My friend JanetTinMd, a Yearly Carnacki veteran, made an excellent point at Booman Tribune that the schedule was too ambitious to squeeze in the National Zoo and and Smithsonian Museum in one day. So see revised schedule below.
Schedule and details below.
The Zoo is pretty good-sized. You could spend a whole day there, if you really wanted to walk around and see animals, stand in line for the pandas, and give the children a chance to beg for ice cream and goodies from the gift shop or chase each other in circles 'til they're dizzy (and give the adults a chance to sit on benches and hang out and foment revolution). :-)
It's also easy to spend hours in just ONE of the Smithsonian buildings and then wonder where the time went.....Not to mention that it will take at least a good half-hour to get from the Zoo to the Mall via Metro.
Remember our experiences from Harpers Ferry, and trying to keep a group of any size together hopping between two places that are not especially near each other -- maybe it might be more relaxing to pick one or the other, either the zoo or one of the museums? (Maybe zoo if the weather is good, one of the museums if it's raining?) It's been a while since I went to the zoo, but I'm sure they have places to sit and eat, either picnic or purchase food there...
Just thinking of a slower pace so we can actually talk and not be too stressed over watching the clock.... though I'll certainly tag along with what other folks want to do.
The Mid-Atlantic meetup has always been on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend. Probably more so than other meetups that tend to involve lots of alcohol and wild orgies (I wrote that for any freepers reading this), Yearly Carnacki is a laidback affair, with people bringing their children and with an emphasis on fun as well as politics.
Here's the plan, and we're trying to have two meetup times to accomodate those who just want to attend later in the day, a request in past years. Bring a brown bag lunch or pick up something for a picnic.
11 a.m. -- Meet us at the visitor's center of the National Zoo. More information about the zoo here. Zoo map here (PDF)
1 p.m. -- Picnic at the zoo (or lunch at the snack bar for those inclined).
In the event of thunderstorms -- severe rain and not just a sprinkle -- the alternative location is the Smithsonian Castle near the information desk where we will then pick a museum to tour. Meet there at 11 a.m. in the event of severe rain.
For information on how to meet up with the group if you want to meet us later in the day, shoot me an email.