Hello, Washington. We're back!
We arrived Friday evening back in Capital Hill. We're staying in the same townhouse as last year. The house has some nice updates. We were unpacked and mostly set up in about 90 minutes. Way less time than it took me to pack it in the car!
The drive went by quickly, mostly uneventful. A little rain as we neared the city. There was a fun stop at Jimmy's Famous Hot Dogs near Durahm, NC. The food was great, but honestly, this hot dog man was awesome.
Once the house was set up, we headed to our favorite local bar from last year, Tune Inn. A couple of beers and those fantastic, fresh-made cheese sticks, and we felt right at home again.
Mike mentioned that he was proud of us for making it back here, for taking this month away from Atlanta again. It was fairly simple to do it once, but following through and doing it again didn't seem as obvious. I'm glad we managed it as well.
Saturday, April 29
Yesterday, we had a leisurely morning around the house. I walked to the store for breakfast foods, and Mike wrapped up some work from Friday. Then we headed out for a bike ride around the Mall. What was supposed to be overcast and ugly, turned out to be a gorgeous afternoon. The memorial is several parts and beautifully done. There is a reflecting pool, a wall listing the fallen soldiers, American and Korean, statues of soldiers walking through fields, and a wall of faces.
We grabbed some Capital Bikes and headed towards the Capitol. We rode the whole mall all the way to Lincoln. I swear I will never get tired of this view. The Korean War Memorial was still under construction last year, so we stopped to see it finished. The faces sandblasted into the wall are astonishing. The faces are actual soldiers. At one distance, the mural wall looks like Korea's mountains. As you get closer, the faces become clear. Closer still and they seem to disappear, leaving only the reflection of the sky.
From the Mall, we headed north, just wandering through the George Washington University campus. We stumbled into Tonic at Quigley's Pharmacy. Quigley's Pharmacy opened in 1891. The building still looks great and who wouldn't stop in when you see this sign? Inside was a beautiful bar, great service, and Commonwealth Brewing's Galaxy Magic Gose. This thing was delicious. Some delicious pork belly and tots later, and we were back to wandering the city towards the White House.
At the White House we found a march for peace in Sudan. I love the fact that there is always some group out in front of the White House marching or protesting for something. Especially coming from Atlanta, where we are often too focused on business to look up, I'm proud to see people demonstrating. I love that about this city.
From there we rode north farther than we had been before. We found a points system in the CaBi app for moving bikes from full stations to more empty ones. We journeyed around from station to station, checking out the scenery, all the way to Howard University. As we were looking for a high point bike station, I noticed Half Smoke a bar/lounge/milkshake combo restaurant I had seen in the Lonely Planet. The LP has been a staple for all of our travels for many years. With a whole internet of recommendations in my pocket, it gets used less and less. But I'm always happy to try one of its suggestions. And it didn't disappoint! Great people watching here as well. Apparently DC is famous for these specialty hot dogs. The ones here at Half Smoke came in a mini loaf of butter toasted bread with some great toppings.
We made our way south, around Union Station, towards the H Street neighborhood and back to Capital Hill. We stopped in at Cafe Berlin. We found this place just a few days before we left last year. I've been thinking about (and attempting to recreate) the Rotkohl, German sweet and sour cabbage, for almost a year.
Sitting at the bar, our bartender Tim kept us watered and entertained. Turns out he also works at Mr. Henry's, and gave us the schedule for jazz there. We had some delicious potato pancakes, currywurst, as well as the braised cabbage. After a full day of riding, we went home full and happy.
Today is rainy and ugly out. We are lounging around the house with the cats this morning. There are plans to get to a museum this afternoon during a break in the rain. More to come later in the week. Exciting stuff including a Capitol tour and a visit from Mike's cousins Hollis, Corey, and Archer!
