Washington D.C
The golden hour view from the Lincoln Memorial
I hadn’t been to Washington D.C since I was a high-schooler, and I was eager to revisit its museums and monuments with an adult curiosity. We’d also read a lot about the city’s great food scene. We visited in mid-June, and though Congress was out of session, DC was still busy with school trips, interns heading to work and post-work happy hours, and residents finding ways to escape the heat. It was a great long weekend; we were there from Thursday to Monday night, though we could have easily shortened it to a three night visit.
The Friendship Archway in front of our first hotel, Pod DC
The view from the rooftop bar at Pod DC.
The view from the rooftop bar at Eaton DC
Our room at Eaton DC
I’d like to transport all the colors, textures and plants of Eaton DC back to my own home
Where we stayed
1- Our first three nights we stayed at Pod DC, a boutique hotel of compact rooms. It was close to downtown (so it was easy to walk or Lyft everywhere we wanted to go), modern and well-designed, and had a rooftop bar. The name fits, and the affordable price did mean the rooms were tiny, which was fine for us; it was still perfectly comfortable as a place to relax and take HGTV breaks during the hot days. We made multiple visits to the roof, and while none of the drinks were memorable, the views were.
2- We splurged on one night at another boutique hotel downtown, Eaton DC. This was my favorite of the two and it’s relatively new (here’s a review in the New York Times). There was no corner of this hotel that was not beautifully designed with colored tile, plants, great textiles, and comfortable furniture. Here too, there is a pretty rooftop bar, and our room was comfortable and stylish, stocked with socially-conscious novels and vintage records.
Records in our room at Eaton DC
The coffee shop in the lobby at Pod DC
What we did
We were eager to see the Julia Child exhibit at the Smithsonian Museum of American History. While this exhibit did not disappoint, I noticed that the museum has not been significantly updated since I visited in middle school. I’d like to see an expansion and revisiting of this museum’s collections.
Walking the Mall- I’d forgotten quite how expansive this area is, and our walks through it ensured that my Fitbit was happy with my daily step collection
Visiting the monuments- We stopped at the Lincoln Memorial during golden hour, and also looped in stop at the Korean, Vietnam, and World War II Memorials. They are all so unique, and we made a point to read about the history of each one while visiting (which made me realize, for example, how little I know about Korean War)
The Korean War Memorial
The Lincoln Memorial
The Washington Monument was closed for renovations during our June 2019 visit
School groups from all over the country visiting the Vietnam War Memorial
What we did
Though we couldn’t get advanced tickets for the Museum of African American History and Culture, which were sold out by the time we planned our trip, I woke up at 6:30 on Sunday morning to get us same-day tickets (this 6:30am same-day option is available every single day). If you visit from March to August, passes are available online three months in advance and are issued the first Wednesday of every month. Walk-up weekday entry begins at 1pm Monday through Friday, but is not available on Saturdays or Sundays.
The museum was well-curated and powerful, inside and out. It starts in the bottom, with dark, closed in exhibits documenting the slave trade. From there, you slowly walk upwards (sometimes without even realizing it), into the light
The most recent historical exhibit is about Obama’s election. The full-wall photograph of the Obama family on inauguration day made me tear up, but I did find myself wishing that the museum had exhibits documenting the black experience after 2008.
In the contemplative Court at the Museum of African American History and Culture
Outside the Museum of African American History and Culture
The Capitol
What we did
We enjoyed the free, well-organized tour of the Capitol , but would love to return some day to observe a session of Congress or the Senate. Those tickets can be secured by contacting your state representatives
We took the underground tunnel between the Capitol and the Library of Congress. It was a quick stop by worth it to see the pretty reading room. Use of the reading room is by appointment only, so we were intrigued by the people down there and what they might be researching
Drew was impressed by the Supreme Court building. The scale of the steps and columns really does leave an impact
I had never been to the National Archives. We made a point to stop there to see the Declaration of Independence (and read about its preservation), though the crowds and subsequently crabby employees detracted from the experience somewhat
The reading room at the Library of Congress
At the Supreme Court
What we did
We stopped by the National Portrait Gallery to see the Presidential Portrait Exhibit and say hello to the Obamas
The White House was just as much of a scene as we anticipated. There were school groups on field trips, red hats, protestors, and curious passerby, with a proportional security presence to match. We didn’t stay long. Nearby, we had an expensive drink at the rooftop bar POV in the W hotel, from which we could see the White house and the Washington monument.
