Washington DC (October 16-17)

In the glorious autumn weekend of October 16-17, I went on a fantastic road trip to Washington DC with my awesome exchange friends Mel (from Australia), Nir and Itamar (from Israel). As you may be able to gather from my introduction, I had a total blast! Washington DC is an AMAZING city.

Washington DC: Day One

We left Charlottesville at around 11:30am on Saturday, because Nir had class until 11:00am. (Later we found out that he didn't go to class which meant we could've had an earlier start to our trip, but oh well, it was good to have some time in the morning sleep in a bit and do some work before heading off.) It was a gorgeous day! The guys came to our building to pick us up (cheers to John White in Section B for letting us borrow his car) and we were surprised and amused to find that they had packed larger bags than us. It was quite cute, actually. They don't really seem like high maintenance types, but I guess Nir's boy scout training taught him that it's always good to be prepared.

Despite the overall awesomeness of the trip, it got off to a rocky start for me. On the drive over, we played some car games that messed with my head. There was this one game that Itamar taught us, I guess it's called 'Who has the ball?' Basically, someone will say a bunch of nonsensical stuff about a ball being passed around the group, and will ask, "Who has the ball?" The first person to make any sort of sound after that question is the one who has the ball in that round. Itamar didn't explain these rules though: the point of the game was to catch onto how it was played, and the last person to catch on was the loser. Nir and Mel both got it relatively quickly, and we played for like half an hour before I gave up and they had to tell me the rules of the game. It got pretty heated in the car, man. I got really frustrated that I was having such a hard time trying to figure out how the game worked, and it didn't help that I was the only one who didn't know. And my ego and competitive nature were hurt given that I ultimately failed to work the game out. This may sound grossly disproportionate and it's totally silly looking back on it, but in all honesty I felt dumb, like a failure, an idiot. I hate feeling like that. I really need to chill out, tone it down and let stuff like that go. Getting exasperated over nothing doesn't help me to be a decent human being. It's like idolising false wisdom, which is not a good thing. I silently resolved never to play that game again, for the sake of my self-respect.

It's meant to be about a 2-hour drive from Charlottesville to Washington DC. It took us 4 hours to get to our hotel. At the time I didn't know how that happened, but things are clearer now. For one thing, we took a slight detour to see if there were any good wineries on the way (we did come across one winery but it looked like a factory from the outside and we couldn't see any vineyards around, not surprisingly none of us were keen to check it out). Also, we got caught in a LOT of traffic in the outskirts of DC while trying to find our way to the hotel. It must have been rush hour, parents picking kids up from schools and what not. We also missed some exits that the GPS directed us to take. Finally, the GPS mislead us. We typed the address of our hotel into it and it gave us directions to the spot, but we found ourselves in the middle of a random residential neighbourhood street with colourful wooden houses and no hotels. We managed to find our way by changing strategies and entering the name of our hotel into the GPS rather than its address. By this point, I really needed to go to the bathroom, and every minute spent on the road was becoming more and more unbearable.

We all cheered when we spotted our hotel on the street and pulled into the parking lot victoriously. Our excitement was short-lived though, stifled in most part by the guy at the reception, who didn't really seem to know what he was doing and moved with the speed of an arthritic tortoise. It took him FOREVER to check us into our rooms. And there was no available bathroom in the lobby. Seriously you guys, it wasn't the best.

But thankfully, the beginning of our trip was the only downside of our weekend. Our rooms were tidy, it was a beautiful afternoon, and we had a whole day and a half to explore DC. Nir's friend had given him tips on some good restaurants and bars in the city, so we decided to check some of them out, and leave most of the sightseeing to Sunday. Given that it's a nightmare to drive and park in downtown DC, we caught the Metro into town. We met up with a couple of the guys' friends who had come down from New York to hang out with them for the weekend: a guy named Maor who was on a law exchange at the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law, and a girl named Gali who was working as a receptionist. They were really friendly and nice.

