Another big city, ladies and gents.
My friend had recently moved to Arlington, VA. I imagined it’d be a little difficult moving to a new city and starting over. So I chose a weekend to head up there and see her. Although I’m used to flying, I figured I’d drive since it was within my five hour road trip limit. The drive made me wonder if I’m gonna bring my five hour limit down to 4 1/2 hours. Ha! We’ll see! I left Friday after work, around 1 PM (or at least that was my intention). There were a couple of moments when traffic slowed down. I went during Fourth of July weekend. I reached her place around 7 PM. After a long drive you don’t really want to go to anything but relax and eat so that’s what we did. We drove to a strip-like area in Shirlington and went to an Indian restaurant. I ordered a vegetable dish and extra garlic naan (which I love!). After staying up for a bit to chat, I hit the hay. Ya girl was TIRED.
After taking her dog, Georgie, out for a walk, we headed to brunch. The place we went was called Chadwicks, located in Old Town Alexandria. I forgot what I ordered (it was probably French toast because that is my all-time favorite) but whatever it was, I inhaled it. There was a cute poodle mix that sat near us – I had to get a picture of him because it was still a puppy and he was big and fluffy. After eating, we headed over to the waterfront park. Plenty of people were enjoying the weather, kids were running around and a band was playing music. It was so lively! We checked out Old Town some more and took some photos by the marina. We came across a shop called Lou Lou and decided to pop in (mainly because it was SO hot outside). The vibe was cute and hipster. There was a swing photo op toward the left after walking inside, (good marketing, btw). I usually don’t make impulsive purchases and I’m not big on souvenirs but if something speaks to me, then I’m all in! There was a plaque about King Street and it said you can reach the end in about 15 minutes but it certainly didn’t feel like it. During our stroll, I took a couple of pictures near Franklin P. Backus courthouse (I was impressed by the architecture so I had to stop). JuJu got Boba tea and we also made a pitstop in H&M. I imagined we’d have more time to check out a few more shops but the sky looked a bit intimidating so we headed back home to rest before heading out again.
That night, we were determined to go out! So, we pre-gamed a little bit (2 shots), requested an Uber and went to a club called Decades. Upon arrival, I realized the crowd was bit younger (but pretty diverse). I prefer a place with a more classy atmosphere, space to dance, converse and get comfortable (I’m more so into lounges). It was a spur of the moment kind of choice – but not bad. They played decent music but it was way too crowded and people were pushing on the way upstairs. I was completely turned off by the bouncer’s attitude (gag!) I just don’t ever wanna go back to this place. BUT. JuJu seemed to really enjoy herself and that mattered more to me than everything else that night.
The next day was Fourth of July and I learned that my friend, Sezin (who used to be my neighbor while I studied abroad in Turkey) didn’t live far from JuJu. Sezin picked me up and we went to a restaurant in Southwest Washington called Coladas. We spent time at the Wharf marina in DC. It had to be about 7 years since the last time I saw her, so we tried to catch up as much as we could while exploring the area. I stopped at Praline Bakery to order vanilla and Oreo macaroons . Afterwards, we took a mini tour of the area: we drove through Georgetown University, drove by the National Museum of American History, the National Mall, the Holocaust Memorial Museum and The Smithsonian Institution Building but we couldn’t get close to many of the places because they were blocked off by security.
When I got back to my JuJu’s house, we thought it’d be a good idea to check out the pool. It wasn’t very hot anymore and much of the pool was in the shade by the time we got there so we didn’t get in. One of her neighbors recommended checking out Ruth’s Chris in Crystal (a small city not too far from Arlington). We didn’t have any plans for how we’d spend the Fourth of July so that was good timing. We went and found seats at the bar. There was about an hour left until the sun set. We had a great view because the restaurant had panoramic windows, so we got to see fireworks happening in different areas. The only downside was that they were small. It was a stress-free, relaxing way to spend the holiday.
Zaira Viteria 