GAME 2: St. Louis vs. Washington at Nationals Park

Today was my first ever day exploring our nation's capital. I dodged segways, TONS of kids on summer vacation, and liberal protestors as I hoofed my way around a lot of national landmarks, including Capitol Hill, the Smithsonian, the Washington Monument, and the White House.

I was impressed. Washington is clean & well-kept. In fact, it struck me that the two-mile-or-so stretch from the Washington Monument & White House over to Congress felt like a big, fancy college campus. There were several quad-like areas where you could sit under a tree & read. There is a lot of ornate architecture that holds a consistent asthetic theme, like a university campus. Only difference: everyone's wearing suits. Won't see that at college. And I felt woefully underdressed.

It was fun to see everything live & so up close. I was a bit rushed this afternoon, so there are even some things that I missed -- Lincoln Memorial & WWII Memorial chief among them. And it'd be easy to spend a couple days wandering through all the museums. I certainly got a foretaste of touristy fun that I could have whenever I come back to D.C.

I rode the Metro train back over to the Nationals ballpark in time for the game. It is a nice, new stadium. Big thing that jumped out at me was the red, white, and blue color scheme. It is used in a very classy way & has "pop." And like all new stadiums, there are plenty of distractions for people who don't like baseball -- a Playstation arcade, restaurants, bars, and the like. They have some well-named food items that I did not sample -- Senators Sausage, Steak of the Union (a Philly-style cheesesteak), etc. I do wish that I had tried the Senators Sausage, because the Nats Dog was totally generic. I'd give it a 4 or 5 out of 10. I just wasn't impressed.

Just as soon as the game was scheduled to start, about 7:07 PM, the bottom dropped out of some ominous-looking clouds above the stadium. There was a steady rain all the way through the first half of the game. Fortunately, my tickets were so far up in the RF upper deck that I was covered by an awning. But the Nationals weren't covered, and they made two errors on balls that should have been caught in the top of the first inning. It looked like amateur hour there at the start. Catcher Yadier Molina made the Nats pay, too, with a 3-run homer that was just a roped line drive that barely made it over the fence.

The ump called for a delay when the rain became torrential in the 5th inning. After sitting around for about 40 minutes, right as the rain started to let up, I decided to go hoof it back to my car. Again, I didn't want to keep my host up too late waiting for me, and the players in the starting lineup for this game were just a bunch of no-names. With Washington's pathetic lineup (most of their best players are currently on the DL), the game was pretty much over after the first inning. Not a game worth sitting through a downpour for.

Its really a lovely stadium. If only the Nationals could build a quality team to match their home field then it might be worth coming back to see.

I think I accidently threw away all my receipts. But I'll try to recall as much as I can from memory:

Gas
$38.15 @ $4.099/gal.

Lunch at Wendy's
$4.50ish

Gatorade at the Washington Visitor's Center
$2.00

Metro Fare from "The Triangle" to the Naval Yard
$3.00

Dog, Chips, & Small Drink Meal at the Ballpark
$7.00

Another drink when the small drink didn't quite get it
$4.50

I realized that "the meal deal" was a bit of a racket. They give you a salty dog & back of chips with a small drink. OF COURSE you're gonna have to get another drink. Very crafty, Nats executives. I'm impressed.

Parking
$15.00 -- AND I was about 4 or 5 blocks away from the stadium. NOT worth it. Next time I'll park at a buddy's house & ride the Metro rail system.

Ticket into the Park
$10.00
+$5.50 "Total Convenience Fee"
+$3.50 "Order Processing
======
$19.00

Add it all up & The Pilgrimage tab now stands at $620.98.

Next up on the docket is Reds @ Phils from Philadelphia's Citizens Bank Park. Forecast currently calls for a 90% chance of rain. So there's a 90% chance that my Thursday no-game day will get moved to tomorrow as I wait until Thursday for a chance to see the ballpark in Philly.

Help me out: what is "MUST SEE" in Philadelphia? What can I not leave Philadelphia without having seen/visited?