Kids Korner

Visit the Baltimore, MD/Washington, D.C. area! Washington Monument The White House Camden Yards Who said history can’t be fun? Welcome to the Baltimore, MD/Washington, D.C. area where you can visit your Congressman and a giant Panda at the National Zoo, catch a major league baseball game or enjoy a military marching band. Whether you like learning about sea creatures or government or the way people lived a century ago, you won’t get bored – not with just-for-kids activities everywhere! Ride the world’s oldest carousel on the National Mall or send a telegraph message in the National Museum of the American History. Create a souvenir postcard at the National Postal Museum or watch money being made at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. See a collection of Houdini’s magic tricks at the Library of Congress. Even better, since so many places are free, you’ll have more money to spend on souvenirs.

Did You Know?

• Babe Ruth was born in Baltimore. You can visit his birthplace and the brand new museum all about baseball and other sports at the Sports Legends at Camden Yards (www.sportslegendsatcamdenyards.com). Take in an Orioles game at historic Camden Yards (www.orioles.com), or celebrate the return of Major League Baseball to the nation’s capital – for the first time in 34 years – watching the newest team, the Washington Nationals play at RFK Stadium (www.nationals.com). Don’t forget your mitt!

• The Smithsonian Institution is the world’s largest museum complex, with 18 museums and galleries and the national zoo – from the National Museum of the American Indian to the National Air and Space Museum to the National Postal Museum and the National Zoo where you can visit Giant pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian. The National Museum of Natural History has over 125 million specimens! The most popular exhibit at the National Museum of American History is the collection of the First Ladies’ inauguration gowns. But, you might think it’s more fun to buckle up and “pilot” a racecar around a track in the museum at the new Days of Thunder Simulator ride. Ask for a family guide when you get there. Admission is free (www.smithsonian.org).

• The National Aquarium in Baltimore has more than 10,500 animals – from sharks to octopus to bottlenose dolphins and one of the largest ray collections in the country. To beat the crowds, visit in the mornings on weekends and after 3 p.m. on weekdays (www.aqua.org).

• George Washington was a successful and innovative farmer as well as the nation’s first Commander in Chief. You can visit Mount Vernon in Virginia 16 miles from Washington, D.C., where you can help spin wool, hoe the fields, dress up in colonial clothing, and play 18th century games. You can also learn what life was like for the slaves who lived at Mount Vernon. Make sure to pick up the Adventure Map for kids (www.mountvernon.org).

• The International Spy Museum in Washington, D.C. has the biggest collection of spy gadgets ever put on display – everything from a shoe transmitter to a through-the-wall camera (www.spymuseum.org).

• The Washington National Cathedral has more than 200 gargoyles and lots of weird carvings. There are programs for the entire family. You can try your own stone carving, pat a gargoyle on the nose, or make a stained glass window (www.nationalcathedral.org).

• A 13-year-old Baltimore boy, Edward Warren, was the first person in America to go up in a hot air balloon. That was in 1784. Today you can ride aboard the HiFlyer, a helium-filled balloon tethered outside the Port Discovery Children’s Museum in Baltimore. It flies up to 450 feet above the city! (www.portdiscovery.org)

What Other Kids Say You Should Do While In Pittsburgh . . .

Howie Gilson (age 14) and Alexandra Gilson (age 12) They live in Bethesda, MD, between Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Their Dad, Howard Gilson, works for Southwest Airlines at BWI Airport. Don't Miss: In Baltimore The National Aquarium and the Baltimore Science Center. Walk around the Inner Harbor where there are plenty of good places to eat! And, go see the Orioles play at Camden Yards. In Washington, besides the White House and the Capitol, make sure to see the Vietnam War Memorial and the changing of the guard in Arlington National Cemetery. Eat: Eating steamed crabs or crab cakes. There are lots of seafood restaurants. Don't Go Home Without: A souvenir from Camden Yards or the Smithsonian’s Air and Space Museum.

Sarah Jones, (age 12) Sarah lives in Sterling, VA Don't Miss: The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. (www.ushm.org) and the Washington Monument (www.nps.gov/wamo/) because it is historical and has a lot of information about the city. It’s 555 feet and 5 1/8 inches tall and has just reopened to the public.

Tell Your Parents . . .

Check out the Summer Freedom deals, with savings of more than 50 percent on hotels, attractions, and restaurants all summer long by logging on to www.washington.org. Check out the kid-friendly Washington Walks tours of the nation’s capital including one at the Lincoln Memorial that introduces families to Abe Lincoln as a child – even see what his pajamas were like – and another at the Franklin D. Roosevelt Memorial introduced through the eyes of Roosevelt’s famous pooch, Fala (www.washingtonwalks.com). For hotel deals in Baltimore, visit www.baltimore.org or www.visitmaryland.org.

See Past Editions of Kids Korner.

By: Eileen Ogintz, Author of Taking the Kids™