Visiting like a Local in Washington D.C.
Friends! It’s been a few weeks since we’ve talked travel and I can’t wait to share my Washington D.C. memories with you. My very first impression of D.C. was on a trip with my dad and two sisters over a late-elementary spring break. I remember it being sunny, going to the Air & Space Museum (obviously), and spending time with my family. I feel really lucky that I was able to visit again to see my sister, who was working in D.C., for a weekend trip just before the ~world turned upside down~ last year. We stayed with my Aunt & Uncle, so I was tagging along with three people who lived there to see all and do all of their favorite things.
When visiting Hannah in November 2019, (why does that feel like a world away but also just yesterday?) I flew in on Friday night after work and stayed with her at my Aunt Gretta & Uncle Bill’s house. She was staying in their downstairs apartment, and I LOVED getting to be there with them. They live in a walk up in Kalorama Triangle and I would totally recommend looking for an Airbnb in that neighborhood if you’re interested in a historic, centrally located part of D.C. Getting to stay with someone who lives in a city is the BEST way to experience it in my opinion because you get to truly live vicariously and see what the highlights of living there are through their eyes. We did the same thing in San Francisco (read Part I & Part II of our long weekend trip).
Saturday morning, Bill, the resident chef, made us breakfast and took us to the National Cathedral (which is also where he met my Aunt :) ). We were able to walk around for a while and admire the stained glass windows. It reminded me so much of the cathedrals in Europe. When we left the cathedral, Hannah and I headed to Union Station where we walked around and stopped at Blue Bottle for coffee. We walked from there to the Capitol building and she gave me a tour. She was an intern at the Capitol and was trained to give tours so this was the most ideal situation for me. Something to note: you can also take a tour of the capitol through the visitors center OR through your Representative/Senators office. If you give them a call you can book a tour with someone on their staff to give you a more private and personalized experience.
Here comes the highlight: after our tour, we met up with Gretta at the St. Regis for afternoon tea. This was my first experience at an afternoon tea and even as a loyal coffee drinker, I think about how much fun we had on a regular basis.
My thoughts:
#1. The St. Regis is stunning, the food was incredible, and I would recommend whatever the St. Regis house special is (ours was a black tea with hints of vanilla and it was 10/10).
#2. This is SUCH a special gift or experience to have in any city if you are visiting or have someone in town. We actually went to tea with my mom at The Brown Palace in Denver, and it was a blast.
#3. There happened to be a huge black-tie wedding staying at the St. Regis so we got to watch all of the bridesmaids, groomsmen, and guests come down and gather in the lobby which made it extra fun and special feeling.
Saturday night we ate at Johnny’s Halfshell (which has unfortunately closed since COVID hit). It was delicious and so fun to catch up with my family and their friend who came along. The food was incredible. We spent some time before dinner looking through my Aunt’s old family photos, which included some gems of my mom when she was younger. To me, there’s something so magical about seeing old photos of your family and hearing stories from a time you weren’t around for.
My all time favorite picture of H
Sunday was our real day of sister activities. We woke up and walked over to the Dupont Circle Farmers Market and had to stop and get the chocolate milk when we passed it (leftover habit from childhood?). For brunch, we had a reservation at Founding Farmers.. I got a bellini and it was magical. Afterwards, we headed over to Georgetown to walk around. It’s such an adorable neighborhood with shops, coffee, and restaurants everywhere. It’s actually where Brian and I stayed just a couple of months later when we visited. We went to Georgetown Cupcakes and then found a perfect coffee shop where we met up with friends and got Candy Cane Peppermint Mochas. We also found a great Made in DC shop that featured work from local businesses and artists.
After stopping by our home base so I could pack, we went for another walk around a different D.C. neighborhood: Adams Morgan. A quirky area with an INCREDIBLE hotel- The Line Hotel. We stopped in, because Hannah knew this place would be so on brand for me, and checked out their coffee shop and radio recording studio (I’m sorry?). We continued our loop by walking down 14th Street and finally back around to Gretta & Bill’s to get ready to head to the airport.
In the lobby of The Line Hotel
There you have it! A whirlwind weekend in Washington D.C. that wasn’t full of museums and tours (for the most part) but instead, was packed with favorite restaurants, farmers markets, walks, and coffee shops. Sometimes, sitting back and enjoying a place as if you life there is just what you need rather than a full itinerary of the “must dos,” but what do you think? Is that how you like to travel?
I mentioned Brian and I visited D.C. just a couple of months later and we had a completely different agenda, so I’ll have to do a post on that trip as well so you can have two totally different Washington weekends to read about. :)