Wednesday, April 23, 2008

Our weekend

Last weekend we traveled to the warmer nether regions of our country to be total tourists in DC. We had great weather on Saturday, saw lots of monuments and met up with a couple of old friends. It was really fun. Lots of walking, ice cream and water. Sean and I took the train down as the plane tickets were ridiculous. Plus, that way, he could get some work done. We took the train from home to Boston, then the Acela from Boston to Baltimore. It took 9.5 hours total - a little less than it would've taken to drive, but we didn't have to drive. It was actually pretty cool to watch the season change from just starting to be spring up here to spring in full bloom down there. We got to go through our hometown and the surrounding hometowns of our friends. We even saw people on the beach in some places! I only have a few suggestions for the Acela: get drink holders - those stupid trays suck. Get satellite radio - how hard can that be? Get better snacks.

It was beautiful when we arrived. We got picked up and headed to Annapolis where we hung out for a while, then had a very nice dinner in town (thanks to Reed) and headed back to get ready for Saturday.

Saturday we headed to the metro to get into DC. It was pretty straightforward to drive to the metro and get into the heart of the city. We walked around for a while and finally met up with one of my friends from college and her boyfriend at the WWII memorial and then we all walked around checking out the monuments. At one point we noticed lots and lots of riot police and people lined up along the street like it was going to be a parade or something. We soon found out it was an Aryan nation rally. As soon as we learned that, we took off, wanted to not be anywhere near such a disgusting cause, especially when the riot police put their face masks down, it was a clear sign to be to book the hell out of there.

At about 5, my friend had to take off so the rest of us headed into Georgetown to hang out and get some pre-dinner snacks. It was a busy place, but we found a cute little bar to get some apps and rest for a little while before heading to my other friend's show. At about 8 or so we got back on the metro to head into Arlington to get to the club. At this point we were all pretty tired from being out in the sun all day, but I was so excited to see my friend it didn't matter to me. We had some dinner at the club (not the greatest food, but it sufficed) and at about 10 or so I finally met up with my friend. I thought I had seen him earlier, but I think it was someone from another band who was playing that night. It was great to see him, but it was really loud so we couldn't really talk much. I got to meet his wife, who is really nice. So we hung out for a while and then his band, Honor By August, went on around 11:30 or so. We didn't stay very long as we didn't have any earplugs (I didn't notice how loud it was - I guess my hearing is already shot) and Sean was wicked tired. It was really fun to see my friend and his band. He just looked so happy playing, it made me really glad for him.

Sunday we had a Segway tour booked for 12:30 so we drove into the city this time, since it's really not that bad on a Sunday, checked in for the tour, got the little tutorial and practiced around in the little courtyard for a bit. Finally, we decided it was raining too much and the tour would suck so we canceled. So, then we headed to ESPN zone for some lunch and games, then headed to the International Spy Museum. It was pretty cool. We walked through the museum and then did an interactive exhibit. At that point it was about 6 or so, so we headed back, had some dinner, then went to the airport. Our flight was delayed about an hour because of the rain, but that wasn't too bad. It's a quick flight so we got home about 12 am I think. The only thing that sucked was that the cabby acted like he knew where he was going, but really didn't - seriously, if you don't know where you're going, just ask!

All in all, we had a great weekend. We had great company and lots of fun. We'll hit the museums next time, and maybe get a tour of the White House.

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