I must admit that I have had fun extolling some of the sites of Washington, D.C. and fielding questions about transportation. I have also learned a lot today about the changes that are forever occuring in this town. Thanks to the excellent work Garrett Traylor has done with the PTG Convention web site, just about everything you want to know is on the web. Here is some updated information. 1) Try not to fly into BWI. Use Washington National airport if you can. Getting to Crystal City from BWI is a pain, and will probably cost $45 and take 2 hours, especially if you come on a holiday like the 4th of July. Check out the BWI website at: www.bwiairport.com and click on ground transportation. The MARC trains (Camden Line) are commuter trains that only run between 4-6 ish. You have to take a shuttle bus from the airport terminal to the MARC station. The MARC trains do not run on weekends or holidays. However, if you do manage to catch one of them, it takes less than an hour to get to D.C. and costs about $6.00. From Union Station (on the Metro Red Line, take the subway to Metro Center and transfer to the Blue Line. However, the Amtrack trains along the Penn Line stop about every hour at the Amtrack station at BWI. It is a 15 minute ride to New Carrollton ($18) or 25 minutes to Union Station ($19). You should get reservations from Amtrack at 1-800-USA-RAIL if you want a seat! They also run on holidays and weekends. If you know to meet someone arriving at BWI, share a cab with them to get to Crystal City. If several of you are arriving together, arrange for private limo service and share the cost. It will be the cheapest and less hassle of all! 2) In response to Jim, I am in total agreement with him that the memorials and monuments along the Mall are beautiful at night. Take a Kleenex if you plan to walk past the Wall at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. President Clinton has been known to go jogging early in the morning along the Mall, so who knows what you might see between 4 and 6 AM. Sometimes a fillibuster goes on in the Senate so someone can obstruct legislation before Congress recesses in August, and you can watch your tax payer dollars at work watching your elected representative read the phone book! To add just one more thing, if you are into IMAX movies, they run all day at the Air and Space Museum. Check out the Smithsonian at: www.si.edu and the movies at www.nasm.si.edu/nasm/IMAX/IMAXtimes.html The more you know before you get here, and the more planning you can do in advance, will make the time you're here more enjoyable! Carol Beigel, RPT
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