An Afternoon in Washington, D.C.

If you only had six hours, how much of Washington, D.C. could you really see? Let's find out!

First, bring a fantastic tour guide and start your day with strong coffee. It also helps to have great weather, running shoes, and patience...lots of patience. Catch a commuter train and rest up. You're going to need the energy later.

Most excellent tour guide Amelia and fellow D.C. traveler Alison

 Adam paid a quick visit to his parent company. 

Our first stop was the National Museum of the American Indian, just a short walk from the U.S. Capital. Since we arrived in D.C. around noon, we were delighted to lunch at the Mitsitam Cafe, which offers regional native cuisine from across the Americas.

The rumors of fry bread were true! And I'm very proud to report that the Great Plains food station was the most popular during our lunch hour. Everyone loves a bison burger.

Due to our short timeline, we couldn't stay long at many of the museums, but we did speed-read through a few of them. The fourth floor of the American Indian Museum was particularly interesting, as was the center dome architecture.

No snow, but plenty of Christmas trees. This one was decorated with ornaments from military families, I believe. The tree itself traveled all the way from California, for some odd reason. Maryland seemed to have plenty of its own trees.

Here's a travel tip: the Capital guards will not let you enter with a water bottle. An empty water bottle still counts. Two weeks later, I'm still trying to figure out what you could do with an empty Nalgene, but I'm sure someone somewhere tried something once.

 Note the three black SUVs. That can't be a good sign.

Poor Adam - always the odd man out!

Well, that takes care of the first two or three hours. Taking time to eat always slows you down.