Walk up and down one of the most iconic and politically historic city of all, well wrapped up in your gloves and scarf (the Potomac chill can really bite!) Escape into warmth, by visiting the superb, several and free Smithsonian Museums, undoubtedly one of the greatest collections of culture and history in one place. Must visits include the Holocaust Memorial Museum and the newer Museum of the American Indian, within which the Mitsitam Cafe provides amazingly rich and the most authentic hot food in the area. Winter months means you will escape the heavy crowds which are overwhelming in the summer. Enjoy the twilight photography from Capitol Hill, or the Lincolm Memorial with the demon-eyed Monument foreboding in the centre. If you get chance take in a free performance at the stately JFK Center for PErforming Arts, every day at 6pm on the Millenium Stage. Enjoy the views from its terrace too. Plenty of things to see, and lots to do in a city, that lives needlessly in the shadow of New York for any transatlantic tourist

www.kennedy-center.org/
www.ushmm.org/
www.nmai.si.edu/

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Enjoy strolling past the White House, and then down to the Mall and Capitol Hill, well shielded from the Potomac chill, wrapped up in your North Face, gloves and scarf. DC is a museum lovers dream, and escape the crowd at the several brilliant, free and well heated Smithsonian Museums. The Holocaust Memorial Museum (www.ushmm.org/) is as about a powerful a museum experience can offer, and the newer National Museum of the American Indian (www.nmai.si.edu/) offers in addition one of the more delicious, diverse and vegetarian friendly lunches in its Mitsitam café.
Enjoy the opportunity for night photography from the Lincoln Memorial or Capitol Hill, as the evening draws in, and appreciate the stature of the demon-eyed Washington Monument at night.
Perhaps take in a performance at the stately Kennedy Center for Performing Arts (Amazing and Free Daily Performances at 6pm www.kennedy-center.org/programs/millennium/) the terrace of which offers lovely views across the Potomac River.
As for a drinking spot, there is no better place than to take the metro train to the cosmopolitan melting pot at Dupont Circle. Drink a steaming mocha at Kramerbooks just right across from the station, which also doubles as a bookstore, and a lively late night café/bar. The place is open till 1am every night, offers a great selection of books and nearby Embassy Row adds to the cultural mix, as you are likely to be soon mingling with a US Congressman, a Kenyan diplomat or a Georgetown graduate student.

DC is a diverse, iconic city, steeped in rich political history with people equally eager to talk and listen, and more than enough indoor attractions to escape the chill when you need to. Whether alone or with a family, you will certainly want to return. (I know I do.)

washington.org/

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Cinsta is a small town stop along the coastal route of South Africa heading towards Durban. This place, and the warm and friendly people at the Bucanneers Backpackers, was a true highlight of a stay a few years ago. Wide expansive views of the beach from the room at Bucanneers, many kilometres of unspoit white sandy shoreline and the most serene and idylic sunrise and sunsets are just some of the reasons why this place is a must see. Away from the hustle, noise and bustle of the more urban beachfront attractions, like Jeffrey's Bay, or other stops on the Garden Route. A place that is genuinely off the beaten track, as many I think would drive on towards Durban or the Drakensberg. If you are looking for a place to hang out, chill, walk, hike, read, swim, surf, but without the tourist commercial bubble, then this is it. Some amazing beach photgraphy to be done, and breathtaking early and late horizon gazing. Happy Memories.

www.cintsa.com/index2.asp
PO Box 13092, Vincent, 5217, East London, Cintsa
South Africa
To be found two hours on from East London in the Eastern Cape by car. If you are a newbie traveller and taking the Baz Bus, the bus will stop there!
+27 (0)43 734 3012
Google map: tinyurl.com/2uynhe3

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