Last day in DC Day 46

Today was boating to National Harbor. It was probably one of the best days I've had since I was here. Shirley Gillen (I reconnected with on Facebook {Thank you FB}) and her husband Greg, took us boating today. It was so much fun. We went to the National Harbor and ate lunch. Lunch was at Elevation Burger. SO much better than 5 guys. And there is a Peeps store. Yes, an entire store dedicated to Peeps.

The water was so fantastic. Today was a a very compelling reason to be close to water. I had forgotten how much I missed being close to it, smelling in, hearing it.

The Lincoln Memorial from the Potomac. The Kennedy Center and the Watergate Hotel view from the Potomac.

Can you see the Washington Monument way back there on the right side of the photo???

So we arrived at the National Harbor. I was overwhelmed by the boats that were moored at the harbor. OHMYGOSH! Where do people make all their money? There is so much money in this town. There were several boats just like this one docked.

This boat was so big, I couldn't even fit it in the entire frame of the camera. HOLY COW!!!

This is Alexandria. 6 story homes. And they come with their own slip for your yacht!!! What a deal!

Now on to the peeps store. You can see that these peeps make GREAT art on your wall. And up side is this....Peeps, like Twinkies, will survive an armageddon. On the left of the picture, almost out of the frame, is an art sculpture full of Peep bunnies!

This is Shirley and Me. One of my favorite sculptures was recently moved to the National Harbor. It looks like a giant coming out of the sand. Google it.....its so very cool!!!

This is the view of the National Harbor. It was a beautiful day. Thanks, again, Shirley and Greg.

Sadly, this will be my last blog. I have really enjoyed chronicling my trip. I leave tomorrow for home. Thanks to everyone who has read and given me feedback. Goodbye DC. =0( Hello home, work, and school!

DC day 45

Today is (was?) my last Friday in DC. When I found out that I was accepted to the Master's program, I had to cut my trip short by 3 days. It became DC in 47 days. Not DC in the 50 days I originally thought. I knew that before I left, I knew that I had to see the Monuments by night.

So tonight was a walk around the monuments for 3 hours. It was SO beautiful. My only complaint were all the DAMN tourists. The amount of people in this city (as I have said before) kinda creeps me out. They are rude and stupid and, basically, tourists. I did get to hear a family speaking French tonight. This is the first time I have heard French. I have heard Spanish (duh!), some German-type, some Eastern-block-type, Italian-type etc. But tonight was the first time I heard something that sounded French!

Anyway...Sunset was at 8:15 so we set off at 7:00. Mostly, because I was bored but off we went. Since it was dark, and I was stuck with my iPhone camera, the pics are really bad. But, that's why you have me....I will tell you what you are seeing in the photos! This is a picture of a black squirrel. He (she) was playing with your average, normal, run-of-the-mill brown squirrel. But you can see, the black thingy in the photo???? Its a black squirrel. I have never seen a black squirrel. Anyone????? Ever???

This is the first picture I have taken of the White House. The crane looks like its above the White House, but fear not...its really blocks away.

So who knew there was an Albert Einstein monument? Really? Well, I sat on Einstein's lap. How many people can say that? It a really cool monument. Constellations placed in the granite below his feet. He is wearing sandals, and on the tablet are 3 equations. If you want to know what they are, let me know. I'm sure you can guess one of the 3, at least.

We walked from the Einstein to the Vietnam, to the Nurse's then on to the Korean. I must say that, the Korean is still my favorite. It is surreal in the day, at night, in the Summer, Winter, Fall. It is my favorite.

Then it was 10:30 and I was sinking. We walked down Pennsylvania. This last picture is the White House from the other direction. Walking down the Middle of the Street is the best. (Rouge Segway riders excluded!) They are very quiet and you had better look behind you before you change directions....I'm just saying. What a beautiful night. Its sad to think, this time next week, I'll be sleeping in a hotel in Las Cruses makes me .....well, never mind.

On a brighter note......as you may or may not know, I spent almost $1200 dollars on books for my first semester of grad school. This has traumatized me. But the brighter note is this.. 14 of the 17 books have been shipped! woohoo. AND...Jessie told me that my first book was delivered to the house today! I'm on my way!

DC day 45

DC day 38

I know that I have entitled my DC blog DC in 50 days, but I have had to shorten my trip to 47 days. I have less than 10 days left.

I'm done with my CE's. Whew! I can still be a RN! So since I am done it was OFF TO THE ZOO! So first stop was to Starbucks right across the street. It was such a beautiful day. Words cannot explain how beautiful the day was. Especially since its been so very hot lately. What a great day, in case I didn't make that point. =0)

There are two lion sculptures on either side of the entrance.

So off we went and the pandas were the first things we saw. He was so proud to eat his bamboo for breakfast. He rolled over on his back, propped up on a tree and ate his bamboo.He was so cute.

One of the most exciting things, though, that we saw today was the orangutan's demonstration of tool use. When we first arrived at the orangutans house we noticed that there are these HUGE cables across the walkway that they use to cross from one side of the zoo to the other. They call it the Orange Line. Pretty funny.

The demonstration was how the orangutan's use tools (in this case, sticks) to reach through the cage to pull grapes and popcorn close enough to eat. They also answered questions from the audience. It was so interesting. Who Noo?

Tonight is a stay in night. We have been out every night this week with Randy's boss, Steve. Its been so tiring. You know you're getting old when...... =0)

DC day 36

Still working on my CEs today, but knew that I HAD to get out of the apartment before I go crazy. So I decided that I would find the Nurse's memorial today.

As soon I stepped out of the front door of the building, I swear I saw Tom DeLay coming out of Teaism. Really? Of all people? Anyway. Weird.

So off I went to find the memorial. I had looked at the temperature before I headed out the door and it was high 80s. No biggy, right. Well, I had forgot to look at the humidity and didn't realize that it was high 90s with the heat index. But off I went with my pink shirt and kacki skirt. By the time I made it to the Vietnam Memorial my shirt was soaked through and through. Completely see through. AWESOME. At least today I didn't run into anyone I knew At least if someone I knew saw me, they were nice enough not to come up and say Hi. At least I had on my pretty belly button ring!!

On my way home, I saw Marine one. How cool is that?

Tomorrow is baseball!

DC day 33

Well, its already Sunday again. Today was Segway Tour day. We decided to do the Dupont Circle tour as I have already seen a lot of the DC monuments. It was a tour of Embassy Row and then ending at the National Cathedral. Learned a lot about this area today. We got to Dupont Circle and woo hoo, they have a farmers market there as well. It looked even better than what we see at the Eastern Market. (minus the indoor part.) So we did some quick lessons on the Segway and then we were off. The Segway's top speed is 12 miles per hour, but the city's speed limit for the Segway is only 10 miles per hour. Do they have a ticket for 2 miles per hour over the speed limit on a segway? Just a thought.

Anyway....I was doing really well! SO, well, in fact, I am now a licensed Segway driver. I am licensed by "Segs in the City." I have a card and EVERYTHING!

I'm sure everyone is aware of this, but it is so FREAKING hot here. It is 99 degrees but feels like 106 with the heat index. But most of the tour was in the shade, so it was really a beautiful tour. So glad we did it. A bit of trivia about The National Cathedral is this: It is so big that the Washington Monument will lay down in the National Cathedral. (I'm not sure how you'd get it in there....BUT, if you did, you could lay it down in there!)

The Embassy's are all old homes built at the turn of the Century by the gazillionaires of the time, and then were abandoned during the depression. So they were sold for hardly any money to the country that then made the house into embassies. They are mansions and are beautiful (with flags hanging out front!)

I'm including this picture of myself while sitting at the Cathedral. It was SO SO hot. I didn't do my hair, just put it in pig tails, b/c I knew that I would be wearing a helmet, and sweating like crazy. Didn't put any makeup on either. So when we were done with the tour, Randy wanted to just head to Target to get that out of the way. It was also around 1 o'clock and we were starving. I jokingly said "ok, but I better not see someone I know!" DC has 10 gazillion people. There is NO way we would just happen to run into someone I know. I don't know anyone! I have helmet hair, no makeup and smell like someone who has been living on the street for 2 weeks!

We went to 5 guys. A hamburger place that everyone HAS to try when they come to DC. (I wasn't THAT impressed! (Lota Burger is better.)

I'm sure you can see what's coming. OF COURSE we ran into someone who knows me. One of the guys that Randy works with, Darrell! WTF!??? Seriously? So we had lunch with Darrell, looking my best, EVER!

It will be funny this time next month, right? Darrell said that he had to go to Target so we said, Hey, so do we! So after lunch we said we'd walk with him. so he says "oh, well, I can come back to Target later, I'm just going to head home." Huh??? What was he going to buy? Condoms but thought we might see?

Oh, and good news, the Tornado WARNING has expired. But it did rain for about 10 minutes. It has cooled off and its cloudy. Beautiful!

DC day 25 and 26

So, I'm going to work my way backwards. Today was Sunday. Laundry day! My absolute favorite. Anyone who knows me, knows that I ABSOLUTELY hate Laundry. It is the bane of my existence. How do I really feel? So when Randy suggested that we get up early, instead, and try to do the Holocaust Museum again, instead! What do you think I would have said??.....Heck ya!!!

So we got up early (8:30) and we were both ready and out the door by 9:30. The Smithsonian museums open at 10:00 on Sundays (well, everyday, but on Sunday's they open at 10:00). I figured out on the way that the reason that the Holocaust Museum was designed the way it was (I believe with all my being that it was designed to be shoulder to shoulder crowded) was to give you the sense of being on the trains heading toward Auschwitz. Its uncomfortable, and I will admit, since I don't have to do it, I choose not to.**see earlier blog** We arrived at the Holocaust museum at 9:50 and saw that there were two lines. One had signage stating that those who belonged to a "group" should form a line starting there. Since we were unbelonging to a group, we continued to the line that was forming at the front door that was almost to the street. We were quickly intercepted by a woman who kindly asked if we had already purchased "our tickets"???? Tickets? All Smithsonian Museums are free??? right? Well, yes, but if you pre purchased your "free ticket" for $1.00 you could stand in the line that was almost to the street. If not, (which included us! sadly, we had not pre purchased our free tickets for $1.00 b/c we thought all Smithsonian Museums were free!) we were kindly asked to please move to the line with the sign that said it was reserved for "groups." I guess by groups, they meant "LOSERS" b/c you were too stupid to purchase your FREE TICKET. We looked at the loser line and, seriously folks, it wrapped the building. WRAPPED THE BUILDING!!! We were in a large group of losers!!! Well, I wasn't going to get in the loser line that wrapped the building, so we said to hell with you and we left. I would never say I told you so....... Its a very popular museum. It's a very moving/ beautiful museum. It's always crowded.

I encourage anyone to "google earth" the Holocaust Museum. It's gynormous. To wrap the building is quite a number of losers.

Then we went to the Corner Bakery, which was not a bakery of any sort! It was a restaurant. Face it. We were disappointed. But, look how beautiful this building is! DC is a beautiful city. Beautiful Architecture and WAY too hot and WAY too many stupid tourists in the summer. Damn Tourists! =0)

Yesterday was my absolutely FAVORITE day so far. It was Saturday. (Eastern Market day for those of you who are NEW!!). Went to eastern market yesterday. BUT, before we head to Eastern Market, what do we do??? That's right, BRUNCH! We went to the best place so far. Matchbox. (and yes, they do have cute little matchboxes that say "matchbox." ) We had a phantasmagoric breakfast.

I found my new favorite neighborhood. The neighborhood to the south of the Eastern Market is so cute. Its called Capitol Hill or Barracks Row, or something like that. I wouldn't mind living there at all. Row houses galore!

Then our Saturday schedule, when we get back from Eastern Market, is to head to Target and Giant (grocery store). We are done with our 3 "errands" by 4 to 5 o'clock. Yes it takes us all day to run 3 errands. Those of you NOT living in the "city" celebrate driving your own car at your own pace to just buy your toilet paper. Its not 5 Metro stops away after a transfer from the green/yellow at L'Efant plaza to the blue/orange. Then hauling your crap back home.

(I have to stop right here and say that I'm sorry to be so negative. I REALLY am loving it here. Its just really different and I am aware of all of the things I have taken for granted in the past, and am trying to share my experience with others. DC is a beautiful city and it continues to take my breath away daily.)

Before we left for Target, Randy decided to check his voicemail on his work phone. One of the guys he works with had left a message. He said that he and his wife were "driving into the DC" and would we like to meet them to see a movie and / or a drink at a place he called the "gin joint."

If anyone knows me, you know that I am so very uncomfortable with spontaneity! But those of you who know (and love) me, would have been so proud. I broke loose and said, heck ya! Lets do it.

We were to meet them at an old theater. Not an IMAX, no plush seating. Just one screen in the whole theater showing one Movie! They are showing Inception. We were so very early, that we found a cute little Irish pub in the Cleveland Park neighborhood. NOW, I had found my NEW favorite neighborhood. Cleveland Park. So very cute. Saabs, Mercedes, and Lexus galore. So not for me, but very cute.

Yum!

Then we met Phil and Nancy for the Movie. It was really, a good movie. I recommend it. Let me know if you go see it. I'd love to talk to you about it. See what you think was going on!

Then we were off to the "Gin Joint" ( New Heights Gin Joint). WHO KNEW!!! There are a ton of different kinds of gin. I thought there was Bombay Sapphire and Tanquaray. NO!!! There are a gazillion kinds of different gin. I recommend G-Vines. I only tasted 4 of the 30 different kinds that were served there.We had so much fun that we will be going back Wednesday for Randy's Birthday. If you know (and love) me, you know that I love Juniper Berries. I had no idea! I will have to be spontaneous more often! I had so so much fun all because I was spontaneous and took a leap!

Tomorrow is Amos Lee!