Hey everyone, I have returned from my trip to DC. And I must say it was very fun, educational, and magic filled, to my surprise. But I'll give everyone a quick rundown of the events that happened. (Both magic and non-magic related.)
So, a few months ago my family decided that Washington DC would be a fun vacation for all four of us, so we booked hotels and made arrangements at museums and things of that nature. We even got into that White House only 2 weeks before the trip. People often have to schedule 8-10 weeks prior to your tour. Anyway, the day to go on the trip came and all at once, at 1:00am, my family packed into a minivan with suitcases, backpacks, books, cards, and a cooler, and we started our epic journey to the nations capital.
Oh, by the way. The day before we left I was hired to work on my towns main street as a busker every thursday night through Septemeber. 75$ an hour.
Well, we arrived at our hotel, located somewhere in the center of DC, and after a 10 hour car ride we were all in dire need of some rest. So we all slept for an hour then woke up and made our way down to the pool, where I, due to my light polish skin, was burned very badly in an hour, even with SPF 50 sunscreen. Damn white skin.
That night, my grandmother who happens to be the president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association who got us tickets to the white house with her connections, flew in to meet up with her son, daughter in law, and her two grandkids. We went our and saw all the monuments in one night. The Lincoln Monument, The Washington Monument, The Reflecting Pool, WWII Monument, Vietnam Monument, Nurses Monument, etc. Needless to say we were exhausted. We went toi sleep at midnight.
The next day we woke up at 5:00am, and went down to the hotel's crowded, and less than delicious, continental breakfast. But we forced ourselves to eat because we had a big day ahead of us. First, we went to the White House, where my grandmother introduced us to her connection who got us into the White House at such short notice. A Massachusetts congressman named Jim McGovern. (That may be spelled wrong. Congressman, you have my apologies.) We went on the tour, and saw the house. It was okay...didn't see too much, though. But I did see a glorious piece of art. It is the famous painting of George Washington. It is the original too. When the original White House burned in 1816, I believe, a brave man rushed in and saved the painting, and it hangs there today.
After our tour we left my Grandmother who had to fly back to Massachusetts to work on some buisness stuff. So, my family continued on to the International Spy Museum. We went on "the secret spy mission" which is a fun and cheesy recreation of a spy mission. Then we saw the actual museum itself. Here we saw the coolest gadgets that have been ACTUALLY USED. They rang from minicameras and tape recorders in shoes, all the way to lipstick pistols and disguises. Amazing!!! A must see for people that like undercover work and spy stuff.
Also, I bought the most kick-ass shirt there. (Obviously it doesn't beat my Red Hot Chili Pepper's T-shirt. But its close.) The shirt is blue and inside a black box on the chest it reads: "DECEPTION IS REALITY..."
That same day I used the computer in the hotel to locate any magic shops near DC. I found one out in Maryland, and my parents agreed to take the Metro (Subway) out to check it out. I was bracing myself for the worst, assuming that it would be a tiny little shop that sold mostly jokes, and a small bit of magic. However, the store was better than I could've imagined and I wound up spending 185$ there. It was a monster of a store run by a man named Barry Taylor, His Wife, and Son. They all perform, or performed, magic. Barry's performing style is cheesy, but the type of cheesy that is funny. I'll post a review of the shop and contact info later. Jay Sankey, apparently recently held a lecture at that shop and told them, and I quote: "Wow. I have been to a ton of magic shops, and this is the best one I've ever seen."
On the Metro, I found it fun to flourish with cards, do color changes, and ranomly pull them out of my mouth. Needless to say, people started to notice me and I performed frequently on the train. I even got to perform for some employees at the spy museum with a cool deck of cards which featured every girld from James Bond Movies on their faces.Good times.
The next two days were spent at museums such as the natural History Museum, The American History Museum, The Holocaust Museum, and a few others. They were all fun, although, the Holocaust Museum wasn't as emotional as everyone said. But that is most likely due to the fact that I have studied the subject profusely.
So we left DC and headed on over to a new state: New Jersey. Here we attended Six Flags: Great Adventure. We took a safari, where a very determined Ostrich pecked at our window.Then we went to the park itself and we had fun riding rollercoasters such as: Nitro, El Torro, and Batman. (They also had an indoor coatser based on the Dark Knight which sucked more than the movie did.)
Then we came hom today where I was greeted with my packages from Ellusionist and theory11. So in total I wound up with all of these magical supplies...
Barry's Quess Again Revelation
Barry's Half Gone
Jay Sankey's: Kaleidascope
3 Blue Bicycle Vintage Decks
3 Red Bicycle Vintage Decks
1 White Karnival Deck
A Hippity Hop rabbit for my kids show.
A Dice Box For My Kids Show
Loops Vol 1
1 Pack of Loops
Joe Paschals Believe
3 Red Split Spade Lions
3 Blue Split Spades Lions
Real Secrets Of Magic Vol 1
Real Secrets Of Magic Vol 2
Art Of Magic
6 White Ghost Decks
A Giant Quarter
A Quick word regarding Barry's Magic Shop- The Shop itself is amazing. There are new books as well as the old classics. He has many decks of cards from T11, E, and other places. He has DVD's too. some of which are his own.
One of his effects: Half Gone. Is an amazing coin routine in which it impossibly disapears and reappears. And even disappears off of the spectators hand under the cover of a card. They even feel the coin up until the last second when the card is removed. Let me say that this is the BEST gimmick I've ever seen.
