5.17.2010

the district of columbia

Forgive the cheesy title of this post (it was originally spelled Cool-umbia, ba-dum-dum) but I have been meaning to share some of the highlights of my visit to Washington, D.C. a few weekends ago. 

The purpose of the trip was a mini-reunion with seven friends from college, and I stayed with my friend Stephanie and her boyfriend Rob in their Mount Pleasant apartment.  It was my first time visiting this part of the city and I really liked the vibe.  I passed lots of Hispanic businesses and eateries on the 15 minute walk from the Metro, and the smells and sounds of the neighborhood reminded me a lot of The Mission in San Francisco. The "hola, mami" catcalls, however, were reminiscent of a trip I took to Mexico with the same group of girls about 12 years ago.  On Saturday we got coffee and bagels at this little cafe (where I'm quite sure the most miserable people in the world work - but why??) then we checked out the farmers market.  Here are a few snaps.  Have you ever seen such lovely asparagus?


The last two shots were taken in Stephanie and Rob's apartment, including one of Steph whipping up a delicious cake for our friend's birthday.  Unlike many other cities where I've lived, it's not taboo to live in a basement apartment in D.C.  In fact, all the ones I've seen have been quite nice and have great layouts.  This photo was taken from the entrance to the living room, which was a good 20' x 15' itself. Another bonus of these basement apartments is that they stay much cooler in the sticky summers.

Now, onto the food. On Saturday we had brunch at the Hotel Tabard Inn, and after inhaling a freshly fried donut, I changed gears and opted for a healthy chicken and beluga lentil salad over one of their famous savory breakfast treats. It was so fresh and flavorful, and it photographed quite well, don't you think?

Menu at the Hotel Tabard Inn


Finally, one of the highlights of the weekend was attending a puppy adoption fair with Stephanie on Sunday.  A few minutes after we got there we met this little guy.

"Rooney"

Rob came to meet us and spend time with the puppy, then after almost an hour interview with the adoption agency, Stephanie drove me to Virginia where I had to work on Monday.  In the car she received a call to let her know that she and Rob were the proud new owners of the furry fellow above. He's a lab/shepherd mix of some sort, and they named him Rooney.

I'm looking forward to getting back down to D.C. to visit Rooney (and my friends) soon!  Next time I'll blog about some of the great shops I found.  Unfortunately, I lost the notes I took on this last trip.

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