Does anyone want to go to Washington DC ? [Flexible Date & Time]

Hi.

How's everyone doing?

Hopefully you all had a fun summer.

While I was oot for most of July & August, a few group members asked me about doing stuff / trips together.

Well, my plan for a camping trip in Santa Barbara in early October won't be happening anymore due to a campsite closure. :(

And my other scheduled camping trip (mid October in SoCal) might also not happen anymore.

Even though I might not camp again for this year, I might go to the east coast in late October to:

visit a friend & extended family in Toronto, Canada
visit a friend in Pennsylvania
maybe volunteer at a children's bereavement camp in New Jersey and Virginia
stop by Washington DC for a few days.

I haven't visited DC in several years, and would love to return and explore the memorials, monuments, museums, etc.

....................

"As an American, it makes me sad to see that nothing is made in the USA anymore."

"I just bought a new TV, and it says 'Built-in Antenna.'"

"I don't even know where that is."

;)

Ok, joking aside...despite all the depressing news around the world and in this country...and despite the disappointment from politicians and government, many of us still love this country, and I personally want to return to DC and see some historic stuff & also volunteer.

Many people might be saving $ for holiday travel (Thanksgiving or Christmas), or inflation might be hurting some people financially, or COVID might still be a concern...so totally understandable if nobody else is interested / available.

My trepidation of Covid definitely stopped me from flying during the past two years...so I get it if others are hesitant / reluctant about traveling.

Anyhow...my expectations are very low, so it's plausible that zero people/nobody else will be interested and/or available for this.

Which is fine...I'm perfectly okay with exploring the city alone.

Nevertheless, I'll post this just in case.

If anybody is interested, please understand this is not a typical group trip where we all have to stay together and hang out.

I probably will only be in DC from Tues afternoon (Nov 1) until Fri morning (Nov 4), and will then likely go to Richmond, Virginia to help at a children's bereavement camp, which finishes on Sunday (Nov 6). I then might visit Shenandoah National Park on Monday (Nov 7).

The midterm election results on Tuesday (Nov 8) might be crazy. haha.

Anyhow...so regardless of me possibly being unavailable during the weekend, if other group members want to explore DC during the weekend (Fri - Sun) without me, that's perfectly fine with me.-

From what I read online, public transportation is convenient in DC and driving is not required (parking is supposedly hard to find and expensive)...so renting a car is not needed.

Also, travelers can fly into three airports:

DCA - Ronald Reagan Washington
IAD - Washington Dulles
BWI - Baltimore

Each airport should have access to a train station that goes to Union Station.

You are welcome to reserve your own hotel/motel. If anyone wants to share lodging with another group member, feel free to lmk...and I'll let you know if any other group member is serious about going.

I plan on staying at an Airbnb.

There are plenty of websites with advice about visiting DC...such as

https://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowForum-g28970-i40-Washington_DC_District_of_Columbia.html

https://www.reddit.com/r/washingtondc

https://www.visitwashington.com

https://travel.usnews.com/Washington_DC/Things_To_Do

https://washington.org

Some things I plan on seeing/doing are

Arlington National Cemetery
Holocaust Memorial Museum
Korean War Veterans Memorial
Lincoln Memorial
National Mall
National Museum of African American History and Culture
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
volunteering at a food distribution, food bank, or homeless outreach
Zoo

and

maybe Jefferson Memorial
maybe other Smithsonian museums
maybe White House & Capitol

To reiterate, this trip would be best if at least two people are friendly and compatible, and are open to going together without me.

....................

I'm more of a pseudo travel buddy.

Maybe there are some people who didn't get to travel during the summer, or who have extra PTO / vacation time and don't plan on traveling during Thanksgiving or Christmas, or someone who really loves tv shows like The West Wing, House of Cards, Veep, etc..., or someone who missed out on the January 6th insurrection, or someone who wants to protest the Supreme Court's decision related to abortion, etc...and if so, feel free to lmk and maybe another group member also wants to go, and you two can hang out together.

This trip idea is flexible.

You can choose what day to arrive & leave.

For flights, I recommend checking

www.google.com/flights
www.kayak.com
www.skyscanner.com
www.southwest.com

To reiterate, DCA, IAD, and BWI are all reasonable distance from DC...and all three have public transportation access.

Please remember to vote before Nov 8 ! :)

Cheers!