Budget Washington DC Trip Itinerary - 4 Days 4 Nights - Autumn season

Washington DC being the capital of United States offers many tourist attractions and historical places which is interesting to visit. Some of these places being features in the box office Hollywood movies and having Pentagon in spy related movies. The main attractions to Washington DC is the National Mall. The National Mall area comprises the area from US Capitol to Washington Monument. The best thing about National Mall is that most of the museums are free of charge. And at the National Mall, you can view most of the national monuments here such as Washington Monument, US Capitol Building, Lincoln Memorial and White House which is the official residence for the president of United States.


US Capitol Building.

White House at night.

Beautiful main hall of Library of Congress.

Learn the meaning of freedom from Thomas Jefferson Memorial.

Day	Morning	Afternoon	Evening	Night
Day 1 (Thur)	1. Arrival 6.00am at Washington Dulles Airport (IAD) via Virgin America flight from Los Angeles, USA 2. Taking Metrobus 5A from Washington Dulles Airport to Rosslyn Metro station. From Rosslyn Metro Station you have direct access to Washington DC. I took the metro train to Braddock Road Station in Alexandria, Virginia. Do take note that Washington DC is located nearby state of Virginia and Maryland. 3. Check in at Home Stay via Airbnb. Great the host allowed me to put my luggage.	1. Lunch. Hard Times cafe 2. Visit Old Town of Alexandria, Virginia. View photos of Alexandria here.	1. Washington Monument 2. Lincoln Memorial 3. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum 4. US Capitol outside view.	1. Dinner. Chinatown Express having chicken noodles. 2. White House at night outside view.
Day 2 (Fri)	1. US Capitol Visitor Centre	1. Lunch at US Capitol Cafeteria. 2. Library Of Congress. This is the world largest library. Beautiful interior.	1. National Gallery of Art	1. Dinner. Panda Express.
Day 3 (Sat)	1. Breakfast at King Street Cafe 2. Arlington National Cemetery	1. Lunch. Ben's Chili Bowl.	1. Georgetown, Washington DC.	1. Dinner. Little Viet Garden Restaurant for Vietnamese food.
Day 4 (Sun)	1. Breakfast. Cereal at home stay. 2. Thomas Jefferson Memorial.	1. Martin Luther King Memorial	1. Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. 2. Shopping in Pentagon City Mall.	1. Dinner. J Paul's Georgetown having baby back rib.

Budget Paris Trip Itinerary - 6 Days 5 Nights - Spring season

It has been a while since my trip to Paris during spring of 2012. There has been a few request from the readers on my full itinerary of my Paris trip. Hope that the table below are able to help those who would like to explore Paris in the near future. Paris is a wonderful place to go and explore as its full of culture, history, shopping and fashion. If you like to travel Paris budget style but not compromise on quality, please find my trip itinerary below. Hope that you will find it useful.


Paris is not just about Eiffel Tower. It has more waiting for you to explore!

Day	Morning	Afternoon	Evening	Night
Day 1 (Thur)	1. Arrival 6.40am at Charles de Gaulle Airport via MH20 2. Check in at Neptune Hotel	1. Sundemans Paris free tour.	1. Champ de Elysee 2. Lamborghini test drive 3. Tea time. French baguette. Brioche Doree cafe 4. Arc de Triomphe 5. Le Marias	1. Dinner. L’As du Fallafel 2. Chocolate shop. Maison Georges Larnicol 3. Visiting Carrefour for breakfast stock
Day 2 (Fri)	1. Versailles Palace – Main building	1. Versailles Palace – The gardens	1. Versailles Palace - Marie Antoinette’s estate	1. Musee du Louvre – World largest art gallery and to view Mona Lisa. 2. Dinner. Le George V cafe for escargot
Day 3 (Sat)	1. Breakfast – Tang Gourmet 2. Montmatre - Sacre Coeur	1. Montmatre funicular ride 2. Bersih event in Paris	1. Notre Dame Cathedral	1. Dinner. Le Jean Bart for sliced duck 2. Eiffel Tower at night
Day 4 (Sun)	1. Fontainebleau Palace		1. Musee d’Orsay for Impressionist masterpieces	1. Dinner. Leon De Bruxelles for French style mussel
Day 5 (Mon)	1. Pete Lachaise cemetery. Burial place for famous people.	1. Lunch. Obododo cafe for pork rib with honey sauce 2. Galeries Lafayette shopping centre	1. Sainte Chapelle church	1. Dinner. Dudule Restaurant
Day 6 (Tue)	1. Breakfast. Boulanger Patissier for goat milk quiche 2. Travel to Amsterdam by Thalys train

