We found ourselves thinking “we are indeed out of our element!” $13 a day internet usage charge, crappy food, very small beds and few amenities. We might have glass elevators and room service here but the average HoJo makes a more pleasant hotel experience.
We learned from Apdi that we are ‘very unusual Americans’ to homeschool our 6 children yet not be Mormon, Catholic, or Muslim. Apdi is from Somalia, and was our cabbie a number of times. He homeschools the two oldest of his 5 children. His boy came home saying “yo, yo” and Apdi was smart enough to say “no more public school for you!”. On that note, we have also learned that even though our traditions and cultures may be extremely different we do share the same desire to do what is best for our families.
We have learned that Tyson’s Galleria Mall is not a place for the redneck people we are – we actually had to get up and leave while eating dinner at The Cheesecake Factory because the neighboring group had a few too many loud, posh flamers discussing their private activities. We didn’t go into a single store at the Galleria aside from the restaurant. I was afraid some of our ‘Old Navy’ might rub off on some ‘Saks Fifth Avenue’ or ‘Neiman Marcus’. We met another couple here for the same reason we were and they made the same mistake in going to the Galleria mall, too. She picked up a dress in one store saying how nice it was and her husband, after looking at the price tag, said “You are touching a $1600 dress. Get your hand off of it.”
We have learned that you must sit down or hold on quickly when boarding a subway train or city bus. And most importantly, we have learned the the 427 bus is NOT the same as the 425 bus.
This has been a surprisingly educational experience.
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My daughter had to go to a dance convention at the Hyatt. The hotel was gorgeous, but you are so right about the more expensive the worse. Food was terrible, expensive & barely any. Terrible!
One of my favorite places to visit even though we don’t get there very often because we live on the west coast.
One of our sons was stationed in DC at the Marine Barracks, 8th & I. If you are ever in town when they have their Friday night Parades, it’s an event not to miss!
We have been to DC to visit several times, staying more than a couple of weeks one of the times. There is SO much to see and the longer you are there, the more you realize you haven’t seen yet. Except for the mall where all the memorials (I LOVE the new WWII memorial), monuments, White House, and Capital are, you can pretty much get where you want to go by the metro system.
Have a great time!!
Hi, I’m trying to get in touch with you about the diaper contest. I haven’t received any email from you, and I think it’s because my spam settings are completely screwed up. Could you try replying to this address: superpaige (at) juno (dot) com? My friend was all excited about the diapers, and then I didn’t know what to tell her.
Oh, I have to apologize for my earlier comment, I received the diapers in the mail just now! Thank you Thank you, Thank you! My friend is going to be so thrilled to put them on her little boy. Thank you so very much, and I’m sorry for my impatience.
Bless you, and thank you again.
How exciting! My in-laws live near DC. I like going to the Galleria and seeing all of the diplomats’ cars pull up with their special license plates. My husband actually gets all of his work clothes at Tyson’s during the post-Thanksgiving sales, when stuff is marked down, down, down- he is much slimmer than the average American man and can never find pants in the less pricy places that aren’t made for guys who need room in the seat & thighs, alas.
Where else did you visit while in DC? I love that place!
We saw a lot of stuff – the Smithsonian museums, the White House (just the outside from like forever away), the Lincoln, the Capitol, the Washington Monument, the subway, etc…
We took a tour bus that cost $25 per person. That was a waste of money! The bus was constantly late in picking us up and we didn’t get to see much of what we wanted to see.
Still, we had fun and we know what we want to see on our move when we drive through.