Angelina M. Lopez
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Contemporary Romance Author, Hyperromantic
4 Ways to Laze Away the Day at the Georgetown Waterfront
During a recent lazy stay-cation, my husband and I decided to cross the river to the beautiful Georgetown Waterfront to relax the day away.
How thrilling is it that Georgetown has embraced its waterfront? When we moved to nearby Burleith in 2000, the stately neighborhood definitely had its back to the mighty Potomac. But with the arrival of an AMC Loews movie theater in 2002, people began to wander down there for more than an expensive meal at one of the river-facing restaurants. During a recent lazy stay-cation, my husband and I decided to cross the river to our old ‘hood to relax the day away.
Stop 1: The Georgetown Waterfront Park
Nothing could herald the fact that the waterfront has arrived better than this gorgeous 10-acre park. This stretch of green space from the Washington Harbor development to Key Bridge offers incredible views of the river, Key Bridge, Rosslyn, Roosevelt Island and the Kennedy Center. But you can also find the pretty right under foot: the park has a large fountain kids can play in, benches, river steps for lounging and duck feeding, and images etched in granite telling D.C.’s story.
Stop 2: Farmers, Fishers, Bakers
Uncle Buck's Beignets with Raspberry Coulis, Hot Fudge Sauce and Bourbon Caramel Sauce at Farmers Fishers Bakers
I’ve always loved eating on the waterfront on a beautiful day. Sure, the food was expensive and the restaurants were pretty indistinguishable, but the sun-and-water languidness of it all made it worthwhile. Then along came Farmers Fishers Bakers. This farm-to-table-focused restaurant has a beautiful-yet-quirky design, a playful and bizarre cocktail menu and food that makes you want to order a little bit of everything. Yes, I'd like some Duck Fat Chicken Wings, a Bacon Basil Blue Cheese Mussel Pot, a couple of Beer Braised Beef Field Tacos and an AWESOME Grilled Cauliflower Steak. Too much?
Stop 3: AMC Loews Georgetown theatre
We saw the 2:30 showing of "John Wick". There were four people in the theater with us. Is there anything more decadent than seeing a Keaneau Reeves shoot-em-up in the middle of a weekday?
Stop 4: The Observatory at The Graham
We had every intention of going home after the movie. But did I mention that it was a GORGEOUS day? We walked a block up from the waterfront to M Street, wasted time until 5 p.m., and then took The Graham Georgetown hotel's elevator to The Observatory, Georgetown's only rooftop lounge open to the public. Or at least it was when it opened in 2013. Feel free to correct me. With cocktails in hand, we lazed on turquoise settees, watched airplanes squiggle contrails across the Georgetown skyline and toasted a successful lazy day.
The Immersive Experience of the American Indian Museum
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall expresses its intention in every inch. From the soaring limestone tiers of the building’s face to the award-winning native American food in the cafeteria to the artwork on the elevators, its desire to tell the story of the original Americans and immerse museum goers in that story is revealed.
The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall expresses its intention in every inch. From the soaring limestone tiers of the building’s face to the award-winning native American food in the cafeteria to the artwork on the elevators, its desire to tell the story of the original Americans and immerse museum goers in that story is revealed.
Visitors’ immersive experience at the museum begins on the fourth floor at the Lelawi Theater, where a 13-minute film about native life is reflected on three surfaces: a woven screen in the middle of the room, a large rock beneath the screen and the dome over the viewers’ heads. When one moment shows a magnificent canyon on the screen, the dome overhead shows a hawk circling a blue sky and the rock beneath the screen shows the hawk's shadow on the rocks. The designers have succeeded at creating a unique introduction to the museum.
At times, my visits to the American Indian museum have felt like visits to an art gallery. I could enjoy the beauty of the artifacts, but felt I couldn't fully appreciate what I was seeing without more information.
That feeling has changed with the new exhibit, “Nation to Nation.” The exhibit is about the treaties established over the centuries between various tribes and the European settlers then U.S. government. With two films narrated by Robert Redford and many historical artifacts and documents that tell individual stories, the exhibit shows the respectful establishment of the treaty pact, the disembowlment of that pact by the American government, and the renewed independence treaties gave to the Native Americans in the 70s. It’s a powerful, emotional display of the way treaties have succeeded and failed.
Since you're already at the National Museum of the American Indian, you will have the privilege of eating the best food on the mall. The privilege does not come cheap. Lunch for an individual can easily be over $20 at the Mitsitam Native Foods Cafe, so reserve the experience for people who will savor the opportunity to eat foods from five different native American regions: Northern Woodlands, South America, the Northwest Coast, Meso America and the Great Plains. You will find foods here that you cannot find in the rest of Washington, D.C.: Indian fry bread covered in buffalo chili, canela spiced cupcakes, buffalo and duck burgers. The cafe with its view of a fountain waterfall is a vegetarian's dream. I had a cold root vegetable salad in a mustard vinaigrette that was one of the best things I've ever eaten.
Indian fry bread with buffalo chili and fixings
A Tour of the National Museum of the American Indian
A Day at DC's Creepiest Museum
On a beautiful summer day, I walked through the National Museum of Crime and Punishment and stared at some of the creepiest stuff on display in Washington, D.C. And it was fascinating. The National Museum of Crime and Punishment has done a great job of balancing our gruesome, pause-at-a-car-accident curiosity with the true curation, historical research and interactivity that makes for an enriching museum experience.
Update: I'm super sad to report that the National Museum of Crime and Punishment closed in September, 2015. AND YEt This blog Still gets so many hits!! some other quirky museums I recommend:
And feel free to download my free Book!
A "cadaver" laid out on an autopsy table. Medieval torture instruments that punctured and crushed fingers. The bullet-riddled car that once held the bodies of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow.
On a beautiful summer day, I walked through the National Museum of Crime and Punishment and stared at some of the creepiest stuff on display in Washington, D.C. And it was fascinating. The National Museum of Crime and Punishment has done a great job of balancing our gruesome, pause-at-a-car-accident curiosity with the true curation, historical research and interactivity that makes for an enriching museum experience.
Located in the densely packed museum-and-restaurant area of the Penn Quarter, the Crime Museum seems to get overlooked for the more popular International Spy Museum down the street. It shouldn’t. Although a bit smaller, the Crime Museum offers plenty of bang for your 22 bucks.
The Crime Museum has three tales to tell as visitors wind through it: The first section focuses on crimes and criminals through the ages; the second focuses on punishment – the booking process, jails and law enforcement; and the final section focuses on case solving and modern forensic technologies. CSI fans will love this place.
Through each section is woven interactive elements for all ages. Young ones can test their cyber safety skills with hand-operated multiple-choice quizzes or they can tunnel out of a jail cell. Us older ones can gain more knowledge from the museum’s many interactive screens, participate in a lineup or we can try out our pursuit skills in a driving simulator.
What I like most about the museum – in all its creepiness – is its restraint. The boards soaked with Jesse James’ blood, John Dillinger’s death mask and the wall chunk from the St. Valentine's Day Massacre are all paired with careful, intelligent text that honors the items' place in our country’s history and minimizes the sensational. The section that I find the hardest to walk through, the one about modern-day mass murderers, is small and succinct, acknowledging the horrors we’ve witnessed without aggrandizing the killers. (Tucked into a corner, it’s also easily skipped if – like me – you want to keep the youngsters away from it.)
A Tour of the National Museum of Crime and Punishment
Crime Museum, 575 7th St. NW, Washington, DC 20004
In-Between Tip: After your dark trip through our nation's underbelly, refresh your spirits with a margarita at Jose Andres' light-filled Mexican restaurant Oyamel, which is just down the block on 7th St., NW. It's much easier to get a table at this festive restaurant with an inventive take on Mexican food during the day. And did I mention the margaritas?
A Stroll Through the Hirshhorn Museum
We in the DMV are spoiled rotten. Why? Because we can wander down to the National Mall and take a gander at the only Leonardo da Vinci painting in the United States, the Declaration of Independence, Dorothy's ruby slippers. For free. The Hirshhorn Museum has always been a favorite museum at the Mall because of its contemporary art, its outdoor sculpture garden and its general lack of crowds. It feels like the museum you can breathe in.
This is the first time I've said this in this blog, but it won't be the last: We in the DMV are spoiled rotten. Why? Because, should we have the urge, we can wander down to the National Mall and take a gander at ... I don't know ... the only Leonardo da Vinci painting in the United States, the Declaration of Independence, Dorothy's ruby slippers. For free.
On a recent Saturday, I did just that: Drove down to the Mall, found a two-hour parking spot on 7th St. SW, and took a slow walk through the second floor of the circular Hirshhorn Museum, through the "Speculative Forms" exhibit. The Hirshhorn has always been a favorite museum at the Mall because of its contemporary art, its outdoor sculpture garden and its general lack of crowds. It feels like the museum you can breathe in.
Reading the placard of the "Speculative Forms" exhibit, I was completely confused about the objective: "The exhibition highlights the importance of installation and the viewer's eye and body in relation to the object." And then I saw this:
The exhibit is about the interaction between a sculpture, the space that it's exhibited in and the way the viewer views it. This metal sculpture, "6-68" by David Lee Brown, reflects the light and arc of the Hirshhorn hallway. And I could only see that by standing at a certain perspective.
The Hirshhorn Museum made me smarter. In about an hour's time. For free. See, I told you we were spoiled rotten.
Speculative Forms at the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
At the corner of 7th Street and Independence Ave. SW, Washington D.C.
In-Between Tip: Avoid the overpriced and unimpressive Smithsonian museum cafes and enjoy a quick, interesting bite al fresco at the many food trucks that gather on 7th Street SW. During the weekdays, you will find them south of Independence Ave at 7th and D Streets SW. On the weekends, the trucks line 7th on the Mall.
Angelina M. Lopez,
contemporary romance Author
Writing ferocious love stories
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