Today we are celebrating a year of podcasting. And we take our first 52 shows and craft them into a great set of itineraries.

We start with suggestions for things to do if you have a long layover at the Washington Area Airports, or the train station. (0:48)

We Play Simple Ways by former Charlottesville musicianSharif, who comes to us courtesy of The podsafe music network. (6:06)

We talk about ideas for visiting for just an evening or a day.(10:44)

We play The Washington Post March, written by DC native John Philip Sousa, and performed by one of the many service bands from the area, The US Army Band.(15:50)

We suggest a variety of ideas for a two or three day weekend in Washington. (18:26)

We play Everytime I Run by Centerville, VA band GUM!, which we played on show #1. (27:15)

We suggest a more in-depth and relaxed set of itineraries for trips in the five day to weeklong (or longer) visit to DC. We include a few ideas for day and even weekend trips out of the area, which are worth renting a car for. (30:30)

We play Hosanna Filio David, by The Little River United Church of Christ Sanctuary Choir, which Mark and Julie actually sing in!. (33:23)

We finish up with a discussion of specialty tours, and special times of year to visit, and we talk about touring Washington with kids. (35:12)

Millennium Stage does have a performance EVERY evening.

Email us and let us know what you think of our show! We want to know what you think, and what you'd like us to cover!

• feedback@washingtontravelcast.net
• Julie@washingtontravelcast.net
• Mark@washingtontravelcast.net

Our Opening Theme Music is Garden Walk by Kim Evans, and our logo design is by Kathleen Hamm at Hamm Multimedia.

Our Photo Album has all the best photos of our first year!

And, we've done a slideshow of the pictures, available in Smaller (8.9 megabites) and Really Huge (213 mb) versions.

Today we visit Mark's favorite museum, the National Museum of Natural History. We recommend you use the Smithsonian Station, Mall exit, to visit the museum.

Julie starts off by talking about the history and architecture of the building. (2:38)

We meet inside, and talk about the elephant in the room, then visit the Kenneth E. Behring Family Hall of Mammals, including visits to South American and Australian exhibits. (6:17)

We play Dinosaurs by Ben Manuel which comes to us via Garageband.com (17:22)

We continue on to an exhibit on the Sikh people, originally from the Punjab in India. (22:55)

We stop near the Bug Corner, which provides access to real live insects while the O. Orkin Insect Zoo undergoes construction. You can still see tarantula feedings in the Bug Corner. (26:20)

We visit the Fossils and Dinosaurs. (27:54)

We play some selections from the song Ode to the Wooly Mammoth by the Dragon Ritual Drummers. This song comes to us from the Podsafe Music Network (32:30)

We continue on past giant ground sloths and the Wooly Mammoth into the ice age exhibit. (34:21)

We explore the African Diaspora in the Voices of Africa exhibit. (37:51)

We head up to the second floor and visit the Origins of Ancient Culture Exhibit, then the gems and minerals. (40:36)

We finish up our visit with a visit to the ground floor, past the gift shops, to where the Easter Island Statue, and several totem poles can be found. (50:30)

Our Theme Music is Garden Walk by Kim Evans.

Incidental music during the walk is from find me by H.

Photo Album for our visit to the National Museum of Natural History..

Today we discover an exotic, international neighborhood only steps from the Mall, at Chinatown. You can use the Chinatown metro station to get there, but our walking tour starts at the Judiciary Square metro station.

We start off at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and the National Building Museum. We walk on into the Chinatown area, appreciating some of the architecture along the way. (2:29)

We Play You Are My Everything by Lyndsey Highlander, from Richmond, Virginia, who comes to us courtesy of Garageband.com. (9:27)

Julie begins to talk about the history of immigration in the Chinatown area, and how the Chinese immigrants displaced the earlier German immigrants. Then we visit St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, which was built by the German immigrants. (12:41)

At the Corner of 6th and H we talk about the Wah Luck House, and Mary Surrat's Boarding House. Here we're in the heart of DC's Chinatown, and there are dozens of wonderful restaurants within a couple blocks of this point. (17:19)

We visit Chinatown's most notable feature the Chinatown Gateway Arch, and Julie talks about the history of Chinatown over the last thirty or so years. Mark reads the inscription at the bottom of the arch. (20:01)

We visit the location of the Goethe Institut, in a building that was built by DRI in the 90s. (25:24)

We play Chinatown, by maestross, which comes to us courtesy of The Podsafe Music Network. (27:24)

We visit the Greater New Hope Baptist Church, which was originally a Synagogue, and the 19th century Calvary Baptist Church, designed by Adolph Cluss, who designed quite a number of buildings in Washington DC in the mid to late 19th Century. (31:05)

We finish up at 9th and G, across from the National Museum of American Art/National Portrait Gallery, near the west-most entrance of the Gallery Place/Chinatown Metro Station. (36:08)

Email us and let us know what you think of our show! We want to know what you think, and what you'd like us to cover!

• feedback@washingtontravelcast.net
• Julie@washingtontravelcast.net
• Mark@washingtontravelcast.net

Our Opening Theme Music is Garden Walk by Kim Evans, and our logo design is by Kathleen Hamm at Hamm Multimedia.

Our Chinatown Photo Album is up!

On a cold winter afternoon, we stay inside and look forward to an early spring (promised by both the American and Canadian groundhogs.) We're spending this week reviewing the many events that occur in Washington and vicinity during the spring season. We're reporting on events roughly from the Cherry Blossom Festival (late March) to the Smithsonian Folklife Festival (late June/early July)

We start off with a look at the highlights of the Cherry Blossom Festival. (1:48)

We Play calling from Japan by comfortable, from Japan, which comes to us from The Podsafe Music Network. (9:30)

We move on to look at the other classic events of Washington. (15:06)
Some of the websites for the stuff we talk about:

• The Smithsonian Kite Festival, March 31
• The St. Patrick's Day Parade
• Shakespeare's Birthday at the Folger Shakepeare Library
• Filmfest DC

We talk about Gardens and House tours. (21:02)
Some of the websites:

• Mount Vernon Garden Party
• Maryland House and Garden Pilgrimage
• Historic Garden Week in Virginia
• Georgetown House Tour
• National Cathedral Flower Mart
• The National Arboretum
• Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens
• The Gardens at Dumbarton Oaks
• and Hillwood

We play Irish Jigs, by Murder the Stout, which also comes to us from The Podsafe Music Network. (27:15)

We continue by exploring the many festivals that come to DC in the spring. (29:15)
Some we listed include:

• The Gunston Hall Kite Festival
• African American Family Celebration
• The Preakness, in Baltimore
• Mount Vernon's Spring Wine Festival
• Wine in the Woods, Columbia, Maryland
• Fiesta Asia
• Delaplane Strawberry Festival
• Vintage Virginia
• Dupont-Kalorama Museum Walk
• Capital Pride Festival
• The Smithsonian Folklife Festival

We review the opening of Washington's outdoor music venues: (34:29)

• Wolf Trap
• The Nissan Pavilion
• Merriwether Post Pavilion
• Shakespeare in Washington Festival

We finish up looking at events especially for Families and Kids: (36:10)

The Washington Nationals Baseball Team

Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus

Email us and let us know what you think of our show! We want to know what you think, and what you'd like us to cover!

• feedback@washingtontravelcast.net
• Julie@washingtontravelcast.net
• Mark@washingtontravelcast.net

Our Opening Theme Music is Garden Walk by Kim Evans, and our logo design is by Kathleen Hamm at Hamm Multimedia. No Photo Album this week.