Visitor with a bunch of questions about NoVA (Alexandria, Manassas: hotel, live)

[Joey81]

I will be in Herdon, VA on July 8-12, and only attending a conference on the 10th, so I hope you can help with some questions:

1) EZPass: Can I obtain a temporary pass? If so, how?
2) I'll be staying at the Sheraton near IAD; is it advisable to drive to DC and the surrounding areas, or should I park and take the subway?
3) What do you think of the "Natural Bridge" in the Shenandoah Valley? Is it worth the drive?
4) Does anyone have any experience with data centers (i.e. colocation) in the area? I'm looking to build a disaster recover site and want to visit some of them.

Last time I was in the area was October 2006 for a few days but I didn't drive nor used the subway. It was autumn so it was beautiful and pleasant --- how's the weather there now? (I know I can check wunderground.com, but I'd still like to get a "feel" for it) I'm from east Los Angeles so I'm used to the congested traffic and hot summers

Thanks and have a nice 4th of July!

Joey

[VRE332]

Originally Posted by Joey81

I will be in Herdon, VA on July 8-12, and only attending a conference on the 10th, so I hope you can help with some questions:

1) EZPass: Can I obtain a temporary pass? If so, how?
2) I'll be staying at the Sheraton near IAD; is it advisable to drive to DC and the surrounding areas, or should I park and take the subway?
3) What do you think of the "Natural Bridge" in the Shenandoah Valley? Is it worth the drive?
4) Does anyone have any experience with data centers (i.e. colocation) in the area? I'm looking to build a disaster recover site and want to visit some of them.

Last time I was in the area was October 2006 for a few days but I didn't drive nor used the subway. It was autumn so it was beautiful and pleasant --- how's the weather there now? (I know I can check wunderground.com, but I'd still like to get a "feel" for it) I'm from east Los Angeles so I'm used to the congested traffic and hot summers

Thanks and have a nice 4th of July!

Joey

You cant get a temporary EZPass... either you have one, or you don't. Definitely park and use the Metro, however you can only pay for parking with a SmartTrip Card (spend the $5 and get one). Driving around DC is fun at night or on the weekends, but during the week you need to use public transportation. Parking gets full at the Metro lots, even Vienna Metro gets full, so leave early. There's a bunch of datacenters here, Sterling or Manassas or Ashburn has them. The weather here is hot and humid.

[Denton56]

Hot? Not today. Tonight it's 62 degrees and tomorrow's high is 80. We've had an unusually cool spring and summer this year. We've only had a couple of days over 90 degrees. It's usually very hot and humid in July. Must be all that global warming we hear so much about. Or something like that.

[Denton56]

I've lived here forever and never been to natural bridge but I can highly recommend the Blue Ridge Parkway for scenic beauty. It's spectacular.

[normie]

Natural Bridge is a long drive, there are any number of scenic areas much closer. If it was me, I'd take the metro most of the time. You will still have to drive a little ways to get to the nearest metro station. The Vienna station is closest to IAD and is a pretty drive. If you're going on a weekday be sure to leave early in the morning, as parking can fill up. If you're going a little later in the morning you might be better off trying West Falls Church station.

Where to go? Oh, there are so many places, but first things first. Have you been into DC yet? Be sure to go to the monuments and at least 1-2 of the museums if you've never done this. The museums are cool, and right now they're having a Folklife Festival on the national mall. Lots of music and things to look at, plus it always seems to amuse my friends from out of town to see a festival taking place right in front of the capital building.

I also recommend checking out Great Falls National Park. The best way to do this is to go to Riverbend Park (directly north of GFNP). Then hike 1 mile south to the Great Falls. It's a very pretty hike along the Potomac and a refreshing, shady change from the scenery you're used to in East LA. You need to drive to Great Falls, there's no nearby metro station.

It's also fun to walk around one of the older parts of town. Alexandria's Old Town is pretty cool. If you like gardens, Meadowlark Gardens (near Wolftrap) is spectacular this year.

There are lots of fun things to do nearby, let us know what you like and we'll be happy to guide you.

July can sometimes get hot, but it looks like summer will be relatively cool this year. Highs in the mid 80's, maybe going as high as the low 90s. Still, bring a suit so you can cool off in the hotel pool just in case it gets hot hot HOT!

[normie]

Originally Posted by Denton56

I've lived here forever and never been to natural bridge but I can highly recommend the Blue Ridge Parkway for scenic beauty. It's spectacular.

LOL, I've never really understood the fuss about Natural Bridge. It's ok, but like you I think the Blue Ridge Parkway is much more interesting.

[normie]

Originally Posted by Joey81

Does anyone have any experience with data centers (i.e. colocation) in the area? I'm looking to build a disaster recover site and want to visit some of them.

Is this for commercial work or classified/military? Either way, you may have a difficult time getting access to data centers out here, especially if you want to go into a building that requires clearances. If it's for commercial work, you might want to contact Network Solutions, which is in Sterling (about 2 miles from Dulles Airport).

[JfromReston]

Originally Posted by normie

I also recommend checking out Great Falls National Park. The best way to do this is to go to Riverbend Park (directly north of GFNP). Then hike 1 mile south to the Great Falls. It's a very pretty hike along the Potomac and a refreshing, shady change from the scenery you're used to in East LA. You need to drive to Great Falls, there's no nearby metro station.

I also highly recommend Great Falls.

As for parking and taking the Metro. You can park at the parking deck in Herndon and they have regular bus service that takes you to West Falls Church Metro.