Monday, October 18, 2010

Back from DC!

MOOD STATUS: "Exhausted". Very little sleep and lots of walking on this recent weekend trip to DC.

Hi, all! Thank you so much for stopping by Diane Estrella's blog for a chance to win a copy of my book. She will have the results of the book win and all the other winners of her giveaways over on her blog today. :)

Friday, after I posted on my blog about her contest, I left town on a little trip with a few of my friends and their hubbies. (This was a no kids weekend trip) Last year we went to Boston and this year we decided to give Washington DC a whirl.

The last time I was in DC, I think I was in 6th grade so it was nice to get back and see the sights. We stayed in the Georgetown area and that's where all our dinner reservations were. My favorite was the Peacock Cafe. I'm still thinking about the food I ate there. It was THAT delicious!!

We got into Georgetown late so we just walked around the shops before dinner. Saturday we were able to do the bulk of sightseeing in the monument area. Our first stop was Arlington National Cemetery. Believe it or not, I had never been there or had seen the changing of the guards before, so it was really cool to be able to do that. Then we needed o grab some lunch so we were told (by many people we asked) to go to Chinatown.

Fine. So we jumped on the Metro. Well, we did that and then... yada yada yada my friend is asking the Pentagon police to call us a taxi. LOL

Long story.

Just know there were lots of Metro delays, lots of escalators and somehow we ended up at the Pentagon--which was completely deserted. (The area around it too) Very weird.

Anyhew...after all that, we finally made it to Chinatown and decided to go into an Irish Pub. We ate quesadillas there. (Does anyone else find humor in that?) :)

After lunch we went to the Holocaust Museum. Oh. My. Gosh. What can I really say about that? I would have liked to have spent more time in it. It was incredibly moving. If you're ever in DC, this is a MUST SEE.
I did want to see the Lincoln Memorial again but there wasn't enough time in our schedule. Obviously a day and a half isn't enough to take in the sights. Next time, Abe.

Basically, the purpose of the trip was to just have a nice couples' weekend, hang out, see some sights and enjoy some nice meals with each other. But we did manage to catch of the "night life" in DC too.

I have quite a few stories, but I'll tell you just this one: We decide we all want to go dancing. So my friend looks up and sees a club called Midtown on the second floor of this building. The music was really pumping. Sounds great, right? But the catch was there was a LONG line to get in.


In fact, it's just like what you see in movies and TV when you think about a NYC club with the velvet ropes and people waiting to get in. Well, we reluctantly got in line. But we're only there standing for about 30 seconds then all of a sudden a guy all runway-suited-up with the earpiece and all (just like TV!) approaches us. He asked us how many were in our party. So we tell him six and then he tells us to follow him. He led us behind the velvet rope and right up the steps of the club and didn't charge us any cover either. It was so cool!

We felt like total rock stars. :)

What a great time we all had! But I need to go back to Dc and bring the kidlet--when she's a little older. :)

Oh, and they had this place called Georgetown Cupcakes in Georgetown. Every time we passed by it--no matter what time of day or night--there was a line outside the door. (What is it with DC and lines?) Anyway, Sunday before we went home we bought a few boxes of cupcakes to take home.

PS: They were definitely worth standing in line for. :)


No writing for me today. It's all about unpacking, laundry, and catching up on emails.


What did you do this weekend?

When was the last time you went to Washington DC? What's your favorite place to visit there?

22 comments:

Laura Pauling said...

Sounds like a fun weekend. I don't know if I could handle the holocaust museum. It's so hard to see visuals and realize that this horrific time really happened not too long ago.

Joanna St. James said...

ha ha glad u had fun.
You have to tell the metro story please and just for future reference, the next time u wanna go clubbing just call ahead and ask to be put on the VIP list so u dont have to wait in line. The only line you should be dealing with is the line of people at your book signing :)

Tamara Hart Heiner said...

wow, how fun! you guys do this every year??? way cool!

Wendy Paine Miller said...

Yes, Mexican food at an Irish Pub is very funny to me!

What a whirlwind.

I coached soccer and went to an Apple Festival. Woo. Hoo. ;D

~ Wendy

Maria Zannini said...

You guys must have looked SUPER hot to have that guy pull you from the line and let you in. Lucky girl. :grin:

It's been about 3 years since I've been. Oddly enough, the thing I remember most is getting a frantic call from the kennel telling me one of my dogs has refused to eat for 3 days.

I almost flew home that day, but then I remembered my stand by friend. She made emergency 'dog food' (liver and rice) and brought it down to the kennel and watched that little heathen eat like a glutton.

I have very good friends. And a very spoiled dog.

Linda Kage said...

That would be so neat to visit the nation's capital. Thanks for the mini tour you gave us.

I love how you ate Mexican in an Irish pub in Chinatown. Too funny.

Amie Borst said...

i avoid DC like the plauge....probably because i live in the area.

sounds like you had fun though! especially the quesadillias in the irish pub in china town.

Sarah Forgrave said...

Oh, I'm so jealous of your kid-free time. Sounds like a blast!

Diane said...

What a great special time for you and the hubby! Sounds like there was more to do than possible.

THanks again for participating in the giveaway! You were a big hit! :O)

Rula Sinara said...

I can't believe you were in DC! We went there with the kids on Sunday. We have a friend who invited us to go on the White House garden tour. The line ran for blocks, but he walked us right on in. I'm not one for crowds and lines.

Too bad our paths didn't cross! Glad you had fun :)

Jeanette Levellie said...

I've always wanted to tour DC. We got stuck in the airport there for five hours once, but that hardly counts.

I find it amusing that many of the places you visited had the word "George" in their title, since your newest book's MC is Georgie. But I'm sure they had a different George in mind, huh?

Jennifer Shirk said...

Rula: How funny is that??? I was mostly in downtown Georgetown on Sunday. But we totally could have walked right by each other!

Unknown said...

I've never been to DC--maybe some day :)

So, glad you had a good time!

Tana said...

Lucky you! Wish I was there! My Dd has a weekend long sleepover. Yup, two nights of no sleep, I'm struggling to stay awake, lol!

Shannon O'Donnell said...

Our family vacationed there a couple of years ago - best vacation ever!! :-)

Liz Mays said...

Last time I was in DC the Holocaust museum had just opened and we couldn't even get in. I love DC, and usually the Metro is a delight!

Susan Fields said...

I haven't been to DC since I was a kid, and I really wanted to bring my children there a few weeks ago on our fall break, but I was outvoted and we hit the beach in Florida instead. My favorite memory is going to a little pub near Colonial Williamsburg with a traveling guitar player who made up a song on the spot about my friend and I. I'm glad you had such a great time!

Susan Fields said...

Aha - I got it! Minstrel was the word I was looking for. And I call myself a writer. :)

CMOM Productions said...

The last time I was in DC, I was a kid. It sounds like you had a great kid free weekend! Our weekend was a little more low key. lol I finished reading a book, we got haircuts, & then got pumpkins.

Karen Lange said...

DC is a great trip! Glad you got to go!

Tracy Loewer said...

That's hilarious that you had quesedillas at an Irish pub! I'm Canadian, but I'd love to go on a tour of the Eastern U.S. one day. I love all the history, and there's just so much to see. Glad you had fun!

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