We happened to leave a little late in the morning and ended up at the Metro station being there at the wrong time. The trains were taking FOREVER so we decided since there were only a few stops past our station until the train turned around and came back that we would hop on the train that came heading that way and just ride it back in the right direction.We soon found out what was taking the trains so long.
When we got on the train and made it to the last stop we noticed there was another train in the stations packed like sardines waiting for us to arrive so that it could leave. Once that train left we sat in the station for AT LEAST 30 minutes before heading back down the line. You see, this particular day there happened to be a baseball game between the Washington Nationals and the Yankees. The game started in about 2 hours and people were heading down to the ball park. The hold up was waiting for everyone to fill the train. The Metro people were smart in waiting and helping everyone make it to their destination (at least those going to the game). We did get some comic relief when a guy got onto our train car, which was packed full of Yankees fans, wearing a Red Sox shirt. The comments were quite funny.
So riding the train the wrong way just to get there faster didn't so much work out the way we planned but really it did work out for us. See, if we had waited at our original station for the trains coming from the end of the line we would not have been able to get on. Those trains were so packed in that when we stopped at the following 8 stations or so, the driver had to tell people on the platforms NOT to get on! The 6 of us would have never been able to squeeze in there.
So we FINALLY made it to the National Aquarium, at least in the vicinity. We ended up walking all the way around the building before we got to it. We also had to stop for lunch since we spent so much time on the Metro.
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| Eating our hot dog lunch from the food carts on the street. |
The aquarium itself is not that bad. When you first walk in you have to go through a metal detector, as with every building in D.C. Then you have to walk down a flight of stairs into the basement of the building. Then pay the entrance fee which is $9 for adults and $5 for kids. So it cost us $40 to see a few tanks in a basement. That is how I feel about the aquarium. It was too much for not much to look at. I guess it's the idea of being able to say "I went there". As we were walking in, I overheard a lady walking out complaining about the very same thing and comparing it to the Georgia Aquarium (which is AWESOME, btw).
We made up for the rotten morning by stopping by the Museum of American History. It was on the next block so it was only logical that we pop in to see a few of our favorite things, Andy's of course being the trains.
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| Ellie checking out the new Girl Scout exibit. |
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| E was quite excited to see this new addition to the museum. |
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| Everyone's favorite steam train. |
After leaving the museum with whiny, complaining kids, we heard a familiar sound. We followed that sound and found my favorite street performer, EVER! We stopped for a snack and listened for a while. This guy is awesome!
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