We had luckily managed to reserve a table at Zaytinya, a popular mezze place that served Greek, Turkish and Lebanese cuisine. The food was fantastic, and we banqueted like royalty on warm pita bread (which they kept bringing out to us throughout the meal), hummus (absolutely glorious), labneh (Lebanese strained yoghurt with zatar [a Middle Eastern herb]) and falafel. I also got this dish called hunkar begendi, which is a traditional Turkish braised lamb shank in eggplant-kefalograviera (sheep milk cheese): it was like a Mediterranean party in my mouth. We were able to enjoy such a diverse spread of foods because they all came in small portions, and I was surprised to find that the dishes were all very reasonably priced. I'd definitely recommend this place to any epicures who find themselves in DC! The service was great too, and the place had a snazzy vibe to it.

View of Zaytinya from the second floor.

Afterwards we walked around the city for a bit to take in DC's sights at night time. We explored Chinatown, and walked all the way to Capitol Hill. We only saw the Capitol from a distance, but it was still pretty magnificent. My expectations for our Sunday excursions doubled. As we walked, I got to have a good chat to Gali which was neat, she told me about her job in New York and time in the Israeli army (Israel has compulsory conscription for everyone, even girls) which sounded intense. She said that she really enjoyed it though, she even stayed on to become an officer.

Chinatown gate.

The Capitol at night time.

Then we walked for ages towards The Gibson (one of the bars that Nir's friend recommended), which was located at 2009 14th Street. Little did we know, the journey from the Capitol to this far along 14th Street takes about an hour on foot. After walking for about 40 minutes, we decided to catch a cab. Best decision of the night, man. The Gibson's modest exterior (the entrance was a dingy-looking wooden door that you'd walk straight past if you weren't looking out for it) belied its popularity. We walked in and at the foot of the stairs leading up to the actual bar, we were told by the bouncer dude that there was a 2-hour wait for a table, and only a couple of spots available at the bar. He said he could add us to the already lengthy waitlist, and contact us when a table became free. I was at the head of the pack so I talked with him and gave him my number, and he asked, "Are you from New Zealand?" When I replied in the affirmative, he got really excited and was like, "I love your country! And your accent is awesome!" Americans love Kiwis, you guys, particularly our accents: it's a real treat. 

We decided to chill out at the neighbouring bar and bistro, Marvin, while we waited for a free table at The Gibson. We went upstairs to the bar area and found that it was pretty packed out too. We got some drinks and had hung out for about 15 minutes, when I got a call from the bouncer dude at The Gibson, saying that a table had opened up for us. What? No way! I was pretty sure we were like, 10th on the waitlist. Lucky, much? (Actually, I secretly think that it was my accent that got us the table, but that's neither here nor there.) Nir and Mel decided to head next door first to secure the table, and the rest of us who still had drinks to finish would join them a little later. I had a chat to Maor over some Riesling, which was nice.

The Gibson was a really awesome joint. We had our own table, and the decor was vintage cool. Our hipster server was also our bartender, and he specialised in making cocktails. I couldn't choose what I wanted, so I asked him to make me a special cocktail, along the lines of a cosmopolitan. He brought me back this red concoction that he'd labelled "Better Watch Out", which was delightful. A little strong though, Americans are very liberal with adding hard liquor in their drinks. I had to drink loads of water to offset it. It was fun hanging out, good chats and good times. 

Gali and Itamar. Heyyyy.

Maor, me, Mel and Nir.

A picture of all of us that our hipster server took.

Our night ended back in Chinatown, at a restaurant called Tai Shan, where I had one of the best plates of chicken fried rice I've ever had in my life. I think eating at 2:00am makes all hot food taste twice as good. 

Welcome to Chinatown.

The mean streets of Chinatown.

Tai Shan. Best chicken fried rice ever.

Cutie.

We got back to the hotel via the Metro. I think we must have gotten to sleep at around 3:00am, exhausted but clean and content. That was our first day in DC, not how I'd expected it to be but good fun nonetheless.

