DC Cherry Blossoms 2013

One thing I have been wanting to do since last fall is to see DC with all of the cherry blossoms. Lucky me, the peak week just happened to fall on my birthday week! So my mom and I jumped in the car and drove the 7 hours up to DC. 

At first we had a hard time finding a hotel that still had open rooms. All of the hotels in the city were booked except for the $400+/night rooms which was a little out of our price range. We checked hotels in Arlington and Alexandria but could not find rooms there either. Eventually my mom found a room at the Hampton Inn at Fort Belvoir/Mount Vernon at a reasonable price. It was just a few miles from Mount Vernon and about a 30 minute drive to the city. When we first got to Fort Belvoir we were a little nervous. It does not look like the safest place for two women to stay alone. However when we got to our hotel we found that it was fairly new and very nice. 

After a good night's sleep at our nice hotel we went into the city. Because we knew we wanted to rent bikes for the day and that Bike and Roll has a location at Union Station we decided that it would be easiest to park our car in the garage at Union Station so that we would not have to worry about parking meters or anything. The one thing we did not like about this is that after 5 hours at the garage it charges you for a full day. 5-24 hours is $22. I think they could make a few more increments in that 19 hour range but maybe that is just me. We did decide though that it was still easier and worth the cost and for 6 hours we probably would have paid almost as much any way. 

After getting to Union Station we decided not to rent our bikes immediately because I wanted to go to the Capitol to see the new Rosa Parks statue in the State Statuary collection.  My friend Courtney who is interning for a congressman met us and took us to the statue. It was awesome! Thanks Courtney for the VIP treatment. 

Rosa Parks Statue

After a quick stop by my old office we were headed back to Union Station to get our bikes. Oh but first we had a quick pit stop at the Ben and Jerry's tent outside of the station for some FREE ice cream!! Awesome little treat. 

The US Capitol with Cherry Blossoms in front!

We got our bikes from Bike and Roll at Union Station. I have written about them before here, super nice people! We also found a coupon for 50% off a second bike rental just by googling "Bike and Roll DC Coupon." We biked down around the Capitol, to the National Mall, the Tidal Basin, the Jefferson Memorial, over to the Lincoln Memorial, and then back to Union Station. Quite a ride!

View of the Capitol through the trees from the Tidal Basin

Thomas Jefferson Memorial

It really was not that crowded until we got to the Tidal Basin where we had to get off our bikes a couple of times because of all of the people. The bikes were definitely worth it though! 

Thomas Jefferson Memorial at the Tidal Basin

Side story: when we first got to the National Mall we saw two women (one probably in her 50's and the other in her 60's) sitting on one of the benches and the older lady looked like she had passed out on the younger lady. At first we thought someone was helping them but then the older lady started throwing up and the "helpers" walked away. We pulled over to help and there was another older couple who was calling 911. If you do not know, one of the main symptoms of someone, especially a female, having a heart attack is vomiting. I immediately checked to see if the lady was conscious and breathing, which she was, while my mom went to check the names of the streets at the closest intersection to make sure the ambulance had the right names and to wave them down if she saw it. She was able to wave down and SUV of Capitol Police and they were able to radio in the exact location. Because the police were there and we heard the ambulance the other couple there told us to go ahead and enjoy our day that they would make sure everything was ok. We hope everything turned out ok. Afterwards, when we were talking about it we were shocked that the first "helpers" there walked away because the lady was throwing up. The least you can do is call 911, offer to buy a bottle of water, or go find someone who can help. 

After that excitement, we were able to enjoy our beautiful day in DC. And it was a beautiful day. Warm, sunny, and a slight breeze. Perfect cherry blossom viewing weather. 

Thomas Jefferson Memorial at the Tidal Basin

Because Bike and Roll closes at 6 (that is my only complaint about them, they should at least wait until about sunset or a little after) we decided to see what other entertainment we could find. As a baseball fan I was very excited to see the Nationals were in town. I am a Red Sox fan so during the regular season I don't think there is a real conflict of interest pulling for a National League team, at least occasionally. 

