The giant panda Tian Tian keeps schoolchildren entertained at the National Zoo in Washington on Friday, October 18. The zoo and other national landmarks have reopened to the public after a 16-day partial government shutdown. The shutdown ended when President Barack Obama signed a spending and debt ceiling agreement that Congress passed on Wednesday, October 16, averting a possible default. 
Tourists flock to the reopened Lincoln Memorial in Washington on Thursday, October 17. Park ranger Tessy Dunoboh assists the group. 
A visitor checks out art in the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington on October 17. 
The Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History on the National Mall is back in business October 17. 
A U.S. park ranger helps a tourist at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington on October 17. 
Park rangers are on duty at the Lincoln Memorial on October 17. 
People line up for tickets to visit Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay on October 17. 
Museum specialist Richard Doerner winds the historic timepiece known as the Ohio Clock outside the Senate chamber on October 17. The clock stopped during the 16-day shutdown when federal workers were furloughed. 
Visitors to the U.S.S. Constitution walk up the gangplank for a tour in Boston on October 17. 
Tourists gather at the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington on October 17. 
Visitors enter the Smithsonian Institution's Air and Space Museum in Washington on October 17. 
A worker blows leaves away from the Russell Senate Office Building in Washington on October 17. 
A tour guide leads tourists through the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on October 17. 
A worker cleans the fountain at the National World War II Memorial in Washington on October 17. The Lincoln Memorial is in the background. 
Barricades used to close the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial during the shutdown lie dismantled October 17 in Washington. 
Vice President Joe Biden greets Environmental Protection Agency workers with muffins at the Clinton Federal Building in Washington as they return to work October 17. 
U.S. park ranger Richard Trott picks up closed signs at the Lincoln Memorial after it reopens October 17. 
Washingtonians head to work near Pennsylvania Avenue on October 17 as federal workers return in force to their jobs after the shutdown. 
U.S. Park Service workers remove a barricade from the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial in Washington on October 17. 
A National Park Service ranger takes down a notice about the government shutdown at the Liberty Bell Pavilion in Philadelphia on October 17. 
National Park Service employees remove barricades from the grounds of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington on October 17. 
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- Amid our deprivations during the shutdown, we appreciate our national parks
- The party of Lincoln seems to be a house divided
- Ouch, the U.S. economy lost $24 billion
- Like a Hollywood horror film, there's going to be a sequel
(CNN) -- Whew, it's all over, folks -- the twin crises of government shutdown and national default countdown. At least for now.
This one wasn't easy. And we'll be talking about it for a while.
That's just one of the four lessons we take away from this calamity in our capital.
A walk in the park
We love our parks. Boy, do we love our national parks. That was evident in a public outcry, on social media and elsewhere.
Shutdown is over... what's next? 
Shutdown: Winners and losers 
What's next for the GOP 
GOP fractures after shutdown showdown Isn't it nice that in our deprivation, we found something to appreciate?
The shuttered national parks didn't stop some visitors from trying to sneak onto back roads or lookout points to steal a quiet view of nature. However, armed park rangers who were mandated to work during the shutdown thwarted many motorists by swinging the road gates closed.
9 things we missed during the shutdown
The Grand Old Party isn't so grand
It's a great thing to have conservatives and liberals giving us different viewpoints on how to run the country, but the Republican Party -- the party of President Lincoln -- now seems a house divided.
Cruz won't rule out another shutdown
McConnell: Further shutdowns 'off the table'
Can the GOP heal an internal rift between establishment conservatives and the new conservatives of the tea party? For the moment, the Republicans are cited as the top cause for the shutdown, evidenced by a CNN/ORC poll showing the GOP is the biggest target of American anger, with 63% of respondents venting their ire at them. Democrats fared only slightly better, however, with 58% expressing anger at them, too. And 53% were angry at President Barack Obama.
Winners and losers from the shutdown crisis
Economic damage
For a country fresh out of a great recession, the 16-day shutdown was costly: It took $24 billion out of the economy, Standard & Poor's says.
As a result, the United States will grow 2.4% -- instead of 3% -- this quarter, meaning there won't be as many new jobs that many American families desperately need in the post-recession era.
A sequel
What's in the budget bill? 
How to avoid another government crisis 
The shutdown's biggest loser is ... As difficult as this drama was, there will be a Part II.
The Hollywood horror genre doesn't have anything over Washington.
The government is funded until January 15 -- meaning Americans will be forced to witness another round of Democrat-Republican budget negotiations.
It gets better, or worse, depending on your viewpoint: The debt ceiling will have to be revisited, too, by February 7.
All this makes some economists worry that Americans will now be afraid to invest, create jobs, and go shopping this holiday season.
Perhaps John Chambers, managing director of Standard and Poor's rating service, put it best:
"We think that we'll be back here in January debating the same issues," Chambers said. "This is, I fear, a permanent feature of our budgetary process."
Playing nice: Budget talks may start with an extra-friendly tone