Washington DC: Day Two

We'd planned to get an 8:00am start to our second day so that we could fit in as much sightseeing as we could. But Mel and I slept in until about 8:15am, so we headed out to the city an hour and a half behind schedule. I felt really bad because the guys had gotten up at 7:30am and had to wait around for us to get ready, pack and have breakfast. But I guess 9:30am is still a pretty early start.

Our gameplan was basically to begin the day at Capitol Hill and make our way down the National Mall and all the way to the Lincoln Memorial, while fitting lunch and the White House in there somewhere. We took the Metro to Union Station, the nearest train stop to Capitol Hill. It was a beautiful day and I was pumped as.

Washington DC's Metro stations were
all pretty modern and clean.

Union Station.

It was designed to be the entrance to Washington DC.

The Capitol was truly a sight to behold. It was an absolutely gorgeous building, I couldn't get over how magnificent and gigantic it was! We hung out around it for ages, taking in its splendour and capturing its beauty on camera.

Wow.

Gives Parliament House a run for its money.

Arty angles.

Solo shot.

Again, wow.

One of the ends of the Capitol, magnificent in and of itself.

Our next stop was the US Supreme Court. One word: WOW. It was splendid. I can't really describe it in words, so I'll let the photos do the talking.

The US Supreme Court.

Solo shot again.

Closer shot of the Court.

View from the steps of the Court.

It's gargantuan.

Us.

Just chilling.

Seriously, wow.

After having fun at the Supreme Court, we headed back toward the Capitol, and made our way to the other side of the building. I think this was the front of the building, and the side we had initially seen was the back. It was beautiful. The views that we had of the National Mall and the nearby Reflecting Pool were stunning, too. We met up with Gali and Maor here, and chilled out for a bit. I really hope that I get to see the insides of both the Capitol and the Supreme Court next time I'm in DC, I think it'll really add to the richness of the two institutions.

Solo shot.

It's just so beautiful.

I was so stoked.

Statue on the Capitol Hill grounds.

View of the National Mall from the Capitol.

The crew sitting on the edge of the Reflecting Pool.

Solo shot.

We made our way down the National Mall, passing the various Smithsonian museums. I was having the best day, and Mel and I sang out loud as we walked. I know it might have been a bit weird, but we just couldn't contain our joy! We took a short stop at the Smithsonian Castle, enjoying the buildings and the gardens.

Mel and me at the gardens. Love.

The Castle buildings.

Gorgeous.

Mel and I split from the Israeli quartet because they wanted to check out the Air and Space Museum, whereas we wanted to check out the National Museum of Natural History. Well, I really wanted to go to the Air and Space Museum as well, but given the time constraints, I had to make a choice. Hopefully I'll get to check out more museums next time I'm in DC. The National Museum of Natural History was really awesome! We powered through the museum because we only had an hour and a half to look around. My favourite features were the Hall of Human Origins (anthropology is fascinating) and the Korea Gallery (I may not seem too Korean sometimes, but I'm really proud of my Korean heritage, you guys).

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

Front lobby of the museum.

Ocean Hall.

Current World Population counter.
The numbers rose by the second.

A traditional Korean painting with symbols of longevity.

The Hope Diamond. Apparently it's cursed.

We met up with the others at the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch in the early afternoon (Nir and I chose the venue, we heart Hard Rock Cafe), and I bumped into my friend Michael O'Brien, who's doing a law exchange at Indiana University. What the what? Apparently he was in DC with his Dad, who was here from New Zealand on a business trip. It was great to see him given that I hadn't seen him since our Contiki trip in August, what are the chances, right? Our lunch was good, too. I just had a burger and some fries (I've had a burger and fries in every new American city I've been in so far, maybe I should make this a travelling tradition) but Hard Rock style, which adds great value.

The Old Post Office Pavilion.

Building above the Federal Triangle Metro Station.

I don't know what this is. I was just impressed.

Hard Rock Cafe, Washington DC.

We heart Hard Rock Cafe, yum!

Our next stop was the White House. Contrary to my expectations, we could only see it in a distance from across the street, because it was fenced off to the public. So it was a little disappointing, but oh well, hopefully next time I'll be able to do a tour of the inside. The street was packed with people trying to get a glimpse of the President's home.

The White House. My camera is zoomed in.

This is how far away it actually was. But we were still happy.

We then made our way across the Ellipse (a big grassy area in front of the White House) towards the Washington Monument. There were heaps of people playing sports on the fields around it, and when we came across this bunch of trees, the guys wanted to stop for a bit.

The Washington Monument.

Solo shot.

Relaxing in the grass.

Such a cutie.

Me starting to get a little bored.

After about 15 minutes I got bored of relaxing. Gali and Maor wanted to check out the Lincoln Memorial before catching their bus back to New York at 5:00pm, so Mel and I left Nir and Itamar to nap in the grass and headed off with them. We actually split up when we got to the WWII Memorial, because Mel and I wanted to check it out while Gali and Maor were only keen for the Lincoln Memorial. The WWII Memorial was amazing! Unfortunately my little camera couldn't capture all of its awesomeness, but oh well.

The Atlantic arch.

The fountains of the WWII Memorial.

Impressive.

Dedicated to Americans who served in WWII.

Each of these pillars belonged to a state.
Naturally, we were drawn to Virginia.

It gets more than 4.4 million visitors annually. 

Washington Monument, WWII Memorial and love.

Then we made our way along the Reflecting Pool towards the Lincoln Memorial. It took a lot longer to get to the Memorial than I thought (the Pool is over 600 metres long). The view of the Washington Monument across the Pool from the Memorial end was breathtaking. We spent ages just looking out, admiring the view. And the Memorial was awe-inspiring. There was a sign inside that asked people to be respectful, but I felt that the sign was redundant because the Memorial itself was enough to elicit reverence. Abraham Lincoln was an awesome US President, total respect.

Me reflecting at the edge of the Reflecting Pool.

This is what I saw as I sat reflecting.

The Lincoln Memorial.

The view from the steps of the Memorial.

Me and Abe.

Before heading back to meet Nir and Itamar, we made a short stop at the Korean War Veterans Memorial. It was hauntingly beautiful. For some reason I got real emotional there, eh. The Korean War is such a sad and tragic part of Korea's history, and I guess I got a little overwhelmed thinking about all the casualties, split families and the fact that American soldiers who didn't have any connections to South Korea came to the rescue at the eleventh hour. Whatever the US' motives in deploying its troops, I'm really grateful it came through for us.

Stainless steel statues of the US troops in Korea.

The figures represent a squad on patrol.

There are 19 of them.

They're drawn from each branch of the armed forces.

Granite wall sandblasted with over 2,500 images of soldiers.

Respect.

We made our way back to the Washington Monument at around 6:00pm, and the guys were right where we had left them. We took the Metro back to the hotel, hopped into the car and made our way to Georgetown to grab some dinner at a cute little restaurant called Paolo's (later I found out that this is a franchise, which took some of the cuteness and littleness away from it) before heading back home. One of the best pizzas I've ever had in my life, man. It would've been cool to check out Georgetown during the day because apparently it's an adorable part of DC, but oh well, maybe next time. Big shout out to Itamar for driving, particularly on the streets of DC where the drivers are manic and the roads are very confusingly laid out. We got back to Charlottesville at around midnight, again exhausted but content. It had been a long day jam-packed with activities, wonderful and productive.

The WWII Memorial and Lincoln Memorial.

Israel's finest.

One of the best pizzas I've ever had. I managed to finish it all.

As I said at the beginning, I had an absolute blast in DC. It's such an amazing city! And unlike Chicago and Boston, the weather was perfect, which made a huge difference. Great sights, great company, great food, an overall great time. I can't wait to go back and see/do all the things I missed out on this time around.


G.