Houses of Parliament view at night @ London

Just reaching London and checked in hostel at around 7.00pm, I don't have much itinerary plan during the day. So I plan to have a walk around Westminster to capture the glimpse around the area at night. During the day it would be different scene as there will be many tourists around.


Get down at Westminster station.


First sight of Big Ben.

Looking up at Big Ben.


The famous London Eye at the opposite of Parliament house.

Iconic red London double decker bus.

London tube also known as Underground.

Clean and quiet station during night.

GPS/Coordinate: 51.499472, -0.124830
Address: Westminster, London SW1A 0AA, United Kingdom
Public transport: Westminster station on London tube.

Trafalgar Square @ London

Trafalgar Square, the largest square in London and it is often regards as the heart of the city. This area has been a central meeting place since the middle ages. In the middle of the square stands a tall column honoring admiral Nelson who was a British flag officer famous for his service in the Royal Navy, particularly during the Napoleonic Wars. He was involved in the most notable war which was the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, during which he was shot and killed. The battle was the most decisive naval victory of the war. The British victory spectacularly confirmed the naval supremacy as during the Battle of Trafalgar, 27 British ships were against 33 French and Spanish ships which Britain had won at that time.

This site is always crowded with visitors/tourist. I would recommend to combine a visit to the National Art Gallery just off the main square.



Nelson Column at the centre of Trafalgar Square.

Trafalgar Square during sunset. The fountain was glowing blue.

Sunset at Trafalgar Square.

National Art Gallery.

London iconic red bus around Trafalgar Square.

Wow, Tourism Malaysia office just opposite Trafalgar Square. Hope that you have done a good job by promoting Malaysia in London.

GPS/Coordinate: 51.507959, -0.128112
Address: Trafalgar Square, Westminster, London WC2N 5DN, United Kingdom
Public Transport: Charing Cross station on London tube.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial @ Washington DC

Beneath the marble rotunda, the 19-foot statue of the third US President is surrounded by passages from the Declaration of Independence and other famous Jefferson writings.


Thomas Jefferson Memorial.

Thomas Jefferson statue surrounded by Declaration of Independence and writings.


Thomas Jefferson statue.

One of the Jefferson's famous writing.

Thomas Jefferson memorial from the side dome. Its easily recognized by the round dome on The National Mall.

Coordinate/GPS: 38.881429,-77.036651
Metro Station:Smithsonian Metro(Orange/Blue lines). Its quite a distance to walk as it is accorss the Tidal Basin. Estimated 20 minutes walk from this metro station.
Address:1500 Maine Ave. SW, Washington DC
Phone:(202) 426-6841
Hours: Daily 8am to 12am.

US Capitol @ Washington DC

The United States Capitol is the meeting place of the United States Congress, the legislature of the federal government of the United States. In order to gain access to the building, you will need to pre-book your visit via the website below. When you register, you will attend a tour which will bring you to view inside US Capitol. Tours of the Capitol begin with a 13-minute orientation film and last approximately one hour. As usual, the security checks are tight and there is restriction on what you can bring.