My friend Samantha and I at the game

The Nationals were playing the White Sox in DC so we headed over to the stadium and met my friend Samantha there. We found parking about 3 blocks from the stadium for $20. Although someone told us you can find it cheaper, we opted for the safe looking, populated area for a little more money. 

Although I have only been to a few different ball parks, I really liked this one. It made me think of an updated version of the Braves Turner Field. It is also one of the easiest parks to walk up and get tickets. Unlike many other ball parks we have been to, you simply walk up to one of the ticket machines outside of the park, choose the game, ticket price range, how many tickets, swipe your credit card and you are on your way. 

The tickets were also very reasonably priced. The cheapest tickets were $13 but of course those are in the nose bleeds. After looking at the different options available we found some great seats for $22 that were in the second deck above the right field wall. One of the last Braves game we went to we paid a lot more than that for much much worse seats. These were great though-- a good view of the field and in a home run section, although none were hit to us that night. And the weather made it an absolutely perfect night for baseball! 

View from out seats. Not bad for $22!!

The stadium had great food too and not terribly expensive. They have everything from local places like Ben's Chili Bowl and the  Shake Shack to burgers, hot dogs and chicken cooked over the out door grill. 

Oh and the Nats won! All in all, a great ending to a great day! Check back later for my next post about day 2 at Mount Vernon!

I'll be linking this post to Between Naps on the Porch! Be sure to check it out!

Last day in DC

Well it has certainly been awhile. I have moved home from DC back to SC and am currently looking for a job. However, I have a few more DC posts that I never finished so I think I will finish them as well as posting any new adventures. 

My mom and dad came to DC to move me out of my apartment a little over a week before Christmas. That Saturday, after we packed everything up, we had a few last DC adventures. 

One that we really enjoyed was the National Botanic Garden's Christmas decorations. They have models of each of the National Mall monuments made out of natural materials such as tree bark and leaves. It is absolutely incredible that they were able to do all of that. 

US Capitol Building

Check out the details! It even had windows!

Even has Lady Freedom on top.

Just to give you an idea of how large this replica is. It was massive. 

Supreme Court Building with the Capitol in the background.

Library of Congress

US Botanic Garden

Washington Monument

Lincoln Memorial 

Lincoln Memorial with Washington Monument in the background. Although I was slightly disappointed that Lincoln is backwards, but I do understand they were trying to make it easier for people to see. 

Thomas Jefferson Memorial. I like how they left the stem of the gourd.

The Smithsonian Castle

The White House

They also had an extensive model train exhibit. All of the buildings and creatures were also made out of natural materials. 

I wish I had gotten a better picture of the dragon on top of the pagoda, its wings were made out of giant maple leaves. 

The train zipping past. 

Then we ran through (quite literally I am afraid) the National Gallery of Art. I was able to show mom and dad the highlights and things I thought they would like. 

Fountain with Christmas decorations at the National Gallery of Art

After that we grabbed a quick lunch in the cafe in Sculpture Garden and watched the ice skaters as we quickly ate are lunch. (BTW it was quite tasty and not a bad place to stop and grab a quick bite if you are on the Mall for the day!)

Ice Skating rink in the Sculpture Garden in front of the National Archives.

Then we headed for the Museum of American History and saw some of its highlights like Abraham Lincoln's hat and suit in their new Emancipation Proclamation exhibit, the First Ladies Dresses, Julia Childs Kitchen, Kermit the Frog, and Abraham Lincoln's Rifle. 

Julia Child's Kitchen

Me inside Julia Child's Kitchen

Abraham Lincoln's Top Hat

Abraham Lincoln's Suit

Abraham Lincoln's Rifle

After all this fun we met some friends of our who just happened to be passing through DC for dinner in Arlington at one of our favorite places, the Cheesecake Factory! 

Another busy day in the capitol but I thought it was a good way to say good bye! DC will always be one of my favorite places to visit. 

In closing, I wanted to share my last visit to the Rotunda for a while. I went by for one last visit as I left work that Friday. I had the place to myself for about 5 minutes. Maybe I teared up. I started to lie down in the floor and just look at it for a while but I thought that would be awkward if someone came through. I will really miss seeing this. 

My last visit to the Rotunda