The Marine Corps Marathon is a huge running event, with thousands of runners from all over the country coming to DC to run with the Marines. Since I'm a long way from being ready to run my first marathon, I decided to sign up for its little sister event: the Marine Corps Marathon 10K. I figured after the Disneyland Paris half marathon a few weeks before, 10 kilometers would be a breeze. I had a simple goal going into the race: to run a faster 10K than my previous one, the Capitol Hill Classic. Since it took me an hour and ten minutes to complete that course back in May, I also added a stretch goal of finishing closer to the 1 hour mark this time. How did I do? Well, by the first kilometer ...
Weekend Highlights
Week-end Highlights: The Crown, Beaujolais, Friendsgiving & Fotoweek DC
Brr! It got cold all of the sudden! After a gorgeous Saturday, it looks like temperatures are back to what they should be this time of year, which means I spent most of Sunday curled up on the couch with my cat, binging on The Crown. But before that, I did have quite the fun […] ...
Week-end Highlights: Laotian Food, Spanish Tall Ships & a Little Art
Happy Monday! Did you have a good weekend? After a long, emotional, week, mine was low key, in a good way, though I still managed to do quite a bit. Friday, I made my grand waitressing debut when I helped out with chef Bobby Pradachith’s Amone pop up at Mess Hall. Chef Pradachith is the son of […] ...
Week-end Highlights: Pinxtos, Vegan Wedding Cake & a Mini College Reunion
I’ve been pretty lucky. So far this summer, all of the weddings that I have been to have been local. Even better, since my college friend Sandra got married here at 2941 Restaurant not only did I not need to travel but a bunch of my college friends actually traveled to see me! Well, attend […] ...
Week-End Highlights: GLT Get-Together and All the Pumpkins!
This week-end was all about two things: girlfriends and pumpkins! We had planned a fun day-trip to the Middletown/Frederick area to visit a pumpkin patch and the weather could not have been more perfect. If anything, it was too warm to wear the typical instagrammable fall outfit ;-) We headed to Jumbo's pumpkin patch because I had seen it listed in a couple of articles as one of the best in the United States (like in this post on Travel + Leisure). This seven-generation family farm offers lots of family friendly activities like face painting, pony rides, hayrides etc. but also has a legit patch where you can pick-your-own gourd. There were A LOT of kids, but once you got out to the patch it ...
Weekend Highlights: 2Amys, Taste of DC & a Muddy Music Festival
We don't have a lot of three days weekends in the United States and hurricane Matthew caused problems for many travelers who had fun plans for the holiday... I didn't have any plans to get away from Washington but there was plenty going on in the city! POST ITALIAN EMBASSY DINNER AT 2AMYS Since October 2012, the Italian Embassy has engaged the public in an open discussion on digital diplomacy and innovation in foreign policy through its Digital Diplomacy Series. Last week, they gathered a great panel of folks from the White House, Tumblr, Facebook and Google/YouTube to discuss what happens when digital diplomacy goes live. Afterwards, since we were already in the Cathedral Heights ...
Week-end Highlights: Pho, Poutine & Playing Tourist on the Mall
Happy Monday!! How was your first weekend of fall? Friday and Sunday were absolutely beautiful here in Washington. I really wish I had made some outdoorsy plans... or that I had a car so I could be spontaneous and go play outside of the city. But I still found ways to enjoy the beautiful weather. SUNSET ROSÉ ON THE ROOF I'd had a busy week and I wanted to go swimming Saturday morning (call it the post Olympics effect, but I've been going swimming at Dunbar Aquatic Center three times a week lately) so I took it easy Friday night and just enjoyed some rosé on the roof before watching the series premiere of Designated Survivor with the husband. I found a $8.99 bottle of Coteaux ...
Weekend Highlights: Garnacha, Hello Kitty, a Pique Nique & a Sneak Peek at NMAAHC
I can't believe it's already Monday! I packed a lot in three short days, and the weekend definitely flew by! Now let's just hope the week goes just as fast too ;-) MEXICAN INDEPENDENCE DAY AT GRAND CATA Have you been to Grand Cata yet? It's one of my favourite wine store in the city... and since it doesn't carry many French bottles, that's saying something about the rest of their selection! My first instinct when picking vino is usually to go straight for what I know, French wines but Julio and Pedro who co-own the Latin-centric shop are always spot with their recommendations. Whether it's a Spanish garnacha, a Portuguese rose or a bottle from South America, they've definitely helped me ...
Weekend Highlights ~ Low Key Labour Day
The first Monday of September is always Labor Day in the United States. It honors American workers and their contributions to the strength of the country. It's also considered the unofficial end of summer... le sigh. DRINKS AT THE WATERGATE HOTEL We kicked off the weekend with happy hour at the Next Whisky Bar in the newly opened Watergate Hotel. Of course, everyone knows of the Watergate from the history books and the role it played in the demise of president Richard Nixon. But today, it's a complex of 5 buildings right by the Kennedy Center. One of those building is now a landmark hotel overlooking the Potomac River and I hadn't been yet since it reopened in June (it was closed for ...
Weekend Highlights ~ Restaurant Week, Caipirinhas & Grilled Peach Pizza
Definitely another low-key weekend... sometimes you just need some of those you know, especially as I gear up Diner en Blanc next Saturday. Friday night, I had a couple of girlfriends over for rosé on the roof. My friends Jean and Aparna can't make it to diner en blanc, so we thought we'd dress in white and have a bit of a test run. I'm being a bit of a rebel this year and sprinkling hints of gold into my tablescape so I wanted to check out how it looked. Plus I love any excuse to host. I think it turned out pretty well no? I wanted to keep things simple for the menu so I made Martha Stewart's Grilled Peach Pizza recipe as well as a pitcher of caipirinhas (check out my recipe here, along ...
