The DC trip was such a blur. But I guess in a good way. It was only a three days two nights trip and we spent at least a whole ten hours on the road, sometimes stopping to replenish and relieve. The kids were usually bored and tired. Whenever we were out sightseeing, they usually just wanted to go back to the hotel ... by taxi, and got on to their usual computer online game or DS handhelds. Of course, what they usually got for whining was scorns, ridicules and more walks. I told them when I was their age, I walked 8 miles a day without complaining, of course, that was obviously a lie.
DC is basically a pretty tourist and family friendly town. The crosswalks have signs showing a 30 second count down for the time remaining to cross the street. I can feel my blood pressure going up as the clock winds down rapidly every time I cross the street. The DC metro seems pretty clean and efficient. And they charge by the stop which is unlike here in New York City. We are just too stupid to go by stops, it is a $2 flat fare all you can ride. They even have weekend discount, the fare is $1.35 for two stops from McPherson Square to Smithonian on weekend and $1.65 on a weekday. The museums and the Zoo are free, so it's really great. If you are really on a budget or just plain cheap, or have special dietary needs, you can save save a bundle by packing your own food. Or if you prefer, you can eat inside the cafeterias, they are a bit pricey like any cafeteria in a big city museum.
It was pretty cold and windy the days we were there. The Sakura festival was on its last days and basically the flowers were all gone. It would be a bonus if we could still see the flowers in their full bloom. Alas we were at least one week too late. I can't wait to check out the ones here in New York City.
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My gastronomical experience at DC was largely positive.
I think the food was decent. We did some restaurant research before we hit the road but nothing is quite like seeing the place on the spot. We thought Vace has eat-in but it simply hasn't. So when we found out it is basically a take-out place I pulled out my Blackberry and checked out the neighborhood restaurants. After a couple of minutes, we settled for an American bar and burger joint Cleveland Bar and Grill mostly because the kids wanted to have American. It has a kids' menu so it's not all adult as the bar or the name suggests. There were only a couple of guys watching baseball and having beers at the bar and they weren't rowdy or anything so I felt safe to let the kids eat there. The kids ordered pizzas and we had the penne with shrimps and a steak Caesar salad. To begin, we had the fried calamari. For dessert we had a few scoops of vanilla and chocolate ice cream. The pizza tasted fresh, both the dough and cheese were good and not salty at all. Since the ice cream tasted pretty darn good, I asked what brand and the waitress had to ask the kitchen. She told me they were actually gelato and the the brand is Bindi. The service was friendly. But the waitress messed up the order twice. She forgot the iced tea and the pasta order didn't get to the kitchen for whatever reason and it wasn't a busy evening at all. But overall I think the experience was pretty okay.
Sunday night, we decided to have some Asian. And as we were all tired and exhausted from the hike as Harry has eloquently put it. So we preferred something around our hotel. Again, our Blackberry and notebook came in handy. We decided to try out Thai Tanic. Despite the rather Hollywood kitschy reference, the food and service seemed pretty authentic. The wait staff are actually Thais. Mr. Harry was in his hunger strike mode, so I relented and ordered the usual chicken satay, and added a fish cake which he didn't bother to try. They were both decent but not extraordinary. Alex had the chicken noodle soup but he didn't like it after just trying a few bites. I suspected it's the spice and the fish sauce. In general, kids don't like exotic spice, which I think it's really an acquired taste. But I kind of liked the flavor of the broth, the chicken was a bit too well done though. I ordered the lemon grass chicken which was spicy and full of flavor. Again the chicken could be a bit more tender. My wife ordered her usual, Pad Thai with shrimps which turned out to be pretty good, not over cooked or starchy. The rice that came with my chicken was long grained and Alex loved those, and we ordered an extra bowl just so he could eat it with the lemon grass sauce. Overall the place was pretty nice. What I don't like was they hit us with an automatic 18% tip added to the bill. I usually give 15% or tax times two in New York City. I would have no problem giving 18% I just don't like restaurants doing that themselves; it's like they believe you wouldn't give a decent tip to begin with. So that's a big minus despite the better than average food and OKAY service.
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After our zoo visit and ready to hit the road home, I decided to give Vace, the pizza place another try. It was just a few minutes away from the zoo. I placed an order for a medium pizza with sausage and pepperoni. It took at least twenty minutes. So I waited and waited and waited. I noticed they also sell fresh made pasta and other dried goods. Anyway, the pizza was not as good as I imagined. For one thing it was quite salty and overall it wasn't any gooder than our New York pizzas.
So were there any massage services or table dancing show in D C ?
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