Full review of the shop soon. But I get my Wisdom Teeth out tomorrow and have to go to sleep.
Dylan P.
So, a few months ago my family decided that Washington DC would be a fun vacation for all four of us, so we booked hotels and made arrangements at museums and things of that nature. We even got into that White House only 2 weeks before the trip. People often have to schedule 8-10 weeks prior to your tour. Anyway, the day to go on the trip came and all at once, at 1:00am, my family packed into a minivan with suitcases, backpacks, books, cards, and a cooler, and we started our epic journey to the nations capital.
Oh, by the way. The day before we left I was hired to work on my towns main street as a busker every thursday night through Septemeber. 75$ an hour.
Well, we arrived at our hotel, located somewhere in the center of DC, and after a 10 hour car ride we were all in dire need of some rest. So we all slept for an hour then woke up and made our way down to the pool, where I, due to my light polish skin, was burned very badly in an hour, even with SPF 50 sunscreen. Damn white skin.
That night, my grandmother who happens to be the president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association who got us tickets to the white house with her connections, flew in to meet up with her son, daughter in law, and her two grandkids. We went our and saw all the monuments in one night. The Lincoln Monument, The Washington Monument, The Reflecting Pool, WWII Monument, Vietnam Monument, Nurses Monument, etc. Needless to say we were exhausted. We went toi sleep at midnight.
The next day we woke up at 5:00am, and went down to the hotel's crowded, and less than delicious, continental breakfast. But we forced ourselves to eat because we had a big day ahead of us. First, we went to the White House, where my grandmother introduced us to her connection who got us into the White House at such short notice. A Massachusetts congressman named Jim McGovern. (That may be spelled wrong. Congressman, you have my apologies.) We went on the tour, and saw the house. It was okay...didn't see too much, though. But I did see a glorious piece of art. It is the famous painting of George Washington. It is the original too. When the original White House burned in 1816, I believe, a brave man rushed in and saved the painting, and it hangs there today.
After our tour we left my Grandmother who had to fly back to Massachusetts to work on some buisness stuff. So, my family continued on to the International Spy Museum. We went on "the secret spy mission" which is a fun and cheesy recreation of a spy mission. Then we saw the actual museum itself. Here we saw the coolest gadgets that have been ACTUALLY USED. They rang from minicameras and tape recorders in shoes, all the way to lipstick pistols and disguises. Amazing!!! A must see for people that like undercover work and spy stuff.
Also, I bought the most kick-ass shirt there. (Obviously it doesn't beat my Red Hot Chili Pepper's T-shirt. But its close.) The shirt is blue and inside a black box on the chest it reads: "DECEPTION IS REALITY..."
That same day I used the computer in the hotel to locate any magic shops near DC. I found one out in Maryland, and my parents agreed to take the Metro (Subway) out to check it out. I was bracing myself for the worst, assuming that it would be a tiny little shop that sold mostly jokes, and a small bit of magic. However, the store was better than I could've imagined and I wound up spending 185$ there. It was a monster of a store run by a man named Barry Taylor, His Wife, and Son. They all perform, or performed, magic. Barry's performing style is cheesy, but the type of cheesy that is funny. I'll post a review of the shop and contact info later. Jay Sankey, apparently recently held a lecture at that shop and told them, and I quote: "Wow. I have been to a ton of magic shops, and this is the best one I've ever seen."
On the Metro, I found it fun to flourish with cards, do color changes, and ranomly pull them out of my mouth. Needless to say, people started to notice me and I performed frequently on the train. I even got to perform for some employees at the spy museum with a cool deck of cards which featured every girld from James Bond Movies on their faces.Good times.
The next two days were spent at museums such as the natural History Museum, The American History Museum, The Holocaust Museum, and a few others. They were all fun, although, the Holocaust Museum wasn't as emotional as everyone said. But that is most likely due to the fact that I have studied the subject profusely.
So we left DC and headed on over to a new state: New Jersey. Here we attended Six Flags: Great Adventure. We took a safari, where a very determined Ostrich pecked at our window.Then we went to the park itself and we had fun riding rollercoasters such as: Nitro, El Torro, and Batman. (They also had an indoor coatser based on the Dark Knight which sucked more than the movie did.)
Then we came hom today where I was greeted with my packages from Ellusionist and theory11. So in total I wound up with all of these magical supplies...
Barry's Quess Again Revelation
Barry's Half Gone
Jay Sankey's: Kaleidascope
3 Blue Bicycle Vintage Decks
3 Red Bicycle Vintage Decks
1 White Karnival Deck
A Hippity Hop rabbit for my kids show.
A Dice Box For My Kids Show
Loops Vol 1
1 Pack of Loops
Joe Paschals Believe
3 Red Split Spade Lions
3 Blue Split Spades Lions
Real Secrets Of Magic Vol 1
Real Secrets Of Magic Vol 2
Art Of Magic
6 White Ghost Decks
A Giant Quarter
A Quick word regarding Barry's Magic Shop- The Shop itself is amazing. There are new books as well as the old classics. He has many decks of cards from T11, E, and other places. He has DVD's too. some of which are his own.
One of his effects: Half Gone. Is an amazing coin routine in which it impossibly disapears and reappears. And even disappears off of the spectators hand under the cover of a card. They even feel the coin up until the last second when the card is removed. Let me say that this is the BEST gimmick I've ever seen.
Full review of the shop soon. But I get my Wisdom Teeth out tomorrow and have to go to sleep.
Dylan P.