Our stop at the Renwick Gallery was brief, and the space was much smaller than we anticipated, but we enjoyed seeing David Best’s Temple exhibit and it was easy to loop in this air-conditioned stop with our photo-op at the White House
Barack Obama’s portrait by Kehinde Wiley
Rose with a view at POV, the rooftop bar at the W hotel
“Electronic Superhighway” by Nam June Paik
Michelle Obama’s portrait by Amy Sherald
Georgetown
We especially loved walking around Washington DC’s neighborhoods, admiring the beautiful houses (and wondering how much it would cost to buy or rent one). Wisconsin Ave. in Georgetown was full of people on the hot Saturday afternoon we visited. The long line at the ice cream shop was too intimidating, but we did take a break for iced coffees and air conditioning at Compass Coffee. We walked around the residential blocks, especially around N,O,P and Q streets.
Along our walk from 14th street to Dupont Circle.
Row houses in Georgetown
Dupont Circle and Logan Circle
Logan Circle was close to both of our hotels, so it made for an easy walk.
Further east near Dupont Circle, we compared the architecture of various embassies and visited Kramerbooks, a great local bookstore.
Iced Coffee stop in Georgetown
The homes around Logan Circle
The Watermelon House at 1112 Q St NW near Logan Circle
14th Street and U Street
Both of these streets are full of fun places to eat and drink and were busy each time we walked or drove through the area. On U Street, we stopped at Ben’s Chili Bowl. Drew pushed for the stop as I wasn’t sure that I would like chili dogs (how had I gone this long without trying one?), but it was delicious! Salt & Sundry, a pretty lifestyle shop, is also worth a stop.
At Kramerbooks near Dupont Circle
The chili hot dog at Ben’s chili bowl was so good
At Salt and Sundry on 14th Street
Capitol Riverfront/Navy Yards
We visited this area on Sunday during the Nationals Game. There were a lot of new-looking businesses and apartments, and the many cranes in the area suggests that its still continuing to grow. We walked along the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail and stopped at a few places along the way
A cocktail from Dacha, right next to the stadium
Along the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail
We stopped for a glass of white wine at District Winery
The entrance to Maydan
Our favorite meals
Our trip to Washington DC brought us to two of our favorite restaurants of 2019. Both Rose’s Luxury and Maydan were outstanding and we cannot recommend them enough.
I was disappointed that by the time I pressed “submit” on our same-day reservation at Rose’s Luxury, all the time slots refreshed as “sold out,” but we showed up without a reservation anyway and were seated at the bar, overlooking the open kitchen, within 40 minutes. It was a busy night, as it was graduation night at the Marine Barracks across the street (and we were puzzled by the area’s secret service presence until we realized the Vice President Mike Pence was speaking at the graduation ceremony). We had memorable cocktails and wine, a popcorn soup, and delicious strawberry pasta.
The strawberry pasta with ricotta and black pepper from Rose’s Luxury was one of the most memorable dishes we had all year
Inside Rose’s Luxury
The exterior of Rose’s Luxury
At Maydan, we entered through the ornate blue door in a nondescript alleyway to see a large restaurant surrounding an open hearth. We ate lamb and roasted carrots and had outstanding natural wine, but our favorite part of the meal was the collection of dips we had with the free tone bread they regularly brought around. Our favorite dip was toum, a Lebanese garlic dip that our served accurately described as a “garlic cloud.”