Come visit the Commuter Service Center in Crystal City to refill and/ or obtain metro cards to ride…read morethe bus and metro! MARC and VRE tickets are also for sale! They're open from 10am to 7pm, Monday through Friday. Be sure to ask them if the silver line to Dulles will be finished before the Redskins win the Super Bowl!

This is a very convenient place to fill up your MetroCard. They also provide Marc and VRE rail…read morepasses.

I recently went to the TSA Precheck appointment with Idemia in Portland Maine.. The gentleman who I…read moresaw was very polite, patient and professional. He was pleasant and didn't get harried by the crowded waiting room. He did a great job, was quick and efficient. I was in and out in no time at all. Claudia Sienko

Thousands Standing Around. Taking Scissors Away. Tear Suitcase Apart. Tub Stacking Authority. Yes,…read morethe agency that travelers love to hate has a reviewable business on Yelp. So as a frequent customer of the TSA averaging about 1.8 encounters with them per week for the last ten years, I'm very entitled to give feedback. A few years ago, I applied for and after my identity was confirmed, I was granted a Known Traveler Number. This number goes in my airline profile and when I book tickets, it ensures that I've been just about 100% to get TSA Precheck on my boarding passes. It means that I get the less intrusive, shorter, faster, security queue where shoes stay on, liquids and laptops stay in their respective bags and I don't have to go through the irradiation machine. Sure, I get a random alert every so often where I refuse to go through the machine. And yes, the resulting patdown is an intimate encounter but radiation is cumulative and I avoid spending time in a booth that sprays it at me in a scientifically unproven manner. And then, there's this: I frequently travel with my firearm. Yes, I have a concealed carry permit that is valid where I go (and I don't bring my firearm with me to places where it's not permitted). It is surprisingly easy to travel with a firearm. It must be unloaded and in a locked, hard sided container to which only you have the key. You must declare it to the airline when you check your bag. Simply tell the gate agent "I would like to declare a firearm, please" in a quiet voice. You'll be asked to confirm the unloaded, locked, hard-sided box condition. You'll sign to confirm that and then it goes into your suitcase to fly in cargo. You claim it off the carousel at the other end. Easy pleasy and it's been that way at ORF PHL DCA ABE AVP BHM BNA DAB LAS XNA RAP MCO FLL PBI TPA IAD VPS and even gun-hating BWI. Dozens of times, never a problem. The *only* place that I've had a different experience is at CLT, where for some opaque reason, the TSA insists on wanting to open the locked box at the ticket counter and inspect the firearm. One of these days, they're going to do something stupid because Billy Bob just brought it back from a hunting trip and forgot to unload it. *Bang* and that will screw it up for some unlucky airport patron and then screw it up for the rest of us who do it right. Interesting writeup here: http://www.vox.com/2016/5/17/11687014/tsa-against-airport-security. The title is "The TSA is a waste of money that doesn't save lives and might actually cost them." Pros Well, there hasn't been another 9/11 in 15 years. Uh, they're really good at setting up rope lines? The wear snazzy uniforms that make you think that they're cops BUT THEY'RE NOT. Cons They literally hired people by advertising on pizza boxes. They have a 5% success rate at finding "bad" things found during testing. The biggest soft targets? A line of people queued for security screening because they're all unarmed. Reminder: The TSA is NOT a law enforcement agency and does not have law enforcement powers to arrest or detain. They must bring over an actual law enforcement officer to do that stuff.

Reservations required Background check mandatory…read moreUtilize the metro Amazing tour No cameras allowed No beverages allowed

Spent a few days at the Pentagon for work last week. Exciting to finally visit this well-known DoD…read morestronghold. It is just as big and just as impressive as I expected. I've heard it is a massive compound that has everything you could ever need inside and that is true. It took us 20-25 minutes to walk from the visitor entrance to the library/conference rooms we wee using for the week. There is a large gym, a jewelry store, a gift shop, uniform shop, a pharmacy and a huge food court with Panera, Subway, several sandwich, salad and coffee shops as well as some buffets. This is a well-oiled machine and is HUGE. Staff and security were very thorough and friendly. You can come for public tours (scheduled in advance) and also visit the memorial to 9-11. There is a metro stop that easily brings you here for about $2 and it is only a minute ride to the Pentagon City stop with a huge mall and tons of restaurants for lunch or after work.

A lovely little local library branch! Conveniently located in Virginia Highlands Park, there is a…read morefree parking lot right outside. Also, this library is right by a fenced in playground and a sprayground that is super fun in the summer. A one stop shop! There is a kids section here with some toys for the kids to play and plenty of books. Also, they have crayons and paper available and several kid size tables and even a tiny couch- very cute. There is one designated kids computer as well with headphones! Ms. Karen does the children's programming and hosts a great story time on Thursday mornings from 10:30-11. If you have a little one you should check it out! Stories and songs for kids. Best for the preschool and under crowd. The librarians here are all kind and very helpful. Stop by the front desk for a stamp on your kid's hand! Don't forget about summer reading too. There is a bathroom located in the lobby as well as a vending machine. Highly recommend you check out the Aurora Hills Library if you are in town!

This library closed in March 2020 and never reopened. As of January 2021, there's still been no…read morepublic discussion of reopening it in the future, and the county library system hasn't responded to any of the people in the the local community about when or whether it might reopen someday. The only emails we've received from the county library director have been about her favorite Christmas songs and her pet political causes, so she doesn't seem to know or care that people in the community want access to books. The hours for this closed location should be removed because anyone showing up and expecting to use a library will be disappointed. It's just an abandoned building where the county keeps a large container to drop off glass for recycling. (Arlington discontinued curbside recycling pickup of glass in April 2019, so the abandoned library is being used as one of the dropoff sites. Recyclable glass of any color can be dropped off 24/7 in the dumpster-sized bin.)