Iconic US Capitol dome (The Rotunda). It have become international symbols of US representative democracy. At the top of the dome is Statue of Freedom. The Rotunda is the heart and centre of the Capitol. Although it serves no legislative function, it is a ceremonial space where state funerals have been held since the time of Abraham Lincoln, for Presidents, members of Congress, military heroes and eminent citizens. Visiting heads of state and special guests are often received in the Rotunda as well.


US Capitol facing sunset.

Inside US Capitol dome.

Zoom to the top of the dome.

The figures shown the historical event in America.

Under the dome.

The old house of representative.

Can only show you the entrance ticket to the House of Representative. No recording devices are allowed. You need to get this special ticket from a counter above the US Capitol tour counter after your US Capitol tour. The House is referred to as the lower house, with the Senate being the upper house, although the United States Constitution does not use that terminology. Both houses' approval is necessary for the passage of legislation.

The Capitol restaurant.

Having my lunch here. I order penne with carbonara sauce with broccoli and chicken. This dish cost USD8.00.

The restaurant is like a huge canteen. The food selection is moderate.

You will need to register here to get your free pass.

Me with US Capitol building.

Coordinate/GPS: 38.88983,-77.009164
Metro station: Capitol South Station on blue or orange line.
Address: Washington, DC 20510, United States.
Hours: The Capitol Visitor Center is open to visitors from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Saturday except for Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, New Year's Day and Inauguration Day.
Website: http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/

Washington monument @ The National Mall, Washington DC

Washington Monument is the tallest building in Washington DC. Stood at 169 metres. This is the most recognizable monument in Washington DC as it always appeared in TV shows. There are regulation which mentioned that none any other building should build higher than Washington Monument in DC(District of Columbia). It took two phases of construction to complete due to financial issue. As the builder unable to find the same quarry stone used in the initial construction the monument has different hues of the stone on the bottom third.

Upon completion, it became the world's tallest structure. The monument held this designation until 1889, when the Eiffel Tower was completed in Paris, France. The monument stands due east of the Reflecting Pool and the Lincoln Memorial. The monument was damaged during the Virginia earthquake of August 23, 2011 and Hurricane Irene in the same year; it remains closed to the public while the structure is assessed and repaired. Its unfortunate that I am not able to go to the top to view the surroundings of Washington DC.


Washington monument. Notice the different hue.

USA flags at the bottom of the monument.

Washington monument from Lincoln memorial with US Capitol as background.

From Tidal basin.

Washington Monument view from World War II memorial.

The weather was so hot!

Coordinate/GPS: 38°53′22.08377″N 77°2′6.86378″W
Metro Station: Smithsonian on blue or orange line.
Address: Madison Drive Northwest, Washington, DC, United States
Opening hours:Mon-Sun (9am–5pm)

Night view of Eiffel Tower @ Paris

Built in 1889 as the entrance arch to the 1889 World's Fair, it has become both a global cultural icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The tower is divided into two stages. You can either go up to the top or to the second floor. The top floor can only be accessible via lift and it cost Euro 14 to get there. The ticket is Euro 8.50 if you just want to reach second floor and Euro 5.00 if you plan to climb the stair to second floor. Make sure that you have enough stamina to climb 1,652 stairs. Usually the queue to go up Eiffel is quite long and you may have to queue from 2 hours to 4 hours. Plan to come in the early morning or late evening if you would like to skip the queue.

In my opinion, Eiffel tower sight is better at night as the light illuminate the tower and every hour after dawn, it will blinks for 5 minutes.


Eiffel during rainy day.

Eiffel Tower in Paris bursts into a shimmering display of lights.

Blinking Eiffel.

Captured using my wide angle lens.

Underneath Eiffel.

Engineer Gustave Eiffel. His company designed and built the tower.

Me with Eiffel tower.

Located: On the Champ de Mars in the 7th arrondissement (midwest Paris)
Metro: Bir Hakeim or Trocadero (Line 6), Ecole Militaire (Line 8)
RER: Champs de Mars-Tour Eiffel (Line C)