Washington DC: Day 1 Wrap

I’m writing this on my IPhone. So please ignore any spelling mistakes.

Wow, Washington. I’ve only really been in town for about 6 hours, but I’ve managed to cram in a lot already.

I thought I would write a recap so that I remember my trip in the future. Sorry if it gets a bit rambly!

I’m staying at the Hostel International in downtown Washington. Overall it’s pretty standard. The hostel staff is pretty nice and there are a lot of activities on offer. The one downside so far has been the Internet. The hostel charges $0.05 a minute to use their computers and the Wifi sucks!

So what have I done so far? Well my first DC experience was going to Potbelly’s a local sandwich chain for lunch. The first thing I noticed when I walked in were how big and fatty the portions were. One sandwich had about 900 calories! I got a mini-sub and soup and overall it was about the same portions I’m used to. The staff were all really friendly and a few other customers stopped to chat, which I thought was really nice.

After lunch I headed straight to the Newseum. I was really looking forward to this part of my trip and it didn’t disappoint!

First of all, I had grabbed a discount card at the hostel, but then couldn’t find it when I went to pay. The museum worker charged me the lower rate anyway on the honour system! (I ended up finding it later and have it to the guy as I left. He seemed relieved to get it.)

The museum was awesome! I only saw three floors before it closed, but admission is good for two days so I’ll definitely be back tomorrow. Some of the artifacts in the museum include chunks of the Berlin Wall, landing gear found at the site of 9/11, the Unabomber’s cabin, original copies of some of the original newspapers in the US, and press passes from many significant events. I highly recommend it!

After leaving the Newseum I walked down to the Mall and saw the US Capitol building and the Washington Monument (under construction). I met a woman who’s camera was dead, so I took a photo of her family on her SD card in my camera. She was so happy!

Along my walk, I explored the Hirsham sculpture Garden. Some pretty nice pieces.

Then on my way home, I saw that Washington has two of my favorite food shops from London: Paul’s (a patisserie with the best Macaron’s) and Pret a Manger (the ultimate grab and go place). I stopped at both. Yum!

Tomorrow I’m heading on a tour of the Capitol.

Kudos to IVHQ

Just a quick update on my last post about my upcoming trip to Guatemala.

I mentioned that I had paid a registration fee of $250 + tax the company, (which by the way is the only money that stays with IVHQ to cover administrative costs.)

Well yesterday they told me that I had won their monthly draw and my registration fee was free. They refunded me the full amount last night!

I have never won anything like this before and it really made my day! Any company that is willing to waive their only compensation in the name of customer service definitely gets the Thrifty Abroad seal of approval!