Metro Smartrip Card

Not that we use it that often. In fact, we haven’t used metro for over two years for obvious reasons. When we lived on Capitol Hill I didn’t like using metro. My husband on the other hand loved it. When we first moved to northern Virginia three years ago we took the train in to town once just to see how it felt. But first we had to drive the car to the McLean metro and park. There is an option to take the bus that stops right in front of our building to the station, but the way back would be a bit more complicated since they were still constructing the bus stop areas. In the meantime two of our metro cards were expiring. That meant we could no longer use them. We found that out when we tried using them in DC last year to meet with friends coming in from out of town for the honor flight and the cards didn’t work. The metro person basically yelled at us for not knowing that but eventually helped us figuring out which cards could be used. So a couple of months ago I sent in the two cards that no longer worked to exchange them for new cards because I couldn’t transfer the funds left on line. We had taken them to the metro stop in our neighborhood to see if they could do it for us but they couldn’t - or wouldn’t. I never thought I would see the cards again until they arrived in the mail this week. Unfortunately I forgot to tell them that we needed senior cards. Since we have four cards now we will eventually quit using these. I may even try the app that has features that might come in handy again. I really prefer driving the car because there have been so many problems with metro in the news lately. But there may be an occasion that the metro cards might come in handy again. But I can’t think of any reason right now - although my husband would prefer we would find one. 

Metro Cards and Dollar Coins

Last week we had to go in to town to meet up with some friends for an Honor Flight at the WWII Memorial. We parked on Capitol Hill in our old neighborhood and took the train to the Smithsonian exit. But before we could get on the train, we had problems with the old metro cards that we haven’t used since we moved to northern Virginia. My card worked, but my husband’s card didn’t. So we asked the guy on duty what the problem was. He said we had the old cards that wouldn’t work anymore and that we should have known better. Well, we didn’t. So we tried to get a new card and had problems at the machine. So I asked the guy if he could give us a hand. He reluctantly did, and afterwards was acting sheepish for his poor behavior. For whatever reason we ended up with ten dollars of one dollar gold coins and we lost ten dollars in the machine. So yesterday we went to the metro store in our neighborhood to straighten it out and move the money from the old cards to the new cards. All the attendant did was give us a phone number to call. This is one of the reasons why I hate metro. We put the coins in the car to eventually take to the bank and exchange for a ten dollar bill. We haven’t used coins for so long we didn’t even know what they were. My husband likes the train - I never did and never will. Maybe if we had to use to all the time it would make a difference. But I doubt it. 

What Were You Doing Last September?

The other day my husband asked me what we were doing last September. It was easy enough to find out simply by looking at the photos taken a year ago. What a difference a year makes in so many ways. We usually don’t do very much, but looking back made us realize that last September was more eventful than most months. We always liked going in to town for Library of Congress programs, and went twice. One program was about Medivac rescues and the other was about McKinley. It hardly mattered what the subject matter was. We visited the Suffragette exhibit before the program started. It was the joy of going and if the timing was right, we stopper for dinner at Hawk and Dove. We took the metro in one day to walkabout our old Capitol Hill neighborhood and visit the Iranian artist exhibit at the Sackler, then strolled through the beautiful gardens surrounding the area by the Smithsonian Castle. We had an unexpected lunch invitation from my sister who was staying at Cape May as she does every year. It was a car ride through Maryland, Delaware and New Jersey. Of course, we got our annual flu shots at the Giant grocery store, and actually went shoe shopping for my husband in Rockville, after having lunch somewhere in town. At the end of the month we were on our way to Wisconsin for a two week long visit to see friends and colleagues. We made arrangements to stay at an condo building that offers longer term “rental” options usually for business types. It was one of the nicest vacations we had. And of course I talked with my mom every week. I can no longer make those calls since she passed away in February. So the long answer is we had a wonderful September last year and the only thing we will be doing again is getting flu shots. It’s pretty depressing. 

Metro Ride to Capitol South

It was an experiment. The weather was cool enough, school has started, and the tourist season has slowed down. So we decided it was time to take the metro from McLean to Capitol South. We haven’t taken the train since we moved in April. The idea was to see the Iranian photography exhibit at the Sackler Gallery. My husband loves the metro, I hate it. Rather than take the bus to the station this time, we drove to the car park and then walked over to the station. We try to do things after and before rush hour so we left the house around ten. The actual ride on metro took about thirty five minutes once we got on it. But the time to get to the station, wait for the train, get on the train, and do it all over again takes twice as much time or more. It’s not my cup of tea but on the rare occasion it’s okay. I much prefer the overground rather than the underground routes. The next time we will probably take the bus since we get picked up right in front of the house. And, if we couldn’t drive a car we could still get around. The other excursion we planned was the safari park in Virginia - a three hour drive. That would have been more fun and is something to look forward to. 

Senior Smart Trip Card

Sooner or later it had to be done. When we moved from Capitol Hill to Virginia almost two months ago I promised my husband we would take metro to town every once in a while. I hate buses and trains and much prefer taking the car - especially since everyone I worked with constantly complained about metro. But now I don’t have a good excuse - especially if we use it at non rush hour times and just for leisure. But my husband loves the metro. So we took a short ride to a commuter store in Tyson’s to get a yellow senior metro pass for me. You have to go in person to show proof of age and identity. My husband got a senior pass when we moved to DC thirteen years ago. The pass costs two dollars and then we added thirty more for fare. We probably need to consolidate all the peripheral cards we already have. Since we no longer live a block away from the metro station, there is a bus that stops right in front of our house that takes us to the metro stop just one and a half miles away. Maybe the first trip we take will be the metro bus to experience the route and see where it takes us. Luckily for us the metro train we need is on the silver, orange and blue line that takes us straight to Capitol South and our old neighborhood. I have at least three apps on my Pharmacy me to help navigate the system if we need it. Maybe the view will be more overland than underground. That might make it a little more tolerable. 

Lincoln Waffle Shop, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum and Metro

My husband was in heaven - a walk downtown, breakfast at the Lincoln Waffle House, a visit to the cheesy Madame Tussaud’s Wax Museum, and a ride home on metro. Actually, he only liked the walk downtown and the ride home on metro - not the other touristy junk. But it was a great excuse to do something different this week. My first wax museum experience was Potters Wax Museum in St. Augustine Florida. I fell in love with history when I saw The wives of King Henry the Eighth. And Madame Tussaud’s on St. Pete Beach had a chamber of horrors and a Lincoln assassination display - he was still breathing. And then there was the museum at Gettysburg where the union soldier was not wax at all and scared us like heck when he started talking. Wax Museums were probably more of a hit before mass media came around. Now, it all seems very hoaky and cheap! This one was not very entertaining. For the most part there weren’t venues or displays - just the wax figures. And if you had to read the sign to recognize who it was...... It certainly wasn’t very busy - thank goodness I thought to ask for a resident discount. It would have been even smarter to get tickets on line. But we didn’t - and felt like suckers for the day. Afterwards we walked to Mcphearson Station and took the metro home. We ended up walking about the same distance we normally do each day. I’ll have to think of some other dopey - or more interesting - things to do. After all, we have a great selection to choose from.