Washington, DC

This weekend the Nationals played their first games at their new ballpark. They started the season off great and christened the park with an amazing win in the Opening Day game. I already wrote a post about the Opening Day happenings, but I have saved for today to give an in depth look at what the Nationals Park offers the fans. This second part of this week’s Special Topic Tuesday is about Entertainment, Shopping, and the View will be posted tonight. The first part I posted this morning about eating at the park can be found here.

Entertainment

Of course, the main entertainment is the ball game itself, but for some that drag the kids along to the park you may find the other entertainment options useful. They are also good distractions if you get to the game early. For one, there is a Playstation area, where you can play different Playstation 3 games including baseball, singing, and playing the guitar. This is free, but you could at times face long lines for your turn. They seem to have some staff to make sure people do not hog the systems and take turns playing.

Next door to the Playstation area is a Build-a-Bear Worskhop. This costs money, but they are some cool souvenirs. Here you can make your own Screech or Inaugural Season Ballpark Bear. They also have Nationals apparel for dressing your newly stuffed Screech or bear or to take home to a Build-a-Bear creature you have made before. They even have a special Inaugural Season T-shirt for the bears.

To the right of Build-a-Bear there is the Strike Zone, where there are batting cages and pitching games. There is also a Kid’s Jungle Gym in this area.

The View: Seeing the Game

I only know from personal experience watching the game in the upper level of the sections on the right field baseline, but overall you definitely are close to the game than sitting in comparable seats at RFK. The section I sat in for the exhibition game was 230 and it was a good view of the whole field. For Opening Day I say in 234 one row from the top of the stands and the view was good for being up so high. This section, however, does have a blind spot of right field and you cannot first hand see any catch of a ball that is hit to deep right field. At the beginning of the game they seemed to replay all these plays on the scoreboard, but half way through the game they stopped even when one play was definitely a replay worthy play even if it did not happen in a part of the field some fans cannot see. This section also has the foul pole right in front of hit, but it did not really get in the way were we sat, but if we were lower in the section it might have been distracting. This section, however, gives the best view of the Washington Monument, so it totally has its upside, too.

The View: Seeing Other D.C. Landmarks from the Stadium

Depending on where you are in the Nationals Stadium you can see some other D.C. landmarks in the distance. For example, from the far end of the right field stands and outfield you can see the Washington Monument. You can also see the Washington National Cathedral. From behind home plate you can see the Capital dome in the distance almost perfectly framed. The Library of Congress roof is also noticeable from some spots.