Spring Dandelion

Day at the National Zoo

Last weekend I took my sister, her husband and my nephew Dylan to check out the National Zoo when they were in town. On our way in we caught a glimpse of one of the Giant Pandas, couldn't tell if it was Mei Xiang or Tian Tian, but he or she was too far away to snap a good photo. The great apes were out and about though and we caught them during feeding time which always draws a crowd. It was a fun day and definitely worth the trip! Plus, the National Zoo offers free admission because it is a Smithsonian. Gotta love that about Washington, D.C. Keep an eye on the zoo's Twitter feed to find out if Mei Xiang is preggers with a baby panda! She was artificially inseminated last month and you can actually view some pretty crazy photos of the process here. 

Cruisin' on U Street

On Saturday, we were heading to our friends' housewarming party in Mount Pleasant and spotted this pup cruisin' along U Street on his skateboard. People couldn't help but stop and stare, including us. This is why I love our neighborhood. Now I have to teach Rusty how to do this!

Springtime Blooms

Love that spring is here! When walking home from brunch at M Street Bar & Grill on Sunday (bottomless mimosas!) we plopped down in the grass at Dupont Circle to soak up the rays. Beautiful red tulips were in bloom all along the circle. In fact, you can find tulips in all different colors all around DC. 

Blind Dog Cafe

I stopped into the Blind Dog Cafe yesterday for a quick bite. I first learned of the new pop-up cafe taking up residence at Darnell's through the U Street Listserv. It's located just a few blocks from our house so we decided to check it out. 

This cozy corner spot is perfect for catching up with friends, answering e-mails (free wifi), or taking a mid-day coffee and croissant break. There is a nice size patio too which will come in handy as spring gets closer. We ordered two sandwiches - the roast beef with pesto and turkey with spicy mayo. Both were pretty good, just a little pricey ($11 each) and next time we need to tell them to go easy on the sauce. The atmosphere inside is very comfortable and relaxed. There's ten or so tables and a couple plush antique couches and chairs. Below are a few photos and for more on how Blind Dog Cafe got its start, check out this Huffington Post article. 

I heart DC...

And here are just a few reasons why.

Darn good restaurants in gas stations. Order the rotisserie chicken and yuca fries at Fast Gourmet.

Colorful sunsets in the U Street neighborhood. 

Low-key bars that serve warm apple cider in the winter like The Pug on H Street.

The storied streets of historic Georgetown.

Weekend Wanderers

I'm still amazed at all the beauty fall in Washington, DC has to offer. The yellow, red and orange leaves covering the city is beyond gorgeous. This particular street photographed below is Swann Street - one of my favorites and it's not hard to see why.

A new mural went up on the side of Ben's Next Door on U Street, "The Alchemy of Ben Ali" by artist Eric B. Ricks. I actually walked by a few weeks ago and snapped this photo when it was about 75 percent complete. Check out a few photos of the finished mural on Prince of Petworth and be sure to watch this behind-the-scenes video on the project. 

I hardly ever make it to Georgetown, especially because the buses run less frequently on the weekends and there is no metro. However, on Sunday I decided to keep my boyfriend company on the Georgetown campus. Along our trek, we admired all the adorable row houses and estimated how many millions each one costs. Before heading back, we stopped at the Marvelous Market where we picked up a bottle of Chesapeake Bay Crab Salsa. Incredible! As you can see, we're already half-way through the bottle.