Washington DC Trip: Day 1
Dec. 23rd, 2011 11:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
days_unfoldingI spent the latter half of the week before last in the Washington DC area. The Maryland Library Association was having a conference last Friday with topics that really interested me, and I found a cheap airfare to the Baltimore airport, so I decided to fly out on Wednesday, spend Thursday sightseeing, go to the conference on Friday, spend Saturday sightseeing, and fly back on Sunday.
When I went through security at the airport, a TSA person asked me several questions about my trip, which has never happened before. Where was I from, where was I going, what was the name of the conference to which I was going, who was I representing (I just told them I was a student to make things simpler), and where did I go to school? I think part of the reason for it was because I gave them my passport as ID (I renewed my driver's license late), I was traveling alone, and it was a short trip.
The flight out was agony, but that was mostly my fault. I desperately needed to use the bathroom (note to self: don't buy large Diet Cokes before a flight!), but there was substantial turbulence (the pilot even told the flight attendants to sit down a couple of times), so the Fasten Seat Belt sign was on for the entire flight. The turbulence was scary enough that I decided not to risk a run to the bathroom anyway. So I stayed in my seat, wincing each time that the plane shook.
I planned to take a bus from the Baltimore airport to the Metro (subway) station in the town that I was going to stay in (Greenbelt, MD). The hotel would then pick me up at the Metro station. However, the signage in the airport left a lot to be desired, and I wound up wandering around a lot looking for the bus stop. After I found the bus stop, the bus was a half-hour late.
After I arrived at the Metro station, I called the hotel, and they told me where to wait to be picked up. The problem was that it was pouring rain. Between my coat and the umbrella, I kept mostly dry, but I was worried about the electronics in my purse and messenger bag. (My suitcase was drenched, but I didn't care). It was great to get out of the rain after they picked me up. The room at the hotel looked magnificent; it was similar to rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn that we stay in when we go to Chicago. The hotel also had a restaurant, so I went there for dinner. It was kind of pricey, but the food was good--crab cakes! Yum!
Like an idiot, I stayed up late reading, instead of catching up on my sleep.
When I went through security at the airport, a TSA person asked me several questions about my trip, which has never happened before. Where was I from, where was I going, what was the name of the conference to which I was going, who was I representing (I just told them I was a student to make things simpler), and where did I go to school? I think part of the reason for it was because I gave them my passport as ID (I renewed my driver's license late), I was traveling alone, and it was a short trip.
The flight out was agony, but that was mostly my fault. I desperately needed to use the bathroom (note to self: don't buy large Diet Cokes before a flight!), but there was substantial turbulence (the pilot even told the flight attendants to sit down a couple of times), so the Fasten Seat Belt sign was on for the entire flight. The turbulence was scary enough that I decided not to risk a run to the bathroom anyway. So I stayed in my seat, wincing each time that the plane shook.
I planned to take a bus from the Baltimore airport to the Metro (subway) station in the town that I was going to stay in (Greenbelt, MD). The hotel would then pick me up at the Metro station. However, the signage in the airport left a lot to be desired, and I wound up wandering around a lot looking for the bus stop. After I found the bus stop, the bus was a half-hour late.
After I arrived at the Metro station, I called the hotel, and they told me where to wait to be picked up. The problem was that it was pouring rain. Between my coat and the umbrella, I kept mostly dry, but I was worried about the electronics in my purse and messenger bag. (My suitcase was drenched, but I didn't care). It was great to get out of the rain after they picked me up. The room at the hotel looked magnificent; it was similar to rooms at the Hilton Garden Inn that we stay in when we go to Chicago. The hotel also had a restaurant, so I went there for dinner. It was kind of pricey, but the food was good--crab cakes! Yum!
Like an idiot, I stayed up late reading, instead of catching up on my sleep.
