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22 Absolutely FREE things to do in DC

22 FREE things to do in DC:

1. Bureau of Engraving and Printing: You'll see millions of dollars being printed during a tour of the Washington DC Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The tour features the various steps of currency production, beginning with large, blank sheets of paper, and ending with wallet-ready bills! The presses here print about $25 million every week day, although this amount can vary greatly. Other exhibits include ex-service currency, a collection of counterfeit currency, and a $100,000 bill.

2. Capitol Building: The majestic dome and Rotunda marking the heart of the U.S. Capitol Building not only symbolize the power of the legislative branch of the greatest democracy in the world, but also determine the coordinates of every street in Washington: every single address in the city is designated NE, NW, SE, or SW according to its relationship to the Rotunda. And since the Rotunda is not in the exact center of the city, the capitol's four quadrants are disparate in size and shape.

3. Freer Gallery of Art: The Freer Gallery opened in 1923 based on the initial collections of Charles Lang Freer, who began collecting American art and then shifted his focus to works from across Asia. The gallery was the first Smithsonian museum with a focus on fine arts, and was established based on Freer’s request that he maintain full curatorial control over the collection until his death. Since that time, the collections have grown to nearly triple the original collection. Highlighting the Asian collection are Chinese ceramics and paintings, Korean ceramics, and pottery, Japanese folding screens, and Indian and Persian manuscripts.

4. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden: The Smithsonian Institution's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden had its beginnings in 1966 when Latvian-born Joseph H. Hirshhorn donated his huge collection of contemporary and modern art. The museum officially opened 1974, and was then the recipient of additional works bequeathed by Hirshhorn in 1981 at his death.

5. Library of Congress: Established in 1800 through an act of Congress, the Library of Congress originally held 3,000 volumes, and today it is the largest library in the world with more than 138 million items, and increasing by 10,000 more daily. The library is a phenomenal research resource and a compendium of amazing historical documents including a Gutenberg Bible purchased in 1930 and one of three perfect copies on vellum in the world. The library also contains first drafts of the Declaration of Independence and Lincoln's Gettysburg Address.

6. Museum of Natural History: The Smithsonian Institution's Museum of Natural History opened in 1910 on the National Mall and was among the first Smithsonian buildings constructed exclusively to house the national collections and research facilities. Its exhibits range from dinosaur skeletons and an insect zoo, to rare gemstones including the famously cursed Hope Diamond.

7. National Air and Space Museum: The Smithsonian Institution's National Air and Space Museum is a goldmine for aviation enthusiasts, maintaining the largest collection of historic air and spacecraft in the world, including some of the most famous artifacts of all time: the Wright Brothers' Flyer, Charles Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, and Apollo 11 – as well as the original Star Trek model of the Federation Starfleet's Enterprise.

8. National Arboretum: Many of the best-loved shrubs and trees in America were developed at the nation's premier horticultural research facility the National Arboretum, featuring 444 acres of demonstration gardens, greenhouses, and natural woods.Most famous is the azalea exhibit, the product of pioneering research of the first director after the arboretum was established in 1927. Many, many exhibits and plants have been developed since that time, however, among them an amazing array of new shrubs such as Crapemyrtles, hardy hibiscus, lilacs, viburnums, and many new tree varieties intended to adapt to various locales across the U.S., including a wide range of new red maples, magnolias, elms, and flowering cherries.

9. National Archives: Democracy starts here. That is the motto of the National Archives, created in 1934 to house the country’s most important historic documents and to centralize federal record keeping. Before that time, individual government agencies were in charge of maintaining their own records, many in disarray, careless stored, and damaged by fire, insects, heat, and just the vagaries of time. The first set of records to be archived, identified through an extensive survey in 1937, included 1,360,000 cubic feet of records, a figure which of course continued to increase, as New Deal and then World War II records poured in.

10. National Gallery of Art: The National Gallery of Art is comprised of two structures connected by an underground concourse: the marble neoclassical West Building, completed in 1941 and designed by John Russell Pope (architect of the Jefferson Memorial and the National Archives); and the triangular East Building, completed in 1978 and designed by I.M. Pei, of matching Tennessee pink marble and featuring glass walls and illuminating skylights.

11. National Museum of African Art: The National Museum of African Art was established in 1964 and became part of the Smithsonian Institution in 1979. It houses a wide range of ancient and contemporary art from Africa, and features a permanent collection of over 8500 works from all artistic genres including paintings, textiles, ceramics, furniture, tools masks, figures, musical instruments, and jewelry.

12. National Museum of American History: Originally opened in 1964 as the Museum of History and Technology, the National Museum of American History has become an important chronicler of the history of science and technology and its effects on the growth of American culture and society. Among the collection’s highlights is the original 30 ft x 34 ft Star-Spangled Banner, the flag viewed by Francis Scott Key during War of 1812 and on which he based the national anthem.

13. National Museum of the American Indian: The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian’s founding in 2004 completes the National Mall’s collection of museums and graces the mall with its warm sand-colored limestone, soft and light, with a shape evocative of nature’s continual movement and the indigenous peoples whose culture reflected a powerful natural connection. Its interior is even more stunning, featuring a rotunda representing the Potomac and acting as the main entrance to the museum as well as a venue for various events and performances.

