Mini Vacation

Since we found ourselves in DC without any work obligations, Stewart and I decided to make the most of our time. Yesterday, we got up and headed out to the nearest metro station so we could head into the district. When we hopped off, I realized that we were close to Ford's Theatre. When I lived in DC, I tried numerous times to go and they were closed every time! They were usually having a performance but towards the end of my time there, they decided to restore the theater. Stewart and I decided to head over and see if it was open. When we got there, there was a line out of the building and a sign read that tickets were required. My hopes started to sink as I thought that they were now charging to visit. We headed to the ticket booth and found out that tickets are FREE! We got our tickets and grabbed a quick lunch before heading into the theater. I'm so glad that I finally got to see it.

After that, we headed over to the National Mall and sat on a bench and people watched. We quick ducked into the American History Smithsonian. We walked through the Star Spangled Banner exhibit and saw the original flag and heard the national anthem play. It was really nice to hear before we move. It really does stir up a patriotic feeling. We headed over to the World War II memorial and then tried to see the Great World War monument but renovations were being done on the Mall. We hopped the metro back to our hotel to get ready for dinner.

We met up with my friend, Cupcake, for some yummy Lebanese food. It was so good to see her and catch up. After dinner, we headed over to Arlington and met up with one of Sstewart's friends from college and his wife. We had a good time and didn't get to bed until super late.

We slept in this morning and then headed up to Catonsville right outside Baltimore. When I was in grad school, I lived with friends while I was interning in Baltimore. We were sorry that we didn't get to see J but were glad we got to catch up with K. We headed over to Catonsville Gourmet for lunch and had the last seafood that we'll get for awhile. And it was sooo good!

We're back in Virginia now with Stewart's brother's family until we drive up next Monday for our flight. We enjoyed our mini vacation and are looking forward to spending the next few days with family.

Five more days!