Our Trip to DC // My Fave Apps

I was going to title this post 'My Fave Travel Apps' but I used so many more apps than just ones for travel! having an iPhone has been the best thing to ever happen to me (exaggeration much?).  While being totally connected to the internet & social media 24/7 can be a bad thing, a smart phone is great for when you need it the most.

First, I am horrible with directions. I can't even get from my house to work sometimes & I've been working there for over 4 months. (That is a bit of an exaggeration, but I still can't find my way around my home town.......I lived there for 22 years....I am so bad with directions)  So when we went to DC, Zach was sort of determined to have me learn to navigate.  I will tell you that I didn't really try at all! The most I did was read the route from my phone & find the metro stations!  Having some way of finding out where you were in a hurry was great.  I referenced loads of things on my phone to supplement not only directions but the research we were doing in the Library of Congress.  I love being able to have answers right at my finger tips!

Second, I am no travel expert so these apps are ones I found & downloaded in a hurry or ones that I'd had & got to explore while waiting between metro stops.

Gas Buddy

Since we noticed that gas prices were a bit higher than when we were home, I searched for an app that would find us the cheapest gas possible.  This free app was the first one to come up & I hurried to install it.  It also helped us to find gas stations if we were on the interstate.
Since the gas station right near my house usually has a fair price for gas I never downloaded an app like this before.  If I am ever out, I'd be sure to check this app if I found my self sailing on E.

Google Maps/Maps

The built in Maps app for the iPhone doesn't really do for me what I need it too.  On our trip to Roanoke for Thanksgiving I noticed that sometimes it wasn't reliable.  I started cross checking the Maps app with Google Maps that I'd added to my home screen.  Also, with Google Maps you can avoid tolls.  Other mobile map sites like MapQuest probably would work too but I am super picky.  (I like using google for everything & I like using apple.  I am one of those people!)
Google Maps, for me, sometimes doesn't load which is why I'd turn back to the Maps app.  I think I like Google Maps better because it is a lot like the web version & that's where I print directions from.  It's one of those visual preference things.

Instagram/Camera+/PictureShow

I love social media! Instagram is an awesome way to share photos, as I am sure you know!  Thanks to some people I follow on Instagram, I discovered that crossing camera apps makes really cool effects! I don't know why I never thought of it before.  While waiting in line or on the metro (or when Zach was thumbing through his book in the Library of Congress) I'd edit some photos from the day.
Camera+ is a great photo editing app on the phone itself.  I'd had Camera+ for ages & never really figured it out.  While looking through Instagram I totally discovered people crossing apps, especially Camera+.  I decided to give it another go & fell in love.  I am pleased with the quality of the camera on the iPhone but Camera+ can help edit photos that didn't come out too great.  It can also turn the really horrible ones into cool ones with it's filters.
PictureShow is also a great app because you can keep your pictures relativly the same.  You can use the same borders/light leaks/frames easier.  You can also save the combinations to come back to if you want to use them again.  It keeps consistency.  I used a combination of all three of these for pictures in this post!
I'd have to say that when we got back to where we were staying or had some down time, I was on there editing & messing around.

Find a Metro

Zach had been to DC before in the past year so he knew a little of his way around.  Unfortunately, we got turned around coming from the base & couldn't find the metro stop we wanted.  I pulled out my phone, found the first metro app & downloaded it for .99 cents.
It shows you the five closest metros around you.  We used this in the car & when we got turned around at the end of our stay.  I probably could have found a free app but this one was first & I needed it right then!  I do like the layout & how nice it looks.  Aesthetics can go a long way!

Restaurant Finder

At the end of our stay Zach & I wanted Thai food.  In the end, we didn't get it because we decided to spend time with the couple we were staying with.  We ordered pizza instead.  But, we did find Thai restaurants near us while standing on the busy street corner.
This app has a basic & advanced search where you can search by restaurant type & state/zip.  It's great if you are in the mood for a specific food but don't know any local restaurants.  I used it to search for Thai food, pizza places, & fast food restaurants off the high way.  I do wish I'd found it earlier though so we could have eaten more local foods.  I've heard Urban Spoon is a great app too...but I just picked the first one I saw!

MEanderthal

I threw this one in for fun! At the Museum of Natural History there was a QR code in the Human Origins exhibit that lead to an app download called MEanderthal.  You'd take a picture of yourself or friend, align it, & then be transformed into an early human.  You can choose between a few early human species & learn more about them.  It's just pretty funny to see the result!

A Real Map

Nothing can beat the app called 'a real damn map that you bought from the store'.  It doen not require 3G/WiFi, use batteries, or freeze up....it just opens & allows you to find your way around the city.  It has the metro stops, the museums, etc.  You'll find even more cool places if you take you head out of the iPhone & just read the map!

Traveling is a load of fun.  I am so excited that I've been able to take little trips since graduation.  Another place on my list to go is the Natural Bridge here in Virginia.  I've been wanting to go back for a while now.  Perhaps I'll make it there in 2012.

What apps do you use when you travel? Do you have any travel apps you use on a daily basis?

Our DC Trip // May the Best Man Win

The first night on our trip was spent at a cool place in Maryland called Medieval Times.  It is here that we saw men on horse back fighting to save the prince, who'd been captured by the green knight while he (the prince) was set out to sign a peace treaty between two kingdoms.  Yeah, sounds kinda weird right? NOPE! It was AWESOME!

I had so much fun cheering on the Black & White Knight who ended up defeating the Green Knight & saving the Prince!

They even gave me a little candle for my apple turnover since it was my birthday!  The whole meal consisted of tomato bisque, a half a chicken, two ribs, half a baked potato, & this apple turnover.  Oh, plus a traditional medieval drink: Pepsi (or water or tea).

I had the greatest time.  At first I was a little bit nervous it wouldn't live up to how excited I was but I was wrong!  By the end of the night I was cheering with the best of them!  I want to go back again!

Have you ever been to a dinner & a show sorta thing?

Our Trip to DC // Trilobites

While at the Museum of Natural History, I discovered that Zach loves Trilobites.  These creatures that lived millions of years ago are super creepy, yet really cool, to look at.  I also discovered he has a thing for Cuneiform.  We spent a bit through an Ancient Egypt exhibit as well.  (I'll get back to Egypt later)

Here are some more pictures from the Museum of Natural History:

Pardon the quality, they were taken with my iPhone

Zach has had a thing for ancient Egypt for a while & when he found out I studied ceramics he was immediately interested in doing more research about canopic jars.  While we were at the Museum of Natural History he carefully studied the ones on display.  When we went to the Library of Congress he'd already researched some books to check out about Canopic Jars & how they were constructed.

Library of Congress - Outside

So after we got our library cards (a big ordeal that sent us back and forth through tunnels between buildings) we set out to check out these books. Unfortunately, the 4 volume set of books that I was to check out was not available but his small book on the dimensions & materials used to make canopic jars was.

ceiling in the Library of Congress

We sat in the giant Main Reading Room for about 45 min while they brought our books up.  It was pretty cool.  There were a few people in their doing 'scholarly' research & I felt like we were the only ones in there for novelty.  Zach was excited though.  He thumbed through that book like he was doing doctoral research.  Even suggested to me that this could be the start of a thesis for me for an MFA.  I laughed (my MFA has a long ways from being decided on).

Like I mentioned in the first post, it's amazing the different things Zach & I take away from each experience.

Our Trip to DC // The Art & Zach & I

For my birthday this past month Zach & I went to Washington DC to see some museums & hang around with a friend he met when he was deployed.  I had a total blast!

Not only did we see some great sites but I taught someone how to crochet! What a great 'thanks for letting us stay in your house for the weekend' gift.  Having the opportunity to teach someone to crochet is such a fun thing.  I feel like I am passing on some great knowledge!

from the inside of the Library of Congress.  Love the architecture!!!

Zach & I are both history/museum/learning enthusiasts.  We love learning new things & discovering cool places to got.  It's great to be able to share in an interest that can be so diverse! We both have different interests in the same thing (if that makes any sense).  We'll take away two totally different amounts or types of information: his is more technical & mine is more creative.  This picture is a great example:

I thought the table had great craftsmanship & so did he.  He saw it from a totally technical view (how was it put together? What is under it? How was it made?) & I saw a totally creative view (Why did they choose this motif? What is this inspired by? What style is this?).

I was so happy that after we went through the National Gallery of Art he discovered that he liked it.  I was super nervous that he wouldn't have any fun.  He didn't particularly care for the Modern Art building but he loved (as I knew he would) works from the Renaissance & more traditional work, if you want to call it.  He is really into realism.  He didn't like any Impressionist work or work that was a bit on the side of abstract.  As we went through the museum, every time he found a painting/sculpture he liked we made sure to reference the map to check the time period.

I found a great book called Art Theory for Beginners that I hope I'll be able to relate the theory of art better to him.  I also bought a great book with some DIY inspiration that opened recently & want to paint everything in it!  Hopefully I'll be able to get back into the groove of making in the new year.

Here are other great art related pictures from our trip:

From the National Gallery

I should have taken pictures of Calder's work there but, like always, I look too much & never snap pictures!

Replicas of cave paintings in the Museum of Natural History.  The first time I saw these paintings on the cover of my copy of Garner's Art Through the Ages, my decision to study art made sense: I, like those ancient people, had hands too.  I wanted to remember, to be remembered, & to share, to reflect, to show self awareness & represent the world around me.  To such a common thing any one could relate.  To have a hand & to share it is the first sign of seeing things not as they are but as something more.  That is art.  These cave paintings have always meant more to me than any other piece of art I've ever viewed.

I'll share more about my Birthday Dinner & the other sights soon!

Do you have a favorite piece of artwork? Have you ever experienced things through the eyes of others? Have you been to DC?