What to see at National Gallery in D.C?

[Jimmie Arroyo]

I will throw in my $.02 and say the National Gallery is a huge disappointment compared to the Metropolitan. The architecture is beautiful in the original building, but several rooms were closed when I was there. I was'nt crazy about the basic layout which has you moving room to room in a manner completely different than the Met. I may simply be used to the Met's layout and not being fair to the NGA. The Met seems more convenient moving around. The collection is much smaller than the Met, and the new building is, imo, a waste of space. I personally do not care for the majority of modern art, but the layout is terrible. The building itself takes more importrance than the work with big open areas and small rooms.

I was thankful it was free, because we were driving back from Virginia and stopped there just for the museum. Maybe it's better than I think, I could have been upset expecting more and taking longer to find a parking than NYC. I would not go out of my way to go there again, unless I'm directly in the area or there's an important show going on. Again, just my opinion and I could be completely off.