Another long weekend has come to an end - it was a good weekend, it was a full weekend and it passed so quickly! No more three day weekends until the first weekend of July - and that will actually be a four day weekend - but until then, lots of pictures and some words about the long weekend!
Friday night we went to see Aladdin and I have to report that I was skeptical because all the reviews I'd read were just terrible, so I was bracing for the worst. I thought the movie was really enjoyable and fun, I'll go into it more on my end of the month entertainment post but I really thought it was pretty fabulous! I also thoroughly enjoyed my club sandwich, watching Game of Thrones once we got home and sleeping in on Saturday morning... sometimes it's the little things.
Saturday morning around 10:30, my friend Danielle and I headed for DC for the rest of the day. We took the Metro into the city and made our way to Due South for a late lunch - I had some seriously divine Chicken and Waffles with Tabasco Butter and Maple Syrup and I sipped on a Blackberry Smoke, which was seriously strong! The food was delicious, the company was great and we ended the dining by popping into Ice Cream Jubilee where I got a scoop of Whiskey Toasted Marshmallow and a scoop of Cookies & Cookie Dough.
It didn't seem that warm out but while we stood on the bridge eating our ice cream and watching boats on the Anacostia River, it started to melt like crazy... it almost poured like a river out of the bottom of the waffle cone and the breeze caused it to splatter on everything. Eek! It was delicious but it was also a struggle - every time I get a waffle cone, I am reminded that I should always get a cup! Oh well!
We decided to go in one of the side gates that didn't open until 2:30 - we ended up waiting about ten minutes in a very short line, collecting our bobble heads and then wandering the park for a little while before heading to our seats. The temperature on Saturday was not that warm - but let me tell you - when we realized that our seats were in the sun, it became very warm. So very warm. In that way where you alternatively stick to your seat or slip around in your seat depending on the sweat level...
It was Marvel Super Hero Day at Nationals Park, so all the players on the opposing team (the Miami Marlins) were represented by Ultron on the Jumbotron...while the Nationals players were drawn cartoon style. The bobble head was Ryan Zimmerman, dressed as Captain America and brandishing a shield emblazoned with the Washington National logo - pretty cool, right?
The game was actually really good - Patrick Corbin pitched a complete shut-out and the Nationals scored five runs in the fifth inning - which were all the runs they needed to win the game 5-0. I do believe somewhere in the fifth inning it began to cloud over and the temperature became much more manageable after that. Regardless of the cloud cover, by the time the game was over and the Nationals had gotten the W - I was in desperate need of a shower and I'm sure the people near me on the Metro were thrilled, ha-ha!
The drive home was remarkably uneventful and I was all too happy to take a shower, relax a bit and crawl into bed. Sleeping in on Sunday was lovely and we had brunch at Regions 117 which is always so yummy! I had a divine Peach Bellini, a cup of the Tomato Basil soup and took a chance on the Bacon Bianca Pizza: bacon, ricotta, garlic, chili oil, spinach, mozzarella and EVOO - yes it was divine. I think you only need to look at the picture below and your mouth will water...
After brunch, we headed into the Shenandoah National Park for the afternoon - and blessedly escaped the warmer temperatures: as the elevation went up, the temperature went down! And of course, the views were lovely as always! The warmer temperatures were evident from every view point though, with haze in the distant but happily it was much cooler up on the peaks as opposed to being in the valley.
We took our guests to the visitor's center at Big Meadows and the back down to see Massanutten Cabin, which was part of the original Skyland Lodge - and was also where I found a small bunny that I watched intently while the rest of the group explored the cabin (I'd been before). I watched the bunny from the back porch and the side yard as it scampered around here and there - I can only assume nibbling grass. He finally hopped into the brush and I couldn't watch him anymore, so I had to go back to checking out the views...
We arrived at Skyland Lodge at 4:45 and got in line for the dinner seating that began at 5:30 - we were the second group in line and that turned out to be a good thing because we were able to have a seat by the window looking out at the mountains! The food at Skyland never disappoints and Sunday evening was no exception. I had a bowl of Vegetarian Chili to start my meal, had the New Deal Turkey with Whipped Yukon Gold Potatoes, Dressing and Green Bean Casserole for my main meal and finished off (as always) with the Blackberry Ice Cream Pie - it was divine! It's always divine! After supper, we headed back down the mountain and home!
Monday morning I slept in and after coffee I got in my exercise before enjoying the empty day laid out before me. I read out on the back deck in the sunshine (it was much more pleasant on Monday), watched The Last Watch - a documentary about the final season of Game of Thrones, took the pup on some walks around the neighborhood and even took a short nap on the back deck... it was lovely. Also, please look at how the roses have absolutely exploded into bloom!
We had a divine dinner on Monday night - grilled chicken and beef kabobs, over roasted potatoes and bright green salads that were so delicious, I helped myself to a second salad. It was the best meal after a relaxing day and just writing about it makes my mouth water a little bit - it was all so tasty. After dinner, we chatted with my younger sister and watched an episode of Game of Thrones before calling it a day.
And now - it's Tuesday. I almost wanted to write "it's Monday" but at least that day of the week is done and we are already almost at the halfway point... thank goodness! I wore my new t-shirt to work today - I might be adopting that "Not Today" motto every day, ha-ha! It was a good weekend - and now I'm counting down the days until the next weekend begins!
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