Anyone remember the old DC aquarium in the Hoover building?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This takes me back! I took my kids 18-19 yrs ago and it was quintessential DC at the time. It was totally grim but it was ours.

I think that sense - the sense it was totally grim but still ours - is what made me create this thread.

Anyone remember the 2-headed snake?

I’m so glad it resonated. DC had such a different feel back then. The bizarro children's museum was still in town. We didn’t have to compete like crazy to get kids into camps although getting into the one Spanish speaking school east of the park was a nutty lottery. The food scene had yet to explode. 14th Street, the Wharf: none of that development even existed. Such a different time.

Sorry, don’t remember the two headed snake

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This takes me back! I took my kids 18-19 yrs ago and it was quintessential DC at the time. It was totally grim but it was ours.

I think that sense - the sense it was totally grim but still ours - is what made me create this thread.

Anyone remember the 2-headed snake?

I’m so glad it resonated. DC had such a different feel back then. The bizarro children's museum was still in town. We didn’t have to compete like crazy to get kids into camps although getting into the one Spanish speaking school east of the park was a nutty lottery. The food scene had yet to explode. 14th Street, the Wharf: none of that development even existed. Such a different time.

Sorry, don’t remember the two headed snake

I loved that children's museum as a kid! I just remember making tortillas lol

I never liked the DC aquarium. It was always so disappointing. The Baltimore aquarium ending up buying them which is why Baltimore is now the National Aquarium

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This takes me back! I took my kids 18-19 yrs ago and it was quintessential DC at the time. It was totally grim but it was ours.

I think that sense - the sense it was totally grim but still ours - is what made me create this thread.

Anyone remember the 2-headed snake?

I’m so glad it resonated. DC had such a different feel back then. The bizarro children's museum was still in town. We didn’t have to compete like crazy to get kids into camps although getting into the one Spanish speaking school east of the park was a nutty lottery. The food scene had yet to explode. 14th Street, the Wharf: none of that development even existed. Such a different time.

Sorry, don’t remember the two headed snake

I loved that children's museum as a kid! I just remember making tortillas lol

I never liked the DC aquarium. It was always so disappointing. The Baltimore aquarium ending up buying them which is why Baltimore is now the National Aquarium

That’s not at all true. I worked in Maryland politics at the time. Sarbanes pushed an effort through Congress in 1979 to have it recognized and classified as the National Aquarium.

[Anonymous]

Loved it, had its own charm! It was like being in a creepy uncle's basement.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This takes me back! I took my kids 18-19 yrs ago and it was quintessential DC at the time. It was totally grim but it was ours.

I think that sense - the sense it was totally grim but still ours - is what made me create this thread.

Anyone remember the 2-headed snake?

I’m so glad it resonated. DC had such a different feel back then. The bizarro children's museum was still in town. We didn’t have to compete like crazy to get kids into camps although getting into the one Spanish speaking school east of the park was a nutty lottery. The food scene had yet to explode. 14th Street, the Wharf: none of that development even existed. Such a different time.

Sorry, don’t remember the two headed snake

I loved the Children’s Museum! Rosie the goat! Mexican hot chocolate! The bubble room! Kids would happily spend all day there.

[Anonymous]

Did they actually charge admission? I was a Commerce employee anyway, but don't think I would have wanted to pay a whole lot.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Did they actually charge admission? I was a Commerce employee anyway, but don't think I would have wanted to pay a whole lot.

Nah - I’m pretty sure it was free and that’s the only reason I ended up taking my kids. I had out of town friends who didn’t want to pay the fee for the Baltimore Aquarium so we went downtown. I hadn’t seen it until then and I had lived and worked in DC for decades.

[Anonymous]

I went to a bar mitzvah at the aquarium in 1992 or 93. It was such an odd little aquarium but I did bring my kids a few times when we had a morning to kill - at 1 and 3, my kids didn’t really need much more than that to keep them occupied.

[Anonymous]

I loved the old children’s museum! I remember going there on a 3rd grade field trip! I remember the tortillas, the two-story street scape scene with balconies, the room with the mazes and mirrors, and the room where you could climb down a pretend manhole and see what was under our everyday streets. That was the most fun museum I had ever been to!

How bout two more iconic DC memories:

1). Field trip to the Naval Observatory — had a picnic lunch there too — now it is all behind security

2) Field trip to do brass rubbings in the basement of the (I think?) National Cathedral

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This takes me back! I took my kids 18-19 yrs ago and it was quintessential DC at the time. It was totally grim but it was ours.

I think that sense - the sense it was totally grim but still ours - is what made me create this thread.

Anyone remember the 2-headed snake?

I’m so glad it resonated. DC had such a different feel back then. The bizarro children's museum was still in town. We didn’t have to compete like crazy to get kids into camps although getting into the one Spanish speaking school east of the park was a nutty lottery. The food scene had yet to explode. 14th Street, the Wharf: none of that development even existed. Such a different time.

Sorry, don’t remember the two headed snake

Remember the huge sea turtle?

[Anonymous]

The Baltimore aquarium is crazy expensive now. We took some visiting relatives there and it was $500 for our party of 10.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The Baltimore aquarium is crazy expensive now. We took some visiting relatives there and it was $500 for our party of 10.

Agree. My kids got tickets for the aquarium last year fir Christmas from
“Santa.” They were 14 and 10. That was the only way we have been to that aquarium. I get it: I do not begrudge animal care etc, but we just do not do things like that very often so it really has to be a “special” thing, once they were old enough to appreciate it.