Minnesota Visitors

Our very close friends Kris and Gemma paid us a visit this past weekend. They were pretty excited to step off the plane in DC where the lows for the weekend were in the mid-40s versus the mid-teens they've grown accustomed in MN.

We kicked off the weekend by having dinner at Potenza, an Italian restaurant a couple of blocks from the White House. This restaurant rocks! Kris and I enjoyed the Cherry Bombs (Crown and Cherry Coke) and Laurie and Gemma enjoyed lots of wine. The food was fabulous and was served, and cooked, by true Italians. Hands down, my favorite Italian restaurant. After dinner, we made our way to POV to have a few more drinks. POV is located in the W Hotel and is a trendy bar that overlooks the National Mall and White House. We ended up discussing politics the entire time and  needless to say, Kris and Gemma now agree with my views.

The next morning I treated Gemma and Kris to a famous Riepe tradition, German Pancakes! For those of you not lucky enough to have tried them, let me know, and I will be glad to treat you.

After breakfast, we made our way to the National Mall for some site seeing. We made some stops at the White House, Jefferson Memorial and the Marine Corp Memorial (i.e. Iwo Jima).

After taking in some of DC most beautiful sites, we decided to head to the Blue Ridge mountains and visit some of Virginia's finest wineries. We started the wine tour at Bluemont Vineyard, which is located on the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge mountains. While enjoying their exceptional wines, we took in the spectacular panoramic views from the wine tasting room high above the Virginia countryside. At an elevation of 951 feet above sea level, Bluemont Vineyard has clear views of DC and the surrounding suburbs. As you can see below, Kris and Laurie are very serious about their wine!

The wines at Bluemont were spectacular. They actually name all of their wines after farm animals, which makes it easier for people like me to say their names! Here is a little more information about Bluemont: http://www.bluemontvineyard.com/winery.php#wines.

After Bluemont, we made our way to few more wineries throughout the Virginia countryside. We had no idea that Virgina was home to so many fine wineries! I guess Virginians have made wine for more than four centuries starting with the Jamestown settlers  in 1619. Not until the 1820's did wine really take off in that region, thanks to the Virginia Norton grape, which was first grown by Thomas Jefferson and George Washington.

After the wine tours, we made it back to the National Mall to take in the monuments at night, which happens to be my favorite time to see them.

Alright, now on to something more serious: football. It just happened that Kris and Gemma's visit to DC also coincided with the Vikings visit to the nation's capital. There was no way we would miss out on this! We began tailgating at 9:00am. Nothing is better at that early than a brat, burger, and some beer. We had a blast talking with the Redskins faithful and were quite surprised at the number of Vikings fans. A quarter of the stadium was wearing purple!

We also had our friends Brian and Kimya join us for the festivities. As you can see below, Kimya's Viking jersey was dirty, so she had to wear a Redskins jersey. Needless to say, she had to cook her own brats. As I am sure you know, the Vikings ended up beating the Skins and snapping that nasty 9-game road losing streak. Thank God they finally fired Childress! FedEx Field was pretty old, but still much better than the Metrodome. Outdoor football is much more fun to watch.

Here are some more photos from the game:

Thanks again Kris and Gemma for making the visit. We loved having you and can't wait to see again soon.

- Bobby

Sunny San Diego

Several weeks ago Laurie and I made a long weekend trip to San Diego, California. We stayed in the Gas Lamp Quarter in downtown San Diego, which was where the San Diego Padres stadium is located. Coincidence? I think not! One of the reasons for our trip to San Diego was to catch a Padres baseball game, which was one of the last four stadiums remaining on my Major League Baseball tour. The only three remaining stadiums include the homes of the New York Mets, Texas Rangers (Dallas), and the Florida Marlins (Miami).

The Gas Lamp Quarter is the perfect spot to stay in downtown San Diego. There are 16 blocks full of restaurants, bars and shops...a perfect location for a weekend trip.

Our first stop in San Diego was actually a short drive out to La Jolla Beach, which is north of San Diego by about 15 miles. Laurie and I took a kayaking tour in the La Jolla cove, which is adjacent to the historic Torrey Pines golf course. Our kayaking tour was awesome! The weather was perfect and we were able to see some wildlife, including a number of sea lions. We also went around some pretty cool sea caves. Our tour guide was great. If you ever head to southern California and are looking for a fun tour, check out there website: http://www.hikebikekayak.com/.

On our second day in San Diego, we met up with one of my best friends Dan. Many of you might recall Dan from our wