Top 10 Freebies in Washington, DC

The spotlight swings to DC on January 21 for President Obama's inauguration. Just so happens I co-wrote Lonely Planet's new DC guidebook, so for the next week I'm going to post stories about the city. First up: my favorite freebies in town.

1. Smithsonian Institution - It's actually a collection of 19 museums, all gratis thanks to an eccentric Englishman named James Smithson (more on him later). Top draws are the rocket-fueled National Air and Space Museum and the dinosaur-and-diamond-stuffed National Museum of Natural History.

2. National Gallery of Art - It takes two massive buildings to hold the trove of paintings, and sculptures. Monet? da Vinci? Pollock? All here, plus a trippy tunnel connecting the two sections.

3. Lincoln Memorial - Massive Abe sits and gazes from his neoclassical temple. And you can stand spot-on where Martin Luther King Jr gave his 'I have a dream' speech.

4. National Archives - Gawp at John Hancock's, er, John Hancock scrawled across the real-deal Declaration of Independence. The Constitution and Bill of Rights unfurl alongside it.

5. Ford's Theatre - See where John Wilkes Booth shot Abraham Lincoln that fateful night in April 1865. The basement museum shows artifacts such as the murder weapon.

6. Capitol - Button-down guides take you through the mighty, white-domed sanctum of Congress, cluttered with busts, statues, frescoes and people in power suits.

7. Bureau of Engraving and Printing - Though the Treasury tour is about money, it won't be taking any of yours. Watch millions of dollars as they're printed, cut and inspected.

8. Library of Congress - The world's largest library is more than a stack of books. It's a museum with 500-year-old world maps, historic photographs, concerts and film screenings.

9. Kennedy Center - No dough for a big-ticket show? Fear not. The Millennium Stage hosts a free performance each evening at 6pm. Could be anyone from the National Symphony to a gospel group or Indian dance troupe.

10. Cultural Tourism DC - It provides free maps, apps and audio for DIY tours around the city that uncover civil rights sites, espionage hot spots and other historic places.

Road-Tripping on the Lincoln Highway

It has been 99 years since the Lincoln Highway - christened on October 31, 1913 - made it possible to drive coast-to-coast in America. The road beat a path from New York City to San Francisco, unfurling 2900 miles of pavement through the nation's heartland.

But today the highway is fading. It doesn't appear on most maps, because it's no longer an official road, but rather a patchwork of federal and state byways. The Lincoln Highway Association works to preserve the route. Pez museums, fried-chicken diners, giant coffee pot statues, and other Americana reward road-trippers who follow it.

In Illinois, a series of murals also marks the way, denoting hot spots such as Rochelle, where Emily Post honed her admirable manners in 1915, and University Park, where the Van Buren sisters  revved motorcycles for their historic cross-country journey. See more on the Illinois artworks in my AAA article here.

Abe Lincoln: Ass-Kicker

Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter has hit bookstores with a vengeance. Who knew the Great Emancipator wielded his ax for more than splitting rails?

"I cut Williams' head off... When it fell to the floor, his eyes were black as the shoes he had been polishing. I have not the faintest idea what his crimes were, nor do I care. I care only that there is one less vampire today than there was yesterday."

Yowza! Author Seth Grahame-Smith shows this heretofore unknown side of the 16th prez. When he launched his book tour at the Lincoln Presidential Museum in Springfield, many historians cried foul. Too bad, because this is awesome stuff. Watch the video below to see for yourself.

Lincoln's Disappearing Body

Honest Abe has been in the news a lot lately, and not just because of his 200th birthday (which happens to be today). Back in December, when Illinois governor Blagojevich got busted for corruption, the federal prosecutor said time and again that Blago's conduct "would make Lincoln roll over in his grave."

Funny thing is, Lincoln has been rolled out of his grave. Several times.

In 1876 thieves boozing in a Chicago tavern hatched a plot to steal Abe's body from its Springfield site and ransom it. Cops stopped the crooks at the cemetery. Soon thereafter custodians moved Abe's body to a concrete-fortified vault.

In 1901 they moved it again, to an even more secure location. Today when you visit Abe's Springfield tomb and circle through the burial chamber, past the crypts of his three sons and wife Mary, and arrive at the marker bearing his name, know this: Abe's body is actually 13 feet below floor level, with a six-foot concrete slab on top of the coffin.

He may roll over in there, but he won't be rolled out again anytime soon.