I wanted to take a moment to leave a heartfelt review for R. Tate, who works in Offer in Compromise…read morewith the IRS. Like many people, I was honestly scared going into this process. The IRS has a reputation that can feel overwhelming, and I chose to complete my Offer in Compromise on my own instead of hiring a CPA or accountant--which made it even more stressful and time-consuming. Throughout the process, I had a lot of questions and moments of uncertainty, but R. Tate was absolutely incredible. She was patient, kind, and took the time to answer every question I had without ever making me feel like a burden. Even when things got complicated and I had to go through the appeals process--which ultimately ended in my favor--she continued to support me and guide me. What truly meant the most to me was that she went out of her way, even calling me after hours (despite being two hours ahead), just to personally let me know that my application had been approved. I was in tears. That moment meant everything to me. I know the IRS can get a bad reputation, but R. Tate is one of those rare people who genuinely cares and goes above and beyond to help others. Her compassion, professionalism, and dedication made a very stressful situation feel manageable, and I will always be grateful for that. Thank you, R. Tate. I truly appreciate you more than words can express.

I file my own taxes and I am strongly opposed to taxes but for the sake of living here I have to…read morefile them and I do not want to go to jail. I recently got a notice from the IRS saying that I owe " X" amount of money. The thing is though is that I paid my taxes when I amended them in February and they took out my money from my bank account. I get a letter saying that I owe the same amount that I paid initially the only difference is that they added 34 cents on the IRS end. So all these guys really coming after me over 34 cents perhaps ? I wanted to call and correct them on this because I'm being held hostage about paying my taxes yet again before a certain deadline or I'll be paying more interest for something that they should see in their own account that they took out of mine. Unfortunately there is no one to call and navigating the phone call it's like walking on eggshells . I want to say I've tried about 50 times to call the IRS and I was unable to get a hold of a single human. Overall, I know I will get this money back one way or another. Maybe one day we will be like all other countries where we don't need to pay for having to get our taxes filed and like most modern countries do. Whatever happened to those 86,000 agents that you hired last year that you're not talking about this year? Did he all get laid off because of AI taking their jobs? Do better! Oh! And Taxation is theft

Don't waste your time here; go elsewhere if possible. I know the location is convenient for those…read moreliving in Crystal City, but you will be met with anger and/or disappointment every time (all 5 steps of the grieving phase!! Woohoo!!) Every single time I've gone here, there's always sudden closure due to "technical issues". This time, they posted lunch hours and "updated hours." Sorry to be blunt, but talk about LAZINESS. I've never been to such a post office with such inconsistent hours and where the *sole* employee sets their own hours. This is a federal agency, not a small business!!!!!

Service is usually okay. The lady is nice to me. However, today I had to wait 41 minutes before…read morefinally quitting . The office is NOT OPEN although its open schedule is 10:30am-4:30pm. Worst post office:(

Still a mess in my opinion. They have added more than a dozen kiosk shops that sell fast food,…read morecoffee, drinks or trinkets. However the water fountain and park part of the "water park" are still closed.

For almost ten years, I worked in Crystal Park. Many weekends, you would see photographers snapping…read morephotos of quinceaneras with their big and bright dresses. Now this park is more hipster with multiple food vendors like Call Your Mother Deli and a coffee shop. There's seating, events, and even an elevated bar. Street parking is nearby.

Makes me so angry when I come to a business or government facility and the young lady behind the…read morecounter is on her phone. No greeting or anything too much to ask. When I ask her for a envelope for next day shipping at 345pm she says im too late in the day 350pm and that I might as well send it regular mail or fed ex. because it will arrive monday and its Thursday afternoon. So i leave but the person im sending it to says just mail it. Come back in the girl is still there i told her I cannot come back in the morning. She gets up and hides behind the hallway and goes in the back and I hear her talking on the phone. Luckily a older gentleman comes and takes care of my mail and says it will arrive next day. What is all that drama from this young lady for? why were you on the phone and lying???

This is the epicenter of Pentagon City inefficiency, the only constant here is that there will…read moreALWAYS be a wait (and lobby will always have trash blowing around). Let's go back to this morning: went in a few hours ago to get labels for a certified mail envelope, none were available in the outer lobby, none were in the inner lobby either. Had to flag down someone working in the back to get them, but WHY aren't they out and available??? Came back a few hours later with my envelope ready to go, and the only reason why I was sending it certified is because I don't trust them to actually get it there, all 3.8 miles of the envelope's journey. Sent a text to a friend so I would know what time I arrived, and when I finally made it to the counter, it was 13 minutes later. I have many questions, but the main one - and it is probably shared with everyone in line ahead and behind me - is why is there only ONE PERSON WORKING?? Why?? The APC machine has been out of service for over a week, so anyone needing that is also forced to wait in the hell known as the S. Fern PO. The final kick in the ass was paying $8.20 to send something that I was afraid they would lose/otherwise f**k up.

My favorite post office. The service is always quick and the attendants are respectful,…read moreknowledgeable about different packaging types and handle your mail with care. Filling stocked with cards and boxes of all sizes. They don't run out of priority boxes like most places.

This is probably one of the best USPS locations I've been to. Service is so fast and the staff here…read moreare very helpful. It's a very small post office with still a decent supply of things you need for mailing your packages. 10/10 would recommend if you're in the area and need to send something.