The DC Traveler

A Merry Christmas to one and all from The DC Traveler.

Image – from personal collection – ©2008, Jon Rochetti _______________________________________________________________

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During the Christmas holiday season in Washington, DC, the Washington Region Alcohol Program operates it’s SoberRide free taxi program.
Drivers that may be alcohol impaired or unable to safely drive can request a free taxi ride to their home, up to a maximum cost of $50, through January 1, 2009.
It’s never wise to drive after indulging and especially during the holiday season. Again this year, area police will be establishing sobriety checkpoints around the region.
Most years, Metro DC police set up approximately 30 during holiday season, including some surprising locations. One year, I saw a check point in …read more

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As one of the most popular and loved Broadway musicals of all time, spending over 20 years on Broadway time, and Victor Hugo’s best known story, Les Misérables, tells a passionate story of crime and redemption, love and betrayal, all set during the period of the French revolution.
The main character, prison parolee Jean Valjean, who is unable to find work after years in a labor camp, must steal in order to survive.  But his victim gives him a second chance when Valjean is caught by the police.  He takes the gift and changes his identify and his life.  Spending …read more

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Here’s your chance to hear the closest thing to angels singing, a performance of Christmas music by the famous Vienna Boys Choir.

A symbol of Austrian music for nearly 500 years, the choir has delighted music lovers, starting with King Maximilian I who, in 1498, had the choir formed, consisting of a dozen boys to the royal court.  Since then, the choir has worked with composers such as Mozart, Salieri, Haydn and Schubert.
The choir brings in their angelic voices to sing of peace and happiness during the holiday season.  The program includes holiday music ranging from Gregorian chants through popular Christmas …read more

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Enjoy a traditional colonial plantation holiday dinner at Gunston Hall, the home of founding father, George Mason.
Dine tavern-style, by candlelight, on items such as traditional   turkey and dressing, Virginia ham, dressing, and of course, home made pie.
For more about Gunston Hall, check out my Oct. 12, 2007 post.
Plantation Christmas Yuletide Dinner at Gunston Hall
Gunston Hall Plantation
10709 Gunston Road 
Mason Neck, Virginia 22079  (map it)
703-550-9220
Dates and Times – Friday, December 12, 2008 at 6:30 and 8:00 p.m. and Saturday, December 13  at 4:30, 6:00 and 8:00 p.m.
Tickets – Adults – $39.95 , children 10 and under – $19.95. Beer and wine is …read more

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Experience the unique holiday charm and colonial history at a evening candlelight walking tour of historic Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. 
The self-guided tours include four historical building.  On the walking tour are:

Gadsby’s Tavern Museum – a colonial tavern and meeting place.
Carlyle House – Alexandria’s only stone Palladian-style house dating back to 1753.
Lee-Fendall House, the home of the Lee family, and son Robert E. Lee. The urban plantation house was built in 1785 and restored to its early Victorian elegance.
Old Presbyterian Meeting House – In 1772, a small group of Calvinist who had split from the Church of England, …read more

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Kick off the holiday season with a grand Viennese-style Christmas Ball at the beautiful Washington Golf and Country Club in suburban Arlington, Virginia.
Highlights of the evening include a traditional champagne reception, a scrumptious Austrian dessert buffet, and music for dancing by Con Brio!, one of Washington’s most regarded salon orchestras.  they will perform waltzes and ballroom music and even a polka or two.
The ball will open with a cotillion performance by students from the German School Washington, DC.
Christmas Ball  Washington Golf and Country Club 3017 N. Glebe Road Arlington, VA 22207 …read more

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…A day which will live in infamy.
I was walking through Arlington National Cemetery last January and happened across a headstone that caused me to freeze in my tracks.  The date first caught my eye.  Then, I realized the significance of the ship listed on the headstone.
The headstone for sailor, Gunners Mate Robert Edwin Kline, of New York, listed him as killed on December 7th, 1941, aboard the battleship USS Arizona. IThe date on the headstone was the same as the day the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, which caused the U.S. to declare war the following day and enter …read more

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The American premiere of Love, Peace and Robbery, at the small, 50-seat Theatre on the Run in Arlington, Virginia, tells the story of two Irish ex-cons, Gary and Darren. They were recently released from Cork Prison in Ireland and sincerely want to put their lives back together. But to go straight, each must attempt to avoid the problems that got them originally sent to prison, so staying clean and sober, avoid “tabs” (pills), and obey the terms of their probation and curfew, even if it is hours earlier than their children’s curfew.
They may be a bit dangerous and tied into …read more

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Visit the annual holiday extravaganza at the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia.  Browse artist’s studios and galleries and watch as they create one-of-a-kind works of art and gifts.
Live music, drinks and hors d’oeuvres will add to the festive occasion.

Torpedo Factory Art Center – Holiday Open House 105 N. Union Street Alexandria, Virginia 22314 (map it) 703-838-4565
Dates and Times – Thursday, December 4, 2008  6:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Admission – FREE, but please bring a non-perishable food item for their holiday food drive.
Nearest …read more

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