Tania's Washington, DC Travel Blog

Frederick Douglass spent the last 17 years of his life in Washington as the U.S. Marshal of the District. The home that he lived in is a beautiful mansion in the Anacostia neighborhood of Washington. Tours are given daily except for major holidays. It may be off the beaten path but it's definitely worth a visit. Check out this guide on all you can see.

The five-week long celebration of Washington's cherry blossoms will close tonight at the PetalFest. The free concert is from 5:30 Pm to 8 Pm, and features performances by The Family Stone and Chelsey Green and The Green Project. The event is at the Woodrow Wilson Plaza at Pennsylvania Avenue and 13th Street, NW. The best way to get there is on Metro's Blue and Orange lines and getting off at Federal Triangle. Call 877-44-BLOOM for more information.

The National Portrait Gallery has some family-friendly events on the horizon. Here's some of what you can do during May:

Portrait Discovery Kits are interactive ways to learn more about the people who are in the National Portrait Gallery and their contributions to American history. The kits lead you on a self-guided tour using "Seek and Find" cards, "Portrait Detective" and "Historian Guides," and a "Compare and Contrast" activity using a doll. Kits are available May 5, 1 PM to 4 PM; May 13 2 PM to 5 PM; May 20 2 PM to 5 PM; May 26 1 PM to 4 PM; and May 27 2 PM to 5 PM.

The Gallery is also holding Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Family Day on May 6 from 11:30 AM to 3 PM. The event includes music and dance performances and range of hands-on activities about portraiture and identity.

One of the biggest Earth Day celebrations will on the National Mall on Sunday, April 22, 2012. Bands like Cheap Trick and environmental activists will take the stage for a full-day celebration of the Earth. You can find even more fun stuff to do in this weekend's calendar.

If you're in Washington on April 17, 2012, you might want to look in the sky between 10 AM and 11 AM. The space shuttle Discovery will be flying over at 1,500 feet over various parts of the nation's capital. Weather and other factors will determine its route, but NASA says the aircraft, which will be mounted to a 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, is expected to fly over the National Mall, Reagan National Airport, National Harbor, and the Smithsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center. It will then land at Dulles International Airport and eventually get transferred to the National Air and Space Museum.

I recently went on a tour of the White House with my daughters. It took a few attempts to get tickets through my congressman but it was worth the time and effort.

So why was it worth it? It created a lasting memory for my daughters and me. Not many people get to go in the White House and we were fortunate enough to get the privilege. Second, it was a truly beautiful building. You only get to see a portion of it but you see some of the most famous rooms in the building - the East Room and the State Dining Room. (Sorry, the Oval Office is off limits.) You see beautiful portraits of former presidents and first ladies, as well. And the historic decor of the rooms was really interesting.

Sure the process of getting tickets and getting through security are time consuming for a self-guided 45-minute tour. But it's a special experience that won't be forgotten. Plus, there are great bragging rights.

Some words of advice: give yourself at least six months to get tickets from your member of Congress; be flexible about when you'd like to go on the tour; and dress nicely for the tour.

I saw some pretty bad behavior last Sunday on a recent stroll of the Tidal Basin where the Cherry Blossom trees live. So here are five tips for enjoying the Cherry Blossoms while also respecting their age and beauty.

1. Don't climb or sit on the trees. In this picture, a couple completely ignored two signs that instructed visitors to not sit or climb on this 80-year-old cork tree. In fact, several people came to stand or sit on the tree to take pictures while I stood there for about 10 minutes. Imagine the hundreds of people who did this in one day.

2. Don't pick the blossoms or shake the branches. It's so tempting to pick off the pretty flowers on the trees but the National Park Service has several signs around the Tidal Basin asking people not to pick the blossoms. It's also tempting to shake the branches to create a beautiful picture opportunity. Let's keep the petals on the trees.

3. The Tidal Basin path can get very crowded on the weekends and even on some weekdays during peak blooming season. When spotting that must-take picture, step off the path to the side so that people can still walk, and you can still get your photo.

4. Another good tip for crowded days is to walk single file. The path is narrow and there are several sections where there's nothing guarding people from falling into the Tidal Basin. So the only way to accommodate people who may want to walk faster than others is to give them space to pass by.

5. Clean up after yourself. Many people have picnics on the grassy areas around the Tidal Basin and there's plenty of trash cans around for post picnic clean-up.

The Cherry Blossoms were in full bloom this weekend. I took this picture just a few hours ago as thousands of people strolled around the Tidal Basin. This is the week to visit the Tidal Basin and take in the beauty of these 100-year-old trees before the blossoms disappear for another year.

Opening day of the Cherry Blossom Festival is getting closer. Organizers recently announced that two of Japan's most popular musical acts will be performing during the festival's open ceremony on March 25, 2012: MISIA and Hideki Togi. They'll join U.S. singer, Sara Bareilles. Remember her catchy hit, "Love Song"? Then ABC's Katie Couric will co-host the parade on April 14, 2012 with Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek. Check out the Cherry Blossom Festival calendar for more event info.

Predicting when the Cherry Blossoms will start to bloom is a tricky business. But every year officials release their prediction and it usually is just about right. This year officials are predicting March 24 through March 31 as the peak bloom time for the beautiful trees. Opening day of the festival is March 25, so it's perfect timing.