14. National Museum of the Marine Corps: The National Museum of the Marine Corps, a new museum that opened in 2006, maintains a broad collection of poignant and fascinating artifacts and interactive displays on the Marine Corps and its members’ contribution to the nation. The museum is located on more than 135 acres adjacent to Marine Corps Base Quantico and encompasses approximately 118,000 square feet. Its iconic 210 ft. high stainless steel spire is intended to represent the famous image of the marines raising the American flag over Iwo Jima, as well as “ notions of swords at salute, aircraft climbing in to the heavens or a howitzer at the ready,” according to the museum’s introductive materials.

15. National Zoo: Created by Congress in 1889, the Smithsonian's National Zoo is a standout zoo, well-known as the home to more than 400 species -- including its most famous occupants, the giant pandas from China -- as well as being a leader in the care, breeding, and exhibition of animals. The zoo encompasses 163 acres where it displays animals in their own natural habitat organized along three main paths, the Olmsted Walk, the Valley Trail, and the new exhibit as of 2006, the Asia Trail.

16. Smithsonian Institution Building: The world-renowned Smithsonian Institution is truly the largest museum complex and research organization in the world. Comprised of 17 museums and the National Zoo in D.C., as well as two more museums in New York, the Smithsonian exemplifies humankind’s search for reason and meaning through the arts, history, science, and technology.

17. Supreme Court: The U. S. Supreme Court, the highest body of the judiciary arm of the federal government, is housed in the Supreme Court Building, designed of Corinthian marble in a style to match other congressional buildings, and constructed in 1935. Before that time, the Supreme Court operated out of the Capitol Building. On the front stairway are two statues, the Contemplation of Justice and the Guardian or Authority of Law. Along the corridor leading to the Courtroom, known as the Great Hall, are busts of all former Chief Justices.

18. United States Holocaust Museum: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum’s purpose is to ensure that we never forget, and never repeat, the atrocities of the holocaust, stimulating people to “confront hatred, prevent genocide, promote human dignity, and strengthen democracy,” according to the museum’s literature.

19. U.S. Botanic Garden: The oldest continually-operating botanic garden in the United States, the U.S. Botanic Garden is a showcase centrally located on the National Mall, and is nearly as old as DC itself. Its first greenhouse was built in 1842 and since 1849, it has been at its current location. Its charter, provided by Congress, is "... to collect, cultivate, and grow the various vegetable products of this and other countries for exhibition and display to the public...", and it does indeed feature amazing plant diversity.

20. Washington Monument: The Washington Monument is a 555-ft. marble obelisk that stands as a sentinel and memorial to the nation's first president. It is the most prominent landmark in Washington, D.C., and anchors the National Mall. The cornerstone of the monument was laid in 1848, but construction was not finished until 1884, as it was halted during the Civil War. In fact, astute observers can see a change in the type of marble at about the first third of the structure's height, visible evidence of the changes that swept the country during the war.

21. Washington National Cathedral: Conceived in 1792 by Pierre l'Enfant as a "great church for national purposes," actual planning and construction of the National Cathedral didn't begin until a century later, and it was not until a century after that – 1990 – that the cathedral was completed.

22. White House: The White House, while planned by President George Washington and city architect Pierre l’Enfant, was never lived in by Washington, but has housed every single U.S. president since his successor John Adams moved in 1801. Originally called simply the Executive Mansion, the name the White House stuck after the building was whitewashed to cover the fire damage in 1814 during the War of 1812.

About the Author

What parts should I get for my Spyder VS1?

I have recently bought my Spyder VS1 and I've already used it twice, and except for a screw falling out of the ASA, which I've already replaced, it's a very exceptional gun. I've already been paintballing with it twice and it works fine, but I'd like to buy some new parts(in parenthesis is the brand I've found myself, tell me if you agree):

Barrel(J&J Ceramic 16" Barrel)
Feedneck(Lapco clamping feedneck)
Hopper(Overdrive Extra Rage Electronic hopper)
Stock(Maddog T-6 folding stock)

I play woodsball and speedball both. The speedsball is on a small area in the woods we like to use for capture the flag, elimation, or predator. The other area is back past his pasture in an area I'd say would be about 150yd X 300yd (comparing to football field). What would you guys suggest for my gun?

Barrel - J&J makes good barrels. 16" is fine but that's the max length any paintball barrel should ever be. I personally would use a shorter barrel playing woodsball because the longer it is, the more likely it can get snagged, dragged, caught on stuff, etc.

Feedneck - i'd recommend a shorter feedneck. Tall feednecks mean the hopper is gonna sit higher and that could leave more of a target & throw off the balance of the gun a little (like having a football on the end of a pencil). Something shorter, like a CCM No Rise or New Designz feedneck.

Hopper - At least chip in some extra cash for an Invert Reloader or go full out on an Empire Reloader B, Halo B or Vlocity Jr or something.

Stock - that stock is not compatible with the VS series. You won't be able to use it. Not a lot of stock options for spyders. I've seen stocks that replace the asa but they're simple T stocks or whatever they're called (look like a T) and require the tank to be placed elsewhere, like on a remote line.

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