Washington DC, Part 1

I write to you back in Charleston and happy to be home, but a little bit homesick for DC.  I think Luci said it best, "DC has this energy, this vibe that completely engulfs you and you don't want to leave."  It's true. I didn't want to leave.  Even though I was only there for four days, I already found myself confident with my surroundings.  I love Charleston, but maybe a part of me likes the idea of a big city too.  Not permanently, but maybe for a year or two... like a temporary fix.

I arrived Friday night after seemingly the longest day of work ever, in which I found myself looking at the clock every 10 minutes.  Luci immediately greeted me with the biggest bear hug, and we ventured out in Arlington for a late dinner.

The joy of being reunited and the cool fall air carried us to a quaint wine and tapas bar, Circa in Clarendon.  While we waited to be seated outside, we ordered a Malbec and enjoyed the vivid nightlight and scenery.

We split a trio of seafood small plates- sashimi tuna, rock shrimp, and PEI mussells- favorites of us Lowcountry girls, and enjoyed the incredibly perfect fall weather.

Saturday we awoke relatively early and explored the Eastern Market.  I just adore the Charleston Farmer's Market, but this one put Charleston to shame.  All sorts of vendors sprawled over five blocks, and found ourselves surrounded by plethora of local foods, flowers, furniture, artists, and accessories.  It was such a sight to see!

Luci and I bargained for pashminas, and walked away with 5 adorable prints for $36.  It was a steal!  We also picked up some really cute earrings.

I introduced Luci to crepes after having one from the Charleston Crepe Company recently.  I cannot get over the combination of nutella and strawberries.

If you haven't tried one, you must!

Luci also picked up this adorable window pane- turned- mirror.  I love its rustic charm and character, and it is perfect in her bedroom.  {P.S. It's really awkward to take a picture of a mirror!}

Our cousin Helen joined us that afternoon for the remainder of the day.  We had a neat lunch at the bustling Northside Social, where we then planned out the rest of day.  After a quick haircut for Helen (haha!),

we took the metro to Chinatown.  (Wait- metro- may be the thing that keeps me from being a city girl.)

Luci's friend had told us about an Anthropologie that had just opened the day before on F street and that no one had known about it... translation: great sale items available in small sizes!!  All three of us had incredible success.  I walked away with two sweaters, a fun top, and a jacket each at 60% off.

After our good fortune, we did the touristy thing and walked to the W hotel for a cocktail overlooking Capital Hill. 

The foot rest and libation was much needed after our earlier adventures...

And check out this gorgeous view!

Our dinner plans were in Georgetown, but Helen had never seen DC in daylight so we quickly got our act together and toured the White House grounds,

and all the monuments as dusk approached.

I am paraphrasing our sightseeing adventures, but according to MapMyRun, we covered an insane amount of terrority that afternoon... almost three miles! 

After all that walking, no doubt our blood sugar was a little low and we were starving!  We had an amazing sushi dinner at Chopsticks, a cozy atmosphere in a small rowhouse on Wisconsin Avenue...

Followed by a nightcap at the historic Martins.

One nightcap and our active day did us in, and we all hit the hay pretty hard.  A recap of the remaining days to follow soon!