Picking up where we left off finds me at the Nationals-Phillies baseball game: this, while a good excuse to get outside and chat with fellow interns, does not qualify in the “too fun” category. From my own experience, and as has been noted by a baseball-loving friend, unless you understand the sport, it seems to be a long session of guys standing around waiting for a ball. Indeed. Every once in a while, I must admit, I had to remind myself that there was supposed to be some sort of sporting event taking place on the field below us. Give me football, basketball, soccer, and I’m with you; baseball, not so much. Regardless, still a great opportunity, the weather was excellent, and the company was lively.
Jenny and I stop outside for the typical photo opp. before heading in, at which time we promptly went the wrong way and circled the entire stadium before getting to our seats. The perk: we saw the stadium from all angles and found the closest Dippin’ Dots vendor.
As the [moderately boring] baseball game had cut in on other plans, rescheduling led to dinner plans for Friday, and random mentioning of mango lassi and biryani landed Tony and I in the Taj Mahal restaurant in Dupont Circle--I heartily approve. Good food, good company, and good conversation overruled the potential awkwardness of the quiet atmosphere and bemused sideways glances we attracted from an older couple sitting nearby, and the weekend was off to a notably promising start.
Now, it may be hard to believe people when they say that this city is small, but it truly is. Between the restaurant and the Metro stop (just up the street), we ran into friends and fellow interns on three separate occasions. Three! From there, it was up to Grosvenor to further kickstart the weekend with lively music and a friendly gathering hosted by Ian, fellow Dickinsonian and roommate of Tony (flashback to last week for those following the characters in this little narrative). It was an entertainingly varied collection of people, to say the least, and a grand look into the life of interns outside of the office.
Thanks to beautiful weather and Cherry Blossom Festival events, Saturday saw a massive influx of tourists (which group, thankfully, I no longer consider myself a part of - I’ve moved on to the “Washingtonians continuously disgruntled by unknowing and innocent tourists” group). Plans to meet up with a few friends visiting from Dickinson were slightly complicated by the insanity of Chinatown, particularly when it came to restaurant possibilities at lunch time. Thus, when my mother called in the midst of it and inquired as to where I was, the blunt and honest response was “Walking into Hooters.” Why? Because most of the tourists filling the streets and restaurants were families, and families do not dine at Hooters. Totally logical.
Next stop: National Zoo. Further insanity of the masses, plenty of people watching, occasional spotting of wildlife behind the walls of fanny pack-laden visitors as we attempted to pick our way through the crowds without tripping over small children leashed to frazzled parents. It made for a good stroll, though, and of course the entire escapade was free (one of the many wonderful features of this city).
Clearly, the animals weren’t the only creatures in the zoo worth watching…. Really, you bring it upon yourself when you wear ears and a tail. Come on now.
Sunday centered around wanderings with Medha and her friend Caitlin, visiting from Calgary. As the weather was top-notch, the first stop was the outdoor patio of La Tomate Bistro, one of many excellent options off of Dupont Circle. After a late and leisurely lunch, it was off to the National Mall for a trip to the National Gallery of Art via the sculpture garden. Admittedly, I’ve been in the National Gallery at least three times since arriving here in late January, and it never fails to pull me in. While I generally prefer going to museums – especially art museums – on my own (does that sound anti-social?), the company on this trip was great, and yielded all sorts of excellent, intellectual conversations that I revel in.
From there, rather than walking to the Tidal Basin from there, we jokingly considered snagging a rickshaw. Medha’s enthusiasm quickly turned the joke into reality (Uncle Julio style) and we soon found ourselves crammed into the back of a rickshaw, enjoying the ride as we cruised down the National Mall and the girl peddling in front of us did all of the work. What a way to travel.
Three girls in one rickshaw indeed; I had no idea three people in such a thing would be allowable. Hands down awesome way to see the city, though. Absolutely.
The rest of the week has been relatively uneventful so not much to report – TWC programming on Monday at the National House Builders Assoc., a few trips to the travel medical center to look into my likelihood of survival for a summer in Ghana, a fair bit of boredom at the internship (you’ll have that). Just one thing that requires noting in the books before I sign off, however: I tried goat for the first time! Yes, goat. And not fudge or cheese, mind you – I’m talking ground goat. Don’t knock it ‘til you try it; it may have been thanks to the impressive cooking skills of the Sethis, but the meal was excellent.
When I stopped by their apartment on Monday evening, I was just dropping in to borrow a sari in preparations for upcoming celebrations of Tamil New Year; ultimately, I stayed to visit for three hours and got home around midnight. Visiting led to chai, chai led to a snack of spiced and cooked tuber leaves, then homemade mango lassi, and by that point it was insisted that I stay for dinner – of course I didn’t argue. All excellent, as was, of course, the conversation… always a learning experience!
With that, a break in the babbling as I head back to campus for a final visit this semester and attempt to ignore the fact that the semester is speedily coming to a close…
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