DC

It's so weird to think that this time last week we were in DC! We had such a great time and got to spend a lot of time with my best friend, Sital, and her boyfriend, Kiger. I didn't want it to end!

We were lucky enough to stay at her company's apartment, not but a block from her. It's the closest we've ever been able to stay to her (in the past, she and the company both were in different apartments blocks away) and it was so nice to text and meet her at the corner for dinner.

 This is the view from her roof. The big buildings to the right are all of the Securities and Exchange Commission buildings. You can see the capital building peeking out right past it. If I had kept panning to the right, you'd have seen the Washington Monument.

 Saturday morning, we headed out to one of our favorite places in the city, Eastern Market. We had brunch at a great place that brought us out a skillet full of cinnamon rolls. Incredible.

 We had lots of great food throughout the trip. After going to the International Spy Museum that day, we headed over to Shake Shack. Paul had a peanut butter shake and I had a chocolate. I just had to see what they tasted like together.

 That night we had a four hour wait for our dinner at a hole in the wall (but really great) ramen/dumpling place. So, we hopped around on H Street while we waited. We went and played bocce ball at one place and then headed to a bar with an indoor put put course. All of the holes were themed after monuments. It was pretty cool. After a bit, we got the text that they were ready for us (mind you, it was about 11 p.m. at this point).

 Tokki Underground is really small - only seats about 25 at most. We were ready for some food!

 We tried a couple of different dumplings and a bowl of ramen.

The next day, we found out just how much we love kayaking.

 Right at the iconic Key Bridge in Georgetown (ahead in this photo), you can rent single or tandem kayaks, paddle boards, and canoes. We loved it!

 How many people get to say they've kayaked the Potomac? We rented tandem kayaks with Sital and Kiger and paddled down stream past Roosevelt Island and were able to see Watergate, Kennedy Center, and the Lincoln Memorial. Very cool!

That afternoon, Paul and I visited Arlington National Cemetery.

 I still can't get over how many headstones there are.

 This is the view from Arlington House overlooking the river (from Virginia back towards DC). That road right there is leading to the Lincoln Memorial.

 We also visited Medgar Evers grave. We think the rocks and flowers left are from this summer when there was a ceremony for the 50th anniversary of his death.

 Back at home, we were getting pictures like this of the cat. What a nut!

 Sunday night, we had an awesome dinner on the roof of Sital's building. (That's the Washington Monument and Union Station in the background) The whole weekend, the weather was fantastic with highs in the upper 70s and lows in the 50s. It was the perfect time to be outside.

 We grilled chicken, corn, asparagus, squash, peppers, and onions. Sital made this incredible cucumber, olive, tomato salad that I need the recipe for!

When we were cabbing back to our apartment one night, we drove by the new NPR headquarters and realized it was only a few blocks from out apartment. We signed up and got to tour the building on Monday. That day was someone crazy because we woke up that morning to hear about the DC Navy Yard shootings a few miles from our apartment.

 Paul in one of the recording studios.

 Here's part of the newsroom. I couldn't take pictures of it, but in another part of this newsroom, there was a large round table that becomes home base during breaking news. There were people sitting around on phones, watching TVs and waiting for more details from the shooting.

Our final thing we squeezed in before our flight for the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.

 This guy look familiar?

 Let me just say, I would NOT want to mess with this guy.

 They also had a great room filled with gems. I though this necklace was beautiful!

We finally made it home on a flight that night. For the first few days, it was weird being back. I had problems at first with vertigo (which I've never had before). I kept having this feeling like I was still on the subway and it was moving!

This week, we also had one of my favorite event of the year, Symphony at Sunset. It's on the grounds of the Cedars, where we had our reception. There's not a square inch of space left on the grounds when people spread out. This year they played British tunes and I loved their medley of Harry Potter songs and songs by the Beatles.

We're now getting some much needed rain and I'm happy to stay in for the day!