Presidents' Day Weekend

This past weekend was one of the most entertaining I’ve had since I’ve been in DC. While not everything I did was DC-centric, I’ll still post in on here because it’s definitely part of my US capital experience.

Friday night I went to a fabulous concert at the Library of Congress. I talked about that in my last post. Saturday night I didn’t really have plans but thought I would wait to see what my roommates were planning to do. Around nine I learned that there was a concert at the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hotel on H Street NE. Having never heard of this place or any of the bands, I decided I would tag along for some cheap entertainment.

I got what I asked for, that’s for sure! The bands were The Bourbon Dynasty, CTC, Free Lobster Buffet, and Studly Moses. The first was country rock (funny), the second head-banging-screaming-angst hard rock (yikes), and the third pop/rock/dance (fabulous). I went with two housemates and a couple of girls from the University of Illinois. The Illinois girls left after the second band, eager to escape the vibrating walls and ceiling and flailing arms of the 6-foot, 2-inch guys running around in the pit. The third was definitely the best, inspiring the three remaining college students (most people there were 30+ or 15-18 years old) to dance like it was 1998. (We danced, or at least I danced, like crazy people.) But it was a blast and we wisely decided to leave before the fourth band even came on stage. (How could “Studly Moses” top “Free Lobster Buffet”?!)

Sunday I overslept and went with several of my housemates to Pete’s Diner a few blocks away for some coffee and pancakes. Then three of us went to explore the city a little more… well, our original goal was ice skating. The weather was slightly too warm, so we went to the Smithsonian castle instead. Then we visited the Air and Space Museum but it was PACKED with elementary and middle schoolers. I came back to the house and enjoyed the rest of my evening finishing Wicked and relaxing at the house.

Monday was President’s Day! Jen, Taylor, and I had our day scheduled pretty carefully because we (and by that I mean Jen) found a “President for a Day” event online. How could we turn down the opportunity to be a president for a day? Obviously we had to go. It was at the White House Visitor’s Center from 10am to 3pm, and we showed up at 11:30am. Abraham Lincoln was there answering questions (Does Abe like cheese sandwiches? Who would Abe elect in this election? And more…) for the kids and us. We went from station to station making beeswax candles, talking to the retired women who volunteered weekly at the visitor’s center, and learning about First Families.

Then we went next door to the old post office and went up in the bell tower, which was fantastic. The view from the tower was panoramic with no line whatsoever, unlike the Washington Monument which is impossible to get into unless you’re there at 8:30am. That’s just too early for patriotic sightseeing. Anyway, the bell tower had a great view and I took some pictures.

After the bell tower the three of us got some lunch there at the Pavilion and then took off to Alexandria, a suburb in Virginia. There was a parade scheduled there (for George Washington’s birthday, NOT for Presidents’ Day, I was told officially later) at 1pm. We got off the King Street metro stop a little uncertain of how exactly to get to the parade… or even King Street. Actually, I had no idea where the parade was. “Alexandria” seemed specific enough, and the three of us were in an adventurous moods. The weather was warm and cheerful, so we walked through the town until we finally realized it was wiser to ask directions.

Finally we arrived at the parade just in time to hear the first marching bands coming along the street. The parade was much longer than I expected, but in a good way. After the Chinese New Year’s Parade, my hopes were not high. Fortunately I was happily surprised!

There were Boy Scouts and Brownies galore, followed by town officials, more marching bands, PT Cruisers (lots and lots of them), Democratic candidate supporters (Obama08 and Clinton08 in the same car holding signs), etc etc etc. Pictures will do it much better justice than I can.

As the parade ended the first drops of rain splashed down, and we dashed back to the dry warmth of the metro. Not too long afterward, I was back at home, a little damp but happy about how the weekend ended.

So that was my weekend! Thanks for sticking around (if you did) and reading about my life. As always, comments are welcomed and appreciated!