The last two weekends have been so much fun! Last weekend, our favorite crunchy granola homeschooling family came to visit! We love getting to spend time with the Pinos! They arrived on Friday and did some sightseeing before we were able to meet them after work for dinner on the hill. After dinner, we took a nice loooooong walk from the mall to the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, and the Abraham Lincoln Memorial. They all look spectacular at night and it was a gorgeous night to be outside. The next day we enjoyed another gorgeous day on the mall. The kids got to ride the carousel, we admired the beautiful masks and symbols at the African Art museum, and learned all about the history of the US at the American History Museum. As always, we had a fabulous time and I delighted in the ability to help teach the kids at every opportunity. I can't wait until we get to be parents!
This weekend was one of DC's cultural highlights of the year in my opinion: the European Union Embassy Open House! Ryan didn't have the best time standing in all of the lines last year, so this year I went with my friend Ashley. A few weeks ago, Ashley and I went to the Climate Rally together and had an amazing time, so I knew we'd have fun together at the embassies because she's a geek like me and not afraid to show it! Our first stop was Spain which was pretty disappointing. They advertised tapas, traditional beverages, and a photo exhibit, yet the served us store bought Parisian cookies, Tropicana orange juice, and all of their informational tables were immediately in front of the photos and everyone was standing up to block them. Lame! The next stop was Germany and I knew it would not disappoint. Ryan and I loved it last year and Ashley and I surely loved it this year! Germany, efficient as imaginable, took advantage of every available space in and around their embassy and left every person who walked through eager to visit Germany. We got loads of information about the various regions of Germany, listened to folk music, pop music, and some traditional horns, and received tons of giveaways and samples of delectable chocolate, cookies, soups (including my favorite chilled cherry soup), deli meats, wine, etc. I even picked up some coloring books for the Pino kids. By that time, things were pretty crowded at quite a few of the embassies so we skipped Ireland, Portugal, and Greece (all of which we really wanted to see), and walked up to Italy for some awesome fried risotto balls, cannoli, and tiramisu. Our last embassy for the day was the United Kingdom, where they had a band playing outside, some authentic WWII vehicles on display alongside men in period costume, and lots of giveaways from England, Ireland, and Scotland. We tried to get to the Danish embassy because they were giving away a bike and a big container of legos, but we were 5 minutes too late! Our cultural excursion didn't end there! We stopped at a bazaar at a mosque on the way back down to Dupont and ate falafel and hummus- yum! Then, we saw the movie I've been looking forward to for months: "Babies"!!! I highly recommend it! It was hilarious and heartwarming! I could totally see it again!
What a day! I love how much there us to do here in the summer!!
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