DC Up Close: World War II VE Day Vintage Plane Flyover

One of the best things about living in the DC area is having access to so many unique cultural amenities and events. Last Friday, in honor of the 70th anniversary of Victory in Europe Day, the Arsenal of Democracy organization staged a unique flyover featuring more than 50 vintage planes from the World War II era.

A big-time plane buff, my husband took the day off so that he and I could head into the city and watch the formations soar above the National Mall. After grabbing lunch at Sweetgreen (best bacon-blue cheese salads ever!), we found a good place to stand and view the hour-long show, which featured various types of planes flown in sequential order based on when they were used during the war. 

B-17 

B-25s 

B-29 

Catalina

P-51s

Missing Man Formation

While we enjoyed watching all of the planes, we especially loved seeing a B-24, the type of aircraft Stephen’s grandfather once flew. 

B-24

What types of cultural events does your city usually host? Do you like witnessing them in person? 

Spring Flowers & Showers

Yes, I took another short blogging break, but what can I say? I’ve been outdoors enjoying the spring sunshine and warm weather, both very welcome after such a long, cold winter.

Stephen’s parents were in town last week, and we had a great time hosting them at our house for the first BBQ of the spring season. Using the new Webber grill that his family gave us for Christmas, Stephen cooked up a tasty batch of blue cheese burgers, which we served along with red wine and Greek salad. It was all so delicious, and we had such a fun time, that I didn’t even remember to snap any pictures of the meal. Though we’ve only done it a couple times so far, hosting dinners at our new house is quickly becoming one of my favorite activities.

While his dad was working, Stephen, his mom and I also braved a rainy day to head to the Udvar-Hazy Air & Space Museum and one of our favorite wineries, Fabbioli Cellars. As always, we had a great time there, and came home with a nice red to enjoy the next time we grill. 

How have you been welcoming spring? Do you love spending time outdoors when the weather warms up? 

DC Up Close: Trains, Lighthouses & Sailing Ships

Along with cookies, candy canes and Christmas trees, one thing I especially love about the holiday season is the U.S. Botanic Garden’s annual train exhibit. This year’s display, which featured lighthouses and ships made from plant material, was by far my favorite collection yet. Being from So Cal and having a mother from Boston, I think I’ve just always had a natural fondness for the sea. 

Pretty cool, huh? After touring the exhibit on New Year's Day, Stephen and I then headed over to the Kennedy Center to see Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. While it wasn't my favorite show, I did appreciate the music, humor and moral behind the story. 

Oh, and how cute is this handmade alpaca I picked up at the National Museum of the American Indian? Definitely a cute addition to our living room shelves! 

Are there any annual exhibits in your area that you love checking out? 

Five Things Thursday: Favorite Spring Activities

It’s that time of the week again, when I’m joining Diana and Tairalyn for the Five Things linkup and sharing five favorite activities I have or will be enjoying this spring. Want to join in? Check out my five things below, share yours and then head on over to The World Around Her or Little Miss Mama to add your link and join the fun!

1. Relaxing Neighborhood Walks

Coming off of an epic winter that felt like it would never end, I’ve especially been loving the warmer weather, blooming flowers and chirping birds letting us know that spring is finally here. In order to take advantage of the nicer weather before the dreaded summer humidity sets in, Stephen and I have been making time to go for walks around the neighborhood during the evenings and on weekends. With plenty of trails to choose from, our walks are simple, relaxing and a good way to ease back into exercising after months of winter laziness. We’ve loved seeing a lot of animals so far, too, including geese, beavers, ducks, turtles and frogs.

2. Local Wine Tasting

Trying out new wines and visiting local wineries are two of my favorite things any time of year, but especially during the spring, when the weather’s once again warm enough for a nice outdoor picnic and a chilled glass of refreshing Viognier. We’re hoping to hit up one of our faves, Fabbioli Cellars, very soon.

3. Lao New Year Festival

One fun highlight of our spring thus far was heading to last weekend’s Lao New Year Festival at a local temple. After wandering around and checking out the food options, we decided on papaya salad for me, chicken satay for Stephen, and pad Thai and Thai iced teas for us both, all of which we ate while listening to a local band perform. I was a little disappointed that no one seemed to be selling my all-time favorite dish, crispy rice salad, but we did manage to pick up a big batch of hot dried chilies to use in our cooking throughout the coming months.

4. Healthy Spring Cooking

After months of chowing down on pasta, soup and other wholesome comfort foods, it feels good to get back to making some lighter and healthier spring dishes, including sushi and stir fries. Trying new recipes has been a goal of ours recently, and next week, we’re planning to try replicating some of the meals we learned how to make during last month's Indian cooking classes.

5. Outdoor Patio Reading

Now that we’ve got our new Ikea patio set all ready to go, I’m looking forward to sitting outside during the day and in the evenings to read. I’m currently starting a new book by Paul Taylor called The Next America: Boomers, Millennials, and the Looming Generational Showdown, which I’ll be sure to review here on the blog.

Have a great Thursday and a fun weekend, everyone! What are some of your favorite things to do during the spring? 

A Big Apple Christmas & DC New Year Recap: Better Late Than Never

Yes, I know Christmas has been over for more than a month already, but I’ve had such a busy start to my new year that I’m just now finally getting around to recapping the holidays, which were awesome in every way. From spending an amazing week in New York City with my mom and sister to showing them the sights back here in DC through the beginning of 2014, it was by far one of my favorite Christmases ever. Here, in a nutshell, are some of our top holiday highlights.

-- Our midtown hotel in New York City, the Westin Grand Central, was comfortable, clean and close enough to many major sights without the expensive Times Square price tag. It also offered a great view of the Chrysler Building, one of my favorite NYC landmarks. Overall, I liked it a lot and would definitely stay there again.

-- I'm a big fan of Monet and Van Gogh, so it was fabulous seeing their pieces on display at both the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Museum of Modern Art.

-- Heading up to the top of the Empire State Building on Christmas Eve was freezing but still worth it for the amazing panoramic views of the city. The Heartland Brewery restaurant next door also served the best baked macaroni and cheese I’ve ever eaten!

-- It was my first time visiting Dylan’s Candy Bar, and I'm happy to say that I now understand the reason for all of the well-deserved hype! Chocolate- and candy-covered Oreos were my favorite treat, followed closely by a s'more chocolate bar. Oh, how I wish they would open one of these here in DC!

-- By far the biggest highlight of our trip was going to see three Broadway shows – Waiting for Godot staring Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, The Glass Menagerie staring Zachary Quinto, and Rodgers + Hammerstein’s Cinderella. All three were incredible, and if you ever have the chance to go to New York City and see them, I highly recommend doing so! Back in DC, we also rung in 2014 by going to see the musical Elf at the Kennedy Center. (We forgot to take pictures of the shows' marquee signs, so here's a shot of the iconic Grand Central Terminal clock instead.)  

-- The Central Park Zoo’s snow leopard cubs were truly adorable, climbing, tumbling and playing outside in the chilly weather.

-- The potato pancakes we ate at New York's famous Katz's Deli, of When Harry Met Sally fame, were beyond scrumptious.

-- Back in DC, my mom, sister, Stephen and I had a fun time visiting George Washington’s Mount Vernon, where we pet a sweet Christmas camel and got to tour the usually closed off top level of the mansion.

-- Space Shuttle Discovery, which I saw flying above our old apartment complex on its way to the Smithsonian back in 2012, is now housed at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Northern Virginia, where we took refuge one cold and rainy afternoon.

All in all, I loved the holidays and can’t wait to head back to NYC again, hopefully sometime this year. If you’ve been there before, what are some of your favorite things to do? Any recommendations for my next visit? Going to the Metropolitan Opera for a show and backstage tour is definitely at the top of my list!  

30th Birthday Weekend

Well, it’s happened. I’m officially 30 and happy to say that so far, things are looking good!

My birthday weekend started off Friday night with a trip into DC for an early dinner at Sweetgreen, my favorite gourmet salad shop, followed by a performance of Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde at the Kennedy Center. While the show was long (4.5 hours), the singing and staging were absolutely phenomenal! I also received an awesome gift pack from my family in California, which included my own little Despicable Me minion buddy. Speaking of great gifts, I just have to share a photo of the colorful bracelet my dear friend Joycelyn picked out for me during her recent trip to Mexico, too. 

Saturday, my actual birthday, was a low-key and relaxing day complete with a walk down to Old Town for cannoli and lemon lavender cupcakes, plus a taste of the free pistachio ice cream and blackberry pie being given out at a recently opened Sur La Table cooking store. Other than that, I enjoyed munching on the delicious blueberry pancakes Stephen made for breakfast, kicking back with a couple good books and magazines, and closing out the day with a home-cooked meal of mushroom ravioli and Vinho Verde wine.

Next, pushing the fun over into Sunday, Stephen and I headed back into the city to meet up with my longtime blog bestie Diana from The World Around Her, who had driven down from Pennsylvania with her husband Mike. We all had a great time exploring the Air and Space and Natural History museums on the National Mall, along with stopping in at the popular Capitol Hill hangout Tortilla Coast for margaritas and a Tex-Mex dinner. Isn't the Vintage Vinyl Journal birthday present she gave me cool? 

I guess 30's not quite so scary after all! 

A Taste of DC: Laotian Feast

I absolutely love trying new cuisines, and our recent visit to DC’s Toki Underground introduced me to a number of Laotian dishes I had never even heard about, let alone tasted. While I’ll admit I was a bit apprehensive about the seven-course menu going in, not knowing just how adventurous it would be, the meal ended up being by far one of the best – not to mention spiciest – I’ve ever had. And since I truly adore spicy food, that’s saying a lot!

So, what did we get a chance to try during this special tasting preview, featuring dishes by Chef Seng Luangrath of Bangkok Golden in Seven Corners?

No Laotian meal would be complete without sticky rice. 

Nam Khao:

A salad of fried crispy rice balls, coconut, peanuts and other ingredients

Sai Oua:

Laotian sausage seasoned with lemongrass and cilantro, among other flavors

Tum Marg Huong:

Papaya salad with tomato and lime

Laab Ped:

Spiced duck

Orm Pah:

Curried fish stew

Som Pah: 

Pickled fish

Bua Loy:

Sweetened rice balls in coconut milk

A delicious taste of Bua Loy!

Since I don’t usually eat much meat and am again revisiting the idea of becoming a vegetarian, I didn’t taste the sausage and only tried a small bite of the duck. Everything else, though, was completely delicious, especially the Nam Khao and Bua Loy.  

Have you ever tasted Laotian cuisine, including any of these dishes? 

Let It Snow?

Between starting a new work project and fighting off a head cold, it was already shaping up to be a hectic week even before the announcement about a winter storm heading for the DC area. As usual, though, it ultimately turned out to be the snowstorm that wasn't, as we saw nothing but wind and rain here in our own neighborhood.

Snowstorm? What snowstorm? 

As much as I generally dislike snow, I must say that even I was just the tiniest bit disappointed by the lack of flakes, especially since this could be our last winter here on the East Coast. Oh well, I’m sure I’ll get over it soon enough, though, because once the last of this icy weather moves on out, spring will be quickly coming along to take its place!

Are you still dealing with snowfalls and chilly weather, or is spring already in the air where you live? 

Recipe Recap: Misoba Salad

Happy last week of February! After allowing myself to indulge in far too many sweet and savory treats ever since Valentine's Day, I'm eager to get back on track with my healthy eating plan.

Luckily, Sweetgreen, my go-to DC salad place, has impressed me yet again with what might very well be my favorite salad to date. You can bet I’ll definitely be ordering this time and time again, along with replicating it at home. Try this vegan delight for yourself, and get ready for some major yum!

Misoba Salad

Ingredients: 

Mesclun lettuce

Soba noodles

Raw corn

Carrots

Avocado

Seed mix

Cilantro

Miso sesame ginger vinaigrette

Sriracha sauce

Directions: 

Combine and eat! It really doesn't get much easier than that. 

Do you love a good salad, even during the winter? Check out another one of my top picks, Sweetgreen's Guacamole Greens Salad. 

Winter Food Love: Sichuan Hot Pot

Who needs football when you've got a day filled with writing, the Puppy Bowl and delicious Sichuan cuisine? Yes, I’ll admit that while I did manage to catch the last half of Sunday’s Superbowl showdown, the highlight of my weekend was definitely our visit to Mala Tang in Arlington for Chinese hot pot.

For those who have never tried it before, hot pot is similar to fondue, except that you cook meats and veggies in a spicy “mala” broth. Plus, since Mala Tang gave us each our own mini pots, the broth itself even became a delicious soup we could close out the meal with after feasting on everything from shrimp to beef to lamb. (I decided to once again forego my on-again-off-again vegetarianism in the presence of so much tasty food.)

A hot pot filled with peppers and spicy "mala" broth.

In addition to the amazing hot pot portion of the meal, Mala Tang also served up some of the best appetizers I’ve ever eaten, including mapo tofu and spicy wontons. In fact, even if we had skipped the hot pot experience altogether and simply filled up on small bites like these, I know I still would have left feeling very happy and full.

Have you ever eaten Sichuan hot pot? If not, I highly recommend it, especially if you can go with a group of about 5-6 people like we did, which makes it easy to share entrees and sample lots of different things all in one visit. It’s definitely the perfect way to warm up on a cold winter’s night!

Happy Inauguration Day

Happy Inauguration Day! Instead of battling the crowds down on the National Mall, I'm here at home watching CNN, working on articles, and celebrating the freedom to pursue my dreams and do the things I love.

Congratulations, Mr. President! 

DC Up Close: U.S. Botanic Garden

The U.S. Botanic Garden has always been one of my favorite places to go when I need an hour or two to unwind. It also happens to be a blissfully warm refuge during the winter months! This past weekend, I made it there just in time to catch the tail end of the popular Fairy Garden holiday exhibit, featuring handmade fairy village displays, along with stunning replicas of DC monuments and museums. The coolest part? Each design was crafted entirely out of plant material!

Pretty neat, huh? Have you ever visited the U.S. Botanic Garden?