A Tourist with Well Connected Friends

6/6/2009
Today started out as a touristy day of D.C. with Sara as my guide. First we saw the Navy Memorial/Fountains. Then we walked to a park where a young boy apparently just couldn't hold it anymore. 

From there we checked out the Natural History Museum where we saw some prehistoric skeleton's of extinct sea creatures, land mammals, and birds, but more importantly DINOSAURS. Oh and the Hope Diamond which is surprisingly not as impressive as one would think. 

After that museum, we met up with my other buddy Chris and checked out the Air and Space Museum. Here we saw a model of the Wright brother's plane, a bunch of rockets, and the coolest parts, the Apollo command modules. I also discovered that one of the Wright brothers was a wicked mandolin player. Who knew?

Chris just so happens to be a legislative assistant on Capitol Hill, so he took Sara and I on a little tour of the offices. We even got to venture out onto the roof to get a fantastic view of Independence Avenue and the Capitol. 

Then we were hungry. It was a toss up between Ethiopian and Spanish tapas. Since we passed by the tapas place first, it won out. Fantastic little dishes. One consisting of the most flavorful, tender chicken, another dish of warmed mini-potatoes with a spicy/tangy dipping sauce. The wild rice and mushrooms had each of us fighting for the last bite. Even the asparagus, covered in a buttery base and topped with asiago cheese, made for quite a treat. Washing it all down, a perfectly blended sangria. 

A good day in D.C. But we still had a night ahead of us. Sara and I parted ways with Chris to get ready for the night. I met up with Chris later in Columbia Heights, just a 15 minute Metro ride up from Crystal City where I was staying with Sara. We started things out in a dive bar with a few bottle's of PBR. But eventually we wanted to meet up with another friend, Alex. We made our way to South 18th street, a bar district packed sidewalk to sidewalk with a young drinking crowd. We drank at Town Tavern for a bit and met up with Alex, then went next door to a sweet jazz lounge, more my cup of tea. Unfortunately, the band was just wrapping up. But no matter, cause we were getting free drinks. It helps to know people who know bartenders in D.C. 

After that, we were done, but hungry. I was told I had to experience a jumbo slice of pizza. At the time, I remember a euphoria of pizza bursting in my face. However, the next morning when I looked at this picture, the only thing I could say was, "I ate that?"