Nate and I spent a weekend in DC last month, during the incredible heat of summer. If there’s one thing I can say right off the bat, it’s that I love DC way more in the fall, which is when we visited last year. It’s just a littttttttle more enjoyable when you aren’t sweating the whole time. But summertime was the one time we had the chance to go this year, so we went! Nate and I both love DC and have been together twice before, so we didn’t have much more on our list of must-sees. The Jefferson Memorial and the Botanic gardens were the main spots we wanted to hit. Out of all the memorials (and there are a lot of memorials in DC!) Jefferson was definitely my favorite. It reminded me of ancient architecture you’d see in Rome, plus it sits right on the water and has a great view of the Washington Monument. We sat on the steps (in the shade) and took it all in for a while.
The Botanic gardens were so gorgeous! I have only ever been in one, tiny, little botanic garden before, so this HUGE one was a showstopper for me. It smelled amazing, there were different levels within the larger area that we explored, and they had a whole section dedicated to Hawaii. I love Hawaii! Since it was so hot outside, being in the greenhouse was pretty brutal in the warmer climates, but pro tip, there’s a mister in the children’s section, so use that to cool off 🙂 After we finished at the Botanic gardens, I was pretty tired (and sunburnt), so we spent the rest of the day reading and watching TV in our hotel room. Sounds lame, but one thing I learned during this mini-vaca is that it’s OK to not always be going, seeing, visiting, and that it’s OK to just take a break and rest. Isn’t that what vaca is really all about anyways?
After a good night’s rest, we woke up and went to the zoo! I’m sure all of you have been to a zoo at some point, so can we agree that they all kind of look and feel the same? I don’t know, I feel like a zoo is a zoo. We saw the cute pandas, huge elephants, and sweet, tiny, little, weird mammals that I will never again see in my life. I forget all their names, ha! But the zoo was fun and now I don’t need to go to a zoo for another 5 years.
We ate a lot of really good food this time around, the share-with-all-the-people type of food and so I’m gonna share! We stayed in a hotel near the Metro Center stop on the red line, so most of the places we ate at were within walking distance from there!
Astro Doughnuts – This was recommended to me by an Instagram friend! We enjoyed breakfast there two mornings in a row…oops! 😉 The blackberry crumble doughnut is still something I dream about to this day, and I would also suggest getting yourself a peach pie doughnut as well. For those of you with slightly adventurous taste buds, Nate really liked the maple bacon option!
&pizza – Ok, this place is sweeeeet. Think Subway, where you get to choose all your toppings, but this is really good, artisan pizza place! I chose spinach, chick peas, pesto and broccoli for my toppings and it was seriously such a yummy combo. They cook the pizza by sending it through a special conveyor belt oven, and the pizza is ready in less than 3 minutes, so basically this is a good place to go if you need some amazing food pronto.
Cuba Libre – Nate and I are not the bar type, but we had walked by this rum bar earlier in the day and thought it would be cool to check out. It was such a lively atmosphere; people were salsa dancing in between tables and it was just great. My favorite cocktail had something to do with coconut, obviously. (They also have food here, but we just tried the drinks).
Ebenezer’s Coffeehouse – Still on the red line, but get off at Union Station. It’s in the cutest (colorful!) neighborhood and has some great coffee. It’s spacious and has such a great vibe… like, you know THAT coffee shop vibe? This place has that. I’m sorry I couldn’t be more descriptive, you just have to visit.
Ted’s Bulletin – We met up with our DC friends again, and we went back to the same diner we ate at last year, officially making this a TRADITION! There is such a retro vibe in this diner, and I love it. The food is great and they didn’t mind that we stayed almost 3 hours so we could talk and catch up, as friends do. P.S. This is near the Eastern Market metro stop.
YAY DC WE LOVE YOU.
