Virginia Railway Express
Downtown DC is jumping!! Although a lot of the boom in Washington's downtown area from 6th to 13th Streets between D and I streets may be attributed to the new MCI Center, there was a lot going on here before the completion of the Center.
Seventh Street is the center of DC's arts and entertainment district. Attractions include galleries, museums, two theaters (Shakespeare Theater and Ford's) along with stores, apartments, movie theaters and office buildings. The area may be best explored on the third Thursday of every month when museums and galleries stay open until 8PM. Free one hour pub crawls start from the lobby of the National Museum of American Art (8th and G Sts) at 6:00PM and 6:30PM and include art and photography galleries where artists may be observed at work and their creations may be purchased. Restaurants abound in the area and the Discovery Channel Store at 601 F Street offers four floors of fun merchandise and displays.
Virginia Railway Express (VRE) offers Virginia visitors and metro residents south and west of Washington a unique, relaxing and stress free way to enjoy this special area of our capitol city. VRE can carry visitors from Manassas or Fredericksburg (and intermediate points) to Washington's L'Enfant station in comfort, while avoiding the stress of highway commuting and the hassle of parking. Midday trains on the Manassas line now offer greater flexibility in travel. A variety of departures are available for day trips on either line.
Upon arrival at L'Enfant Station, exit the platform via the 7th Street exit and turn right on 7th Street. Proceed straight on 7th Street past the Mall to G Street. A left turn on G Street one block to 8th Street will bring you to the National Museum of American Art for the pub crawl, or a walking tour of the area may be done on your own.