Mr Kevincm returns to Washington – The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum – National Mall
In this… well.. mess:
- How far can you go for a £1 (+Tax)?
- Off to Manchester Airport, Manchester Airport and the BA Terraces Lounge
- AA735 Manchester Airport to Philadelphia
- A long Philadelphia layover featuring the US Customs and the TSA at their best.
- AA4545 Philadelphia to Washington Reagan
- Holiday Inn Washington Reagan
- The Marriott Marquis, Washington DC
- The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum – National Mall
- The Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum – The Udvar Hazey Building
- Back to Dulles, British Airways Dulles Lounge
- BA216 Washington Dulles to Heathrow with the Airbus A380
- Heathrow Transfer, North Lounge
- BA1530 London Heathrow to Manchester
- The joy of coaches, and CrossCountry trains from Manchester to Birmingham
- Short and Sweet
With a few hours to go before I had to be at the conference, I had a couple of things on my agenda.
First was a camera shop – which was closed when I arrived. That wasn’t helpful – but not impossible to deal with.
The other thing was I wanted to head back to National Space and Air Museum – even though I passed through there a year ago with LeChicGeek.
The National Air and Space Museum, National Mall
Why would I got to a museum that I’ve been to before a few times before? For one reason alone. Enterprise.
Let me be more precise – USS Enterprise, NCC-1701. Or rather the shooting model from Star Trek.
My love of travel and exploring is a gift I got from my parents when I was a lot younger when I was taken around bits of the world, bits of Asia, Europe and beyond. However the other thing that nurtured my want of exploration and understanding a little more about the world was Star Trek.
It formed part of my childhood, a love of travel, adventure and exploring.
The last time I was here, the Enterprise was away being conserved , with the studio model going on display again last year.
And I wanted to meet her.
Boldly Going
The shooting side of the model
You know the registry. The foundation of many a bad password out there.
Head on.
Here’s why you don’t see the right hand side of the model – as well as missing her speedstripes, she’s also got big cables, used to connect it to power to make her light up.
For me, it was wonderful seeing a part of my childhood.
Meanwhile, I took the time to explore the museum.
Northwest Airlines 747 Nose
American Airlines Douglas DC-7
Northrop Alpha
Colourful uniforms you won’t see today
Big turbofan engines are big.
Exhibits in the main hall
Things that can go boom.
The band prepares to play.
Nope. Nowhere near a stewardess with my figure.
A sunken A320? … no, it’s a simulator which shows arrivals and departures from Washington National.
Time sadly was not on my side, so I headed out past the Boeing Milestones of flight
And past her again.
Passing The Enterprise. Her ongoing mission – to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before.
And remember, it doesn’t say go. It say GO BOLDLY.
Something to remember on a day to day basis sometimes when you’re not sure about the world.
Next: The National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Centre
Welcome to Economy Class and Beyond – Your no-nonsense guide to network news, honest reviews, with in-depth coverage, unique research as well as the humour and madness as I only know how to deliver.
Follow me on Twitter at @EconomyBeyond for the latest updates! You can also follow me on Instagram too!
Also remember that as well as being part of BoardingArea, we’re also part of BoardingArea.eu, delivering frequent flyer news, miles and points to European readers.
CraigTPA says
Enterprise is looking good…last time I was there (many, many stardates ago), she was down in the gift shop, looking the worse for wear.
phoenix says
> And remember, it doesn’t say go. It say GO BOLDLY.
There’s a travel lesson in there somewhere if I could just find it…. (/s)
Last time I was at The Smithsonian was when I was a child so I definitely need to come back here.