Things to Do in Washington D.C.

Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

The Hope Diamond burns like bottled twilight inside its rotating case. School groups shuffle past, sneakers squeaking on polished floors. Faint popcorn drifts from the IMAX concession. Older, bookish air hangs in the mammal halls. Touch the 3.7-billion-year-old rock at the visitor cart. Suddenly you feel the city's obsession with time.

Tidal Basin paddle boats

Cherry-blossom petals carpet the water each April. They stick to your forearms as you steer under the Jefferson Memorial's shadow. Oars slap. Gulls wheel overhead. The city's traffic roar drops to a hush. Tour-boat horns sound distant. Summer humidity thickens the air. Still, the Potomac breeze cools the spray hitting your shins.

Eastern Market weekend artisan walk

Inside the 19th-century brick hall, guitar buskers bounce chords off iron rafters. Harissa from the North African stand sneaks through the crowd. Potters hawk indigo-glazed mugs still warm from the kiln. Linger near the bakery stall. Cinnamon drifts like gossip. This is D.C.'s closest thing to a neighborhood living room.

U Street Corridor-down jazz crawl

Saxophone riffs spill onto Duke Ellington's old block. Sweet jerk haze rises from a sidewalk drum grill. Between sets, bartenders shake cocktails. Ice clinks against vintage glassware. Marvin Gaye murals watch from brick walls. By the third club your foot keeps time with bass lines vibrating through floorboards.

Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens sunrise lotus watch

At dawn the wetlands smell of marsh mint and wet soil. Herons croak beyond lily pads. Pink lotus blooms open fast. You can almost hear them unfurl. Dew soaks your sneakers. The boardwalk frames glassy reflections of Anacostia treeline. Ten minutes of near-total quiet pass. Then the first airplane descends into Reagan National.

Dupont Circle - row-house hostels and embassy mansions, coffee shops where policy aides argue over espresso

Capitol Hill - brick sidewalks, weekend farmers' market, walk-to-monuments along East Capitol

Shaw - nightlife spill-over from U Street, new hotels wedged into 19th-century churches

Georgetown - quiet student-quilted blocks, C&O Canal towpath jogs

NoMa (north of Massachusetts Ave) - warehouse conversions, Red Line convenience, cheaper than downtown

Navy Yard - ballpark buzz, riverfront boardwalk, rooftop pools aimed at Capitol views