As promised, here’s a list of stuff I always wanted to see or do in and around the Washington, DC metropolitan area that I’ve never gotten around to seeing or doing, for this or that reason. Aside from two trips home (Thanksgiving and Christmas), I figure I have about three months to knock this list out. If you’re interested in tagging along for a particular event or trip, hit me up. (I reserve the right to add other items in subsequent blog posts, pending rate of checking these items off this list.)

Paid activities

Day trip to Philadelphia. I went to Philly a few years ago for one of Emily‘s triathlons, but we didn’t do much sightseeing. We were only there for one night, and when her event was over the next day, she was understandably too tired to do much of anything. I’d like to see Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the Betsy Ross house, and any other related items of interest. I saw most of that stuff when I was thirteen, and traveling the Eastern Seaboard with my dad, but I think I would appreciate it more now. Roundtrip fares on Amtrak look to be about $200 per person at the “value” level, so it’s probably best to pile folks into my SUV and split the cost of gas. I’d be happy to drive. Independence Hall suggests making reservations, and there’s a $1.50 processing fee per ticket to reserve online. Tickets for the Betsy Ross House are $7 for adults ($5 for self-guided access). There is no fee for visiting/viewing the Liberty Bell.

A Candlelight Christmas Tour and Montpelier. This $25 in advance/$35 at the door event (Dec. 6-7 and 13-14 only) combines my two of my favorite things: Christmas, and the Virginia farmer who would become the architect of the United States Constitution, one James Madison.

National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center. This Mozart/Brahms performance (Dec. 5-7 only) is right up my alley. Tickets run $10-$85. If enough people revolt at the thought of classical music, I could be persuaded to see Shear Madness again. I’ve seen it almost 10 times in 20 years, but I still don’t think I’ve seen all the possible endings… Tickets run $48.

National Aquarium in Baltimore. This is pretty much the only reason I’ve ever wanted to visit the city of Baltimore. Admission is $34.95 per adult.

National Museum of Crime and Punishment. Located half a block from the Verizon Center, I’ve walked past this place a hundred times and always wondered what was in there. For ~$20, with a slate of options to choose from, I’d say it’s worth it to find out.

National Geographic Museum. Another place I’ve walked by in downtown DC dozens of times, this museum currently has an ongoing exhibit on exploration over the last 125 years.

Admission is $11 per adult.

Ford’s Theater/Ford’s Theater Museum/Petersen House. The tragic end to President Abraham Lincoln’s life gets retold in a few different ways at Ford’s Theater. Regrettably, the in-character guided detective tours I’ve heard so much about are not currently operational. Tickets run about $10 ($5 + $4 and change for online fees).

Appomattox Courthouse. Speaking of Civil War history, this 3-hours-each-way trip still makes you pay $3 per person when you get there. But I still want to see it.

Fort Washington Park fort tour. I’ve looked out across the Potomac River, on dozens of bike rides from Arlington/Alexandria out to Mount Vernon, and seen Fort Washington on the Maryland side. Admission is $3 per adult, and in addition to the fort tour, there’s a three-mile walking trail.

Manassas National Battlefield Park. I have lived just a few miles east of this site of two Civil War battles for almost two years, and have never been. Admission is $3 per adult.

Free (well, taxpayer-funded) activities

National Cryptologic Museum. Learn the secrets of the NSA, just northeast of DC off the BW-Parkway! Okay, not really, but this one should be really interesting and timely right now. As one would expect, the process for booking this free tour, with or without supplemental niche programming, is convoluted and opaque, and they want to know everything about you before you arrive.

African American Civil War Memorial. I’ve just never been here, and always wanted to go.

Frederick Douglass National Historic Site. Home of one of human liberty’s more recent heroes.

U.S. Naval Observatory. This one requires a reservation 2-4 weeks in advance, names and birthdays of everyone attending in advance, and a security screening with valid photo ID. Tours only take place on Monday evenings (excluding federal holidays).

National Firearms Museum at NRA Headquarters. I wouldn’t call myself a gun enthusiast, per se; in fact, I had never even owned a firearm until my grandfather passed away a couple years ago and bequeathed a 1955 Smith & Wesson .357 magnum to me that my grandmother had given him for Christmas that year. Still, I’m a fervent defender of the Second Amendment, and I remember being fascinated when I was a kid by a museum I visited in Rothenberg, Germany that featured armor and weapons spanning a few centuries, including the dawn of the firearms age. The NRA museum is open every day and all tours are self-guided.

Pentagon tour and 9/11 memorial. This is important for several reasons, up to and including the building’s very unique architecture. Tours of the building are free, but require reservations at least two weeks in advance.

National Arboretum. An Instagrammer’s paradise; it’s too bad I waited until winter to go look at pretty plants.

United States Botanic Garden. See above, but partially indoors.

Arlington House & Robert E. Lee Memorial. File this one, too, under “stuff I probably didn’t appreciate as much when I was younger.”

The top of the Capitol Rotunda. This obviously isn’t happening without an assist from a Hill staffer friend, so if you can make this happen, you can help me check an item off my DC bucket list.

The inside of the Speaker’s Office. See above.

Setting foot on the House and/or Senate floors. C’mon, you guys love me, right? …Right?