Y’all work can be stressful, especially when you’re traveling a lot. So many people I know get burnt out from constant work travel, and traveling to them becomes a hassle and a stress rather than the enjoyable experience it should be. As much as possible, I try to experience something new in every city I visit, even if it’s just googling the best restaurants and local cuisines to check out after the work day is finished. It helps me to get to know a city better and feel like I’ve had a little bit of vacation mixed in.
Back in September/October I had a whirlwind travel schedule. I went to Minnesota for the MNF season opener of the Saints v. Vikings as part of my goal to see the Saints play in every stadium, then I went straight to Nashville for a day and a half, on to Chicago for another 2 days, back to SF for 24 hours for a wedding, then straight to Baltimore for 4 days of work. After all of that moving around, I needed a mini-vacation. After I finished up work in Baltimore I took a 30 minute uber down to D.C. and decided to give myself a long weekend of exploring a new city without any obligations.
As a side note, I think that solo-vacations are even BETTER for de-stressing than heading out with friends and family. You can wake up when you want, set your own agenda, and deviate from that agenda whenever you damn well please. I also like to make a playlist ahead of time with songs to listen to as I walk around the city. For D.C. I highly recommend adding “Broken Glass” by Rachel Platten – super empowering stuff while you’re strolling the city.
After checking into my hotel, I ventured out and walked in the general direction of the Capitol Building. At the first stop light I got to, a Prius drove by and Bernie Sanders was casually hanging out of the passenger side window. I looked up at what street I was on, and I was at the corner of Louisiana Ave. I knew right then that this was going to be the best weekend ever.
For a first-timer to D.C. the best start is to simply walk down the National Mall starting from the Capitol. Stopping at the Capitol Reflecting Pool, you can take some excellent selfies with the Capitol, and see the entire length of the Mall down towards the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial.
After I started walking a bit, I realized I hadn’t eaten anything that day, so I veered off the mall and over to Jaleo for some authentic Spanish tapas and Sangria. I highly suggest the tortilla and the patatas bravas. Also, the bread and oil with garlic is phenomenal.
After refueling, the best bet is to continue walking the Mall. I found a few cool parks off to the side to walk through as I ventured down, and took some time to check out all of the different buildings, and even randomly found a garden full of statues. The city really is perfect for walking – make sure you bring comfortable shoes!
About halfway down the Mall you’ll run into the Washington Monument. It was closed when I visited, but just standing next to it and taking in the sheer size is worth it. Next you’ll walk through the World War II Memorial which is a great place to stop and relax and really take in your surroundings.
Continuing on you’ll come to the Lincoln Reflecting Pool and finally to the Lincoln Memorial. While the memorial is majestic no matter when you see it, I highly recommend coming at night. I saw it during the day, and then ended up coming back the next night, and that was one of the best recommendations I’d received.
Of course everyone who comes to D.C. wants to see the White House, but honestly, it’s not that cool from the ground. At the recommendation of a local, I headed over to the W Hotel and went up to the POV Rooftop Lounge. It can get super crowded at night, but luckily when there is just one of you it’s easy to snag a seat along the edge of the balcony, which directly overlooks the White House. It was a great place to stop and grab a glass of wine and take in the scenery. It was also great people watching – most patrons were there for happy hour after work and the eavesdropping on life working in politics was super entertaining.
That night I met up with a friend who lives in D.C. who took me to more of the locals scene. We headed back over to the Capitol Hill neighborhood and went to a few awesome dive bars – Tunnicliff’s Tavern, The Ugly Mug, and Jimmy Valentine’s Lonely Hearts Club. It was great to get out of the tourist mindset and enjoy some casual beers.
Day 2:
As per usual, I had super high ambitions for sightseeing on Day 2, but had too many “casual beers” the night before and woke up when it was already the pm. In an effort to save time, I opted to eat “brunch” down at the hotel restaurant, which despite being a HORRIBLE hotel, had a great Southern themed menu. After chowing down on some fried green tomatoes and deviled eggs, I headed out to take on the rest of the day.
Everyone talks about the biggest advantage in D.C. being that all of the museums are free. Naturally, I decided to go to the one museum that was not free, but y’all, it was one of the absolute best museums I’ve ever been to and I HIGHLY recommend this be your first museum stop in D.C. The Newseum showcases the history of the media and really of the world as seen through the lens of reporting. When I went they had an incredibly moving exhibit of 9/11 as reported all over the world, as well as an exhibit showing every Pulitzer-prize winning photograph from 1942 until now. Other cool highlights were a long room along the top floor with a copy of the front page of newspapers for that day from all over the world, and a room dedicated to the front pages from all of the key moments in history dating all the way back to the 1600’s. I literally stayed until they kicked me out for closing.
After the Newseum I needed some more food, so I walked though Chinatown towards Momofuku CCDC. The Chinatown in D.C. is super small, but still very cool to see and there were a lot of musicians playing on the corners to stop and listen to.
Momofuku was the BEST choice for food, and luckily I ended up arriving right at happy hour, which I highly recommend trying to plan out. They have a great happy hour menu with $5 baos and cheap beers. I opted for the brisket and the pork belly at the recommendation of the bartender. From the main menu the Chilled Spicy Noodles were a huge hit with everyone sitting near me as well.
As I walked back towards the Mall, I randomly passed a Tadich Grill, which is a staple restaurant in San Francisco. Little did I know, they have a second location in D.C! I stopped in to check it out, have a glass of wine, and watch some football. The restaurant looks super similar to the flagship in SF minus the INSANE wait times.
It was starting to get dark as I finished up, so I headed back to the Lincoln Memorial to take it in at night and this was seriously the best idea. It is SO majestic at night, and I had a little Olivia Pope moment sitting on the steps looking out towards the Washington Monument. It was the best ending to my last day in D.C.
The next morning I woke up a little late (theme of my life) and rushed to get ready and head to the airport. In my frantic rush, I left ALL of my clothes hanging in the closet. I called the hotel about an hour after I left to have them go get them and after TWO DAYS of the run around, they finally told me they had the clothes, but SOMEHOW they didn’t have the one designer dress I had from my trip and had the nerve to try to tell me that I made up that it was there. My fault for steering away from always staying at a Starwood, but just in case you’re searching around for a hotel DO NOT stay at The Liaison at Capitol Hill. Luckily I only had one more stop before getting home, and it was the beach in LA, so I didn’t need anything that was hanging.
Despite a horrible experience with the hotel, D.C. was one of the most incredible weekend trips I’ve taken, and I can’t wait to get back and explore even more. If you have any tips of places I should see next time, or any questions about your next trip, let me know in the comments!
