Finally, a Weekend at Home!

It's been a whirlwind of a last month, filled with travel, parties, weddings, holiday events, etc. I've been out of town the past 5 weekends and luckily this weekend I was able to stay home, sleep in, and most importantly, not do a damn thing.

It all started the weekend after the Marvelous Martini Mingle. Still recovering from the weekend (I seem to need a minimum of 72 hrs now for recovery after a wild weekend instead of my usual 12 hrs!), we started our tour in Washington D.C. where we attended a wedding of one of Robin's childhood friends. I must say that this was a delightful weekend getaway. We checked into our hotel on Massachusetts Ave. and then made our way to the rehearsal dinner after-party at The Old Ebbitt Grill next to the White House. What appeared to be a few blocks away from the hotel on the map according to Robin and hence the reason he decided we should walk it, turned into a 1.5 hr adventure through the streets of D.C. We finally arrived, rather fashionably late, in order to talk with the bride and groom and the rest of the wedding party, and most importantly, partake in a few beverages to forget the long hike. When we told everyone we walked from the hotel, we were met with shocked faces. It seems that everyone else was smart enough to take a cab to the restaurant! I insisted on a taxi back to the hotel.

The wedding was the next evening, leaving us plenty of time to walk around DuPont Circle, take in multiple bookstores and coffee shops, and enjoy each other's company during the day. Work has been taking up so much time that enjoying each other's laughs and silly conversations was much needed. The wedding itself took place at a sanctuary next to the Washington National Cathedral. I had actually never toured the Cathedral, so we walked over for some sightseeing. From there, we headed over to the Cosmos Club for a quite elegant reception. The club, a private social club founded by men of scientific, artistic, and literature fame, was filled with much memorabilia of its members, providing a little history lesson in addition to a beautiful setting for a reception. We had been told it was a very chic establishment, and I must say it lived up to its reputation. After drinking the night away, and still unable to convince Robin to get on the dance floor, we headed back to our room around 2am. Clearly my 8am room service idea was not a good idea as we were both essentially passed out when out eggs and croissants were delivered the next AM.

As for the next week, well I was busy on call and packing for my upcoming trip to Asheville, NC to celebrate Christmas with Robin's family. He had left a few days of head of me, leaving me all alone waiting around the house for my pager to go off. There is only one thing to do in a situation like this - go to Blockbuster and rent some chick flicks. One of the selections was The Family Stone, a delightful tale of a female (Sarah Jessica Parker) visiting her boyfriend's house for Christmas. What started out as an awkward situation, turned into a complete disaster for her. Probably not the best film to watch prior to boarding a plane for your boyfriend's parent's house.


The trip to Asheville went without incident. It was a little awkward being the new girlfriend, but the entire family was amazing and they all made me feel quite welcome. I would expound more about his family, but will protect their identity here on the blog! We went to Christmas lunch at the Highland Lake Inn, a bed and breakfast inn in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Here are a couple pics of us at lunch, including one with Santa in Robin's lap (isn't that supposed to be Robin in Santa's lap???). As for the crown's, well let's just say that is a family Christmas tradition.


The rest of the week was spent shopping in the eclectic stores of downtown Asheville, browsing gallery after gallery while reclaiming an interest in folk art, meeting some of Robin's high school friends, and spending time getting to know his parents, sister, etc. I had not been back to NC since college and didn't realize how much I missed the One of the most interesting spots we went to was the Grove Park Inn, which hold a national Gingerbread House contest. Here are Robin and I sipping hot chocolate next to the fireplace at the inn:

As for New Year's, well let's just say it was on the "mild" side - no MTV parties at the Adam's Mark Hotel this year. Having a 6:00 am flight on New Year's Day will surely put a damper on most activities. We did drink some Cosmos and champagne and toast to our first year together.

I have one weekend to rest up before our next adventure: Robin and I have rented a sailboat in St. Thomas, VI and are leaving for a 9 day island hopping adventure. Stay tuned for pictures from our island getaway.