It's a busy time of the year. I can't recall if I've had more out of the city trips in such a short time span before. Here is what my schedule looks like for the next while:
September 23-28 - Wasginton DC
October 2-4 - Boston, MA
October 12-27 - Vancouver, BC
Call me insane?
All are business trips, with the exception of the first week in Vancouver. This week + 1 day will be the last of my vacation days this year... boo hoo! It will be nice to spend it with Kristy, hoping to hit up a few more unseen places in Van.
Having gone to Washington DC a few times already this year, I didn't think there was much more to see unless it was the museums. I didn't end up going to any museums this time around, again. My work hours and the museum hours just don't work nicely with each other. Everything closes at 5:30.
During one of my previous trips though, I got to visit the American art museum for an hour, Washington monument and the Smithsonian Castle. All were pretty cool! But, time was limited then and for the most part, I was on my own.
I travelled to DC on U.S. Airways Express. The trip was short; only took 1 hr 30 mins. Coming back was even quicker; just one hour! I'm not sure how planes control their speeds in the air or if this aircraft went a few clicks faster than the one I took on the way there, but it sure got us there fast!!
After I landed, I went to the hotel and checked in. Afterwards, I toured around Chinatown a bit. It was practically next door to my hotel - and everyone seems to grab about their chinatown. I didn't see all that different, but the food in the area was good.
I ended up grabbing a bite at Clyde's. I tried their Crab cake sandwich. OMG - it was delicious! I even wrote a review for them here: https://plus.google.com/u/0/local/*/s/by%3A102450591677203177780
Later that night, I met up with my fellow colleague Alan, who works out of our Vancouver office. I work very closely with Alan and after getting to know him better on this trip, he's a real down to earth guy. Surprisingly though, he's super tall! 6'1 he said. Or maybe I'm just short (5'7). That night we went out for some grub at the Matchbox, another recommendation by the hotel navigator. What I ordered was not what I expected. I guess I picked the wrong item, because I was not expecting a roast beef and cheese pizza, lol.
The second night, Scott (my colleague from the Ottawa office) and I toured around DC even more, visiting a few of the well known monuments like the White House, Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. I'm not sure who's decision it was to walk the entire way, including back to the hotel, or maybe it was a mutual decision to save money on a cab ride. When we got back, it was lights out.
I had black spaghetti for the first time... see...
It wasn't so pleasant to look at, and it didn't taste good either (bleh!). Bad choice, never go there again (forget the name of the restaurant now, but will using my photographic memory to avoid that place later).
Here are some of the awesome food I had throughout the week:
Yummm! I was surprised to find that the food in DC was exceptional You just have to find the right places to go I guess. We asked the navigator at the hotel for recommendations, and overall he did us a good deed.
Next stop... Boston. I will be heading down to Boston this Tuesday to attend / present in two sessions at the GAUGE conference. I put a short post together on my work blog if you're interested in reading it - http://jacksonlo.com/doing-seo-right-with-wordpress/
Boston should be a fun trip. A bit nervous right now for my presentation, as it will be my first time presenting at an official conference. Been working long hours the past few days to get my slides down, and my notes together.
After that is done, then it's Vancouver! :)
