Day 5 - This place is a zoo

With the weather incredibly improved, we headed to the National Zoo. I love that there is no admission fee to all these lovely places. It did mean that everyone and there brother was out but it was still nice. We picked up some popcorn, a pretzel, and lemonade while we walked around. The zoo is nicely laid out and has a pretty decent population of animals. Both Alan and I had animals that either stared us down or in Alan's case, came after. My creepy experience was when I was taking a photo of the cheetah. Everywhere I moved his gaze followed. I think he wanted to eat me. I had to leave.

Alan, in the bird house, was taking photos of a couple of Victoria Crowned Pigeon. In the bird house these birds, and several others, roam free. These pigeons really did not like Alan. They stared him down and one of them flew right to him at the banister. I have included a photo he took where they were staring him down.

Zoos always make me feel a little sad. We did see several animals pacing and the lion was crying in mini roars. The sloth bear was pacing and looked very agitated. It is hard to see animals that should be roaming free stuck in a space created by man. On the other hand, we did get to see a male peacock display and shake his plumage. We did get to see several animals that may go extinct in our lifetime if we are not careful about their habitat.

After the zoo, we ventured in search of food. I really wanted to try Ben's Chili Bowl and Alan was willing to try it too. It was a quick trip on the metro. There was a line but not more than 10-15 minute wait. You order, pay, and then get a seat. Alan ordered a chili burger and a side of fries. I ordered a smoked chili dog, a small chili, a piece of carrot cake, a large sweet tea, and a strawberry milkshake (we shared the drinks). This place was packed and very upbeat. The employees were singing and dancing and everyone seemed genuinely glad to be there. The food was great, the tea was a large so we had free refills. We plan on going back to Ben's before we leave.

Tomorrow, we are going to try and go to the National Museum of American History before we go to our tour at the Spy Museum. If there is enough time, we will try and go to the National Museum of Natural History too.