I am soooooo sorry that I have not blogged lately. It has been on my to-do list everyday and I keep forgetting. Boy! We sure do have a lot to catch up on! Since last Wednesday, the town has been filled with tourists! It was the biggest week of the Cherry Blossom Festival, and apparently everyone knew about it.
We ended up winning the softball game that Wednesday. We have a great team, and I see a great future ahead of us. We play again this Thursday against Eric Cantor’s office. It will be an intense game to start off the season!
Thursday was pretty uneventful. The house was all getting worn down; we kind of just stayed inside.
By Friday, we were back out and going well. After work, three of us Tech CASNR students went out to dinner with Jane Piercy and her family. Mrs. Piercy works as the CASNR Development Director for Texas Tech University. She and her family came and had a tour of the Tech House, and then we all walked over to a steakhouse restaurant called Charlie Palmer’s. Everything was wonderful, the company, the restaurant, the food, and the conversations. It was a very good experience.
Saturday was EXTREMELY eventful. Another tech intern, Lori, and I did not sleep in (surprising-I know). We woke up early and went to the National Cherry Blossom Parade. I have never seen the giant helium balloons in person before, nor have I seen a DC parade. It was so interesting. Almost every other group stopped and performed to the crowd, just like the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
As soon as the Parade was over, Lori and I headed over to the Japanese Festival. Boy, was that an experience! We saw the craziest outfits and the craziest food! It was like you just arrived in Japan. There were four different stages; all but one had Japanese performers. The other was a multi-cultural concert, with different groups. There was Irish music, and all the way to African tribal songs and dances. Those stages were the borders of the festival. In between those stages were millions of booths. They were filled with authentic Japanese food and snacks, kimono booths, native Japanese plants; and little stores with homemade products. It was quite a sight! Lori and I tried so many different things.
When it got time for food, Lori and I were daring enough to try the “real stuff.” We got chicken with fried rice and egg rolls; Japan’s famous candy, Pocky; Japanese soft drinks call Remune’ (they were so fun to open! They were sealed with a marble!); and machi. Machi was a little different than American food in texture and taste. They are supposed to be a sweet appetizer-type food, and they looked like marshmallows. Lori and I shared them, took a bite, and made awful faces! It was so weird! What was worse was there were two older Japanese ladies that saw our first bites. When they saw our faces, they both started to laugh so hard at us. Then one asked us if it wasn’t sweet enough for us. SWEET!?!? There was nothing sweet about it! Haha. After the machi, I was sure glad we didn’t try the waffles shaped as fish. Apparently, the inside of the waffle is filled with different fish. It was very popular at the festival! I really don’t see why they like that so much.
We didn’t get back to the Tech House until 5:00 pm that day. We were worn out and delirious! The rest of the evening, we stayed at the Tech House. We couldn’t stay on our feet, nor mess with all the tourists, any longer.
Sunday, I was invited to go with Angie’s family to the church most of the Tech interns go to. Four others ended up meeting up with us. I think Angie’s family enjoyed it, and the message was very good.
After church, Angie and her family had plans for a brunch, so I went with the rest of the group to this little bistro for our own brunch. It was called La Bon. We all got the French toast because it looked so good, and it was! I almost ate the whole thing! It was served with fresh fruit too.
The Tech House decided to go play some ultimate Frisbee in the National Mall when we got back from brunch. We played for about two hours. I had not played since FCA camp (Fellowship of Christian Athletes) in high school. It was so fun! Other people joined in our game too! There were people from Georgia, Wyoming, and D.C. natives. We had so much fun; we decided to play again Sunday.
The rest of the day, Lori and I went to this popular market called Trader Joe’s. It was a store that sold mostly organic food. Then we met up with Angie’s parents one last time before they left. We ate at Tortilla Coast for dinner. The sunset burritos are becoming one of my favorites!
Monday was our last day for recess, and we made most of our stress-free day. I did the usual tasks, and the day zoomed by. When I got home, I ate dinner and watched the movie, Role Models. When everyone else got home from work, nine of us went down the street and played basketball for about 2 ½ hours! Almost everyone was injured, yet no one cried- it was great! All in all, I think we all had a great time! A very successful evening, with a jammed finger and all!
Today was our first day to be back in session. Things were not too crazy yet because votes aren’t occurring until later in the afternoon. I’ll leave early from work today so I can attend a Farm Bureau dinner. This one is not as big as the first dinner, and I think it will be a little more casual. There are three of us going- the three CASNR girls: Jennifer, Shelby, and me. It should be really fun!
Until next time,
madelon
No comments:
Post a Comment