It hasn't even been two weeks and I feel like I have already seen and done so much in this city. I have gone from staring at my phone's GPS constantly to walking around like I know the place (or at least acting like it).
So last weekend I went to the Holocaust Museum with a few friends. That entire day was probably the most miserable day in DC so far. Not only because of how depressing the museum can get but because of the efforts it took us to get around. After picking up our tickets at the museum, the receptionist said it would be about two hours before we could get in. We decided to go get food in the meantime. One of the girls searched for food spots in the area and we found a place a little less than a mile away. We trekked there in 106 degree heat, only to find it closed for the weekend. One of the biggest misconceptions I've had to overcome about DC is that this is a constantly bustling city where everything is open late hours and all the time. Unfortunately, a majority of the places here operate on a working hours/lunch schedule and it's always a good idea to call ahead to make sure a restaurant isn't closed (as we learned by example that day). The next closest place was called The American Grill. Finding this restaurant became a whole new mission when the GPS took us to a huge parking garage and walls of concrete completely surrounding us. We were all hungry, tired and about to cry at this point until we climbed our millionth set of stairs and found L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in the distance like an oasis. It turned out that the restaurant was inside the hotel and at this point we didn't care about how expensive it was-- we just wanted pitchers of water. We finished lunch and navigated our way back to the museum by a shorter route. Going through the Holocaust museum definitely put everything into perspective for me though. Seeing individual stories of people and what they went through and survived is heartbreaking. Suddenly our little hour of hardship seemed to be nothing compared to what these millions of people had to deal with.
The following day I went to the Pentagon City Mall with my roommate and we shopped. A lot. Most of the stores in the mall have a lot more business-oriented outfits for good prices which I loved. I am trying to limit myself though since I do have to pack everything back into my overstuffed bags in about six weeks.
This past week I went to the American Art Museum which was probably my favorite place I've been to so far. Last summer I went to Yellowstone National Park with my family and it was neat seeing a lot of the sights I saw there painted on huge canvases in the museum. I also loved the National Portrait Gallery which has portraits of all the past presidents and many significant people from American history. It was relaxing to go through the museum alone without feeling like you have to wait for others or like they have to wait for you. It was a very peaceful and enjoyable outing for me.
Other than visiting museums, landmarks, and getting lost, I've been walking around the Capitol Hill area a lot. Today, I found a used bookstore five minutes away called Riverby Books and got two books for four bucks (!). Next door there was this cute mom-and-pop diner called Jimmy T's Place and I ate and read there for a while. I wore a Gators shirt out today and the number of conversations it started for me was amazing. A lot of people just wanted to know if I ever saw Tim Tebow.
So last weekend I went to the Holocaust Museum with a few friends. That entire day was probably the most miserable day in DC so far. Not only because of how depressing the museum can get but because of the efforts it took us to get around. After picking up our tickets at the museum, the receptionist said it would be about two hours before we could get in. We decided to go get food in the meantime. One of the girls searched for food spots in the area and we found a place a little less than a mile away. We trekked there in 106 degree heat, only to find it closed for the weekend. One of the biggest misconceptions I've had to overcome about DC is that this is a constantly bustling city where everything is open late hours and all the time. Unfortunately, a majority of the places here operate on a working hours/lunch schedule and it's always a good idea to call ahead to make sure a restaurant isn't closed (as we learned by example that day). The next closest place was called The American Grill. Finding this restaurant became a whole new mission when the GPS took us to a huge parking garage and walls of concrete completely surrounding us. We were all hungry, tired and about to cry at this point until we climbed our millionth set of stairs and found L'Enfant Plaza Hotel in the distance like an oasis. It turned out that the restaurant was inside the hotel and at this point we didn't care about how expensive it was-- we just wanted pitchers of water. We finished lunch and navigated our way back to the museum by a shorter route. Going through the Holocaust museum definitely put everything into perspective for me though. Seeing individual stories of people and what they went through and survived is heartbreaking. Suddenly our little hour of hardship seemed to be nothing compared to what these millions of people had to deal with.
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| The Holocaust Museum |
This past week I went to the American Art Museum which was probably my favorite place I've been to so far. Last summer I went to Yellowstone National Park with my family and it was neat seeing a lot of the sights I saw there painted on huge canvases in the museum. I also loved the National Portrait Gallery which has portraits of all the past presidents and many significant people from American history. It was relaxing to go through the museum alone without feeling like you have to wait for others or like they have to wait for you. It was a very peaceful and enjoyable outing for me.
Other than visiting museums, landmarks, and getting lost, I've been walking around the Capitol Hill area a lot. Today, I found a used bookstore five minutes away called Riverby Books and got two books for four bucks (!). Next door there was this cute mom-and-pop diner called Jimmy T's Place and I ate and read there for a while. I wore a Gators shirt out today and the number of conversations it started for me was amazing. A lot of people just wanted to know if I ever saw Tim Tebow.
Coming to DC felt like the start of college all over again. You don't know who your friends are going to be, you get lost, don't know what to do, where to go, etc. But this time it was different. Because I know I have a limited amount of time here, I've been trying to make everything as meaningful as possible. Making friends this time around has been a lot easier, too. In the past few years I have learned to open up more easily and quickly to people I don't know. So far, this has definitely come to my benefit during this trip. I've made some very cool friends and I'm a lot more ready and eager to form relationships with people who are completely different from me.
Tonight I'm going to dinner with a friend and then Jazz in the Garden. Every Friday during the summer, a jazz band or artist comes and plays music in the Sculpture Garden and you get to relax and just hang out with your friends. Last week we heard the Afro Bop Alliance (an Afro-Cuban band). We had a great time and it's probably going to become a regular thing for us now.
I really have had a lovely few weeks of running around and getting to know Washington DC. Next week my internship finally starts and I'm so excited. I've had a lot of fun and now I'm ready to get down to business and work hard!
Tonight I'm going to dinner with a friend and then Jazz in the Garden. Every Friday during the summer, a jazz band or artist comes and plays music in the Sculpture Garden and you get to relax and just hang out with your friends. Last week we heard the Afro Bop Alliance (an Afro-Cuban band). We had a great time and it's probably going to become a regular thing for us now.
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| First time at Jazz in the Garden! |
I'm SO happy that you're having a great time in DC! Love ya and miss ya!
ReplyDeleteAww maya it sounds like you're getting so much out of this trip, and making the most of it, just like you planned =) Definitely had flashbacks of when we went to the holocaust museum in 8th grade!
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