A Rainy Day in Philadelphia.

After a couple days in DC and a quick lunch in Delaware so Joey could reconnect with an old friend, we headed to Philadelphia to stay with our good friends from SVU, Rachel and Nelson!

The night we got there the weather wasn't too bad, but of course the next day (and the day we planned on sight seeing and walking around) was grey, drizzly, and cold. I mean pretty much non-stop rain. All day. But hey, at least it was cool and we didn't get sweaty! Glass half full, people.

Rachel had to work (boo!) so Nelson took us out in the morning to see some of the major Philly sites. First stop was the Liberty Bell!

I loved the way the building was designed so that you can see the bell's former home, Independence Hall, behind it through the glass.

Our awesome friend and tour guide Nelson. Thanks for showing us around and getting soaked with us!

Next stop was Independence Hall which was a very exciting and humbling experience.

We're aware this photo's not in focus, but Joey liked it so its on here!

Loved the herringbone brick!

Another favorite part of Philadelphia was the murals throughout the city. Unfortunately because of the weather we didn't get a chance to see most of them, but I think its such a great initiative. The world can always use a little more art!

We got out of the rain for a bit and visited Reading Terminal Market. This place was totally up our alley. There were dozens of awesome artisans and food vendors, including a place called The Tubby Olive that sold a wide (and quite tasty) variety of olive oils and balsamic vinegars. Knowing that we were tentatively planning a trip to Italy in the fall (unaware that our trip would be much sooner than we thought! more on that later...) we decided to skip on the olive oil, but I did beg and plead for a beautiful glass jar of pure, raw clover honey. Joey just can't resist me ;)

Of course we had to try a philly cheesesteak while we were in Philly. Now, Nelson told us that the best one he's ever had is actually in DC near the temple, but you kinda just have to eat a Philly cheesesteak in Philly ("I wanted to eat pigs in a blanket, in a blanket"---can you name it?). You just have to. And though we didn't go on a hunt for the best place in Philly, I'm happy to report that ours was delicious and wonderful.

We also tried an Italian pulled pork sandwich from Dinics, which apparently has quite the reputation---best sandwich in America, in fact! It did not disappoint. While the sharp provolone was a little too overwhelming for my liking, Joey went crazy for that sandwich. Definitely a great eat!

And of course we had to try the peanut butter milkshake from Bassett's, America's oldest ice cream shop. This institution has been making ice cream since 1861! And just like our Italian pulled pork, the peanut butter milkshake did not disappoint!

After lunch at the market we met up with Nelson's mom---well not so much as met up with, more like she pulled up in the street and we quickly hopped in her van---who gave us a little driving tour around Philly. Nelson, your mom is fearless! But we had a lot of fun jumping out to see something then hopping back in the van and driving to the next stop. I don't think we could've had anyone better to show us the highlights of Philadelphia!

One of the stops was a sketchy, hole in the wall chinese cookie place. Now I'll be honest, when Nelson's mom told us that she loves getting their delicious fortune cookies, we were skeptical. All we could think about were the yellow cookies we get at a chinese restaurant that we break open solely for the fortune (which most times isn't even really a fortune) and then toss in the garbage. We were so wrong! I get that not everyone likes fortune cookies, but these were mighty tasty. Nothing like the ones you normally get. They were crunchy and light and so fresh---we actually saw them making some! A whole bag was dirt cheap--what, like $1.75 for a few dozen? Lucky for us we got the rest of the bag to take with us to Connecticut and we ate as many as we could before they started to go stale---it was a big bag for only two people! Oh and ps: try them with a little dab of peanut butter. Mind blowing.

We filled the rest of our time in Philadelphia with warm, dry clothes, naps, water ice (which Nelson swore up and down is not Italian ice), and some really fun dinners with Nelson's family. I was sad when I looked through our photos and realized that we didn't have a single one with Rachel, but so glad that we got to see her and Nelson for a couple days. We love you guys! Thank you again for hosting us and being so wonderful!

It Felt Good to be Back.

So remember that time when we stopped in DC for a couple days on our way to Connecticut, way back at the beginning of June? Ha well I'm finally here, sharing those photos. Talk about better late than never!

The first day we visited the temple where we got married and surprised our dear friend Jenna who's serving her mission in DC, but our second day was all about DC staples like the National Zoo and the National Gallery of Art. Art and zoo animals---two of my favorite things!

Friends, I love the zoo. Probably as much as I love the aquarium. I'm right up at the front of the fence with all the little field trip kids, going crazy any time the animal does, well, anything. What was so great about this trip was that we went in the morning so all the animals were bright-eyed and bushy tailed (some quite literally) and we got to see so much more of them than when we've gone in the afternoon and half of them are napping. 

That stork. I've got a bone to pick with that stork.

Flamingos are always a favorite.

These guys were being so friendly---their gorgeous tail feathers even brushed my foot! And has anyone else ever noticed that the sounds Kevin makes in Up are actually a peacock's?

Awesome.

Hey look! Its Cameron and Courtney! We were so lucky to meet up with them for a couple meals while were in DC. Its always great to see old college friends!

After the zoo and lunch with the Squires we headed to the (so wonderfully air conditioned) National Gallery.

We kind of have a habit of getting one of these chocolate eclair ice cream bars whenever we walk around DC. 

Maybe its because we miss Remy so so much, but we love sculptures with dogs included. So beautiful!

Joey loves the Degas sculpture collection, particularly the horses.

Ok see that special exhibit? Diaghilev and the Ballet Russes? If its still open and you're in the DC area---GO. It was incredible! One of my favorite exhibits I've seen. The costumes were beautiful and it was interesting to see how closely artists like Picasso and Manet worked with this culturally forward ballet. We wish we could've seen it again!

For dinner we were dying for some great pasta. I mean I literally googled "best penne vodka in Washington DC". We found this place called Acqua al 2 near capitol hill and it turned out to be a great find. And, their penne vodka did turn out to be quite delicious! 

And of course, what's a great pasta dinner without some Pitango gelato for dessert?

While we sat outside eating our gelato I noticed a plume of smoke near us, and since we weren't in an industrial area I knew it couldn't have been steam from a factory or anything like that. A few minutes later we started to smell wood burning and the smoke became darker and thicker. As we walked towards our metro stop we noticed crowds of people, dozens of police and fire department vehicles, news crews, and yellow caution tape everywhere. Trying not to let our minds wander to the worst scenario (you know, the T word), we moved a little closer to one of the news crews to see if we could over hear what happened. It was then that we found out that a hardware store and community icon had caught on fire just moments ago. We never found out much more about the situation and how much damage had been done but the last I heard was that no one was hurt during the incident. So anyways, as we looked towards the location of the fire and blackness filling the air, I turned around and snapped this photo of the capitol with the smoky haze slowly creeping towards it. 

The next day we left for Philadelphia (up next!) on our tour up the east coast. Though we were only in DC for a brief couple days, it was great to revisit old favorites from our time in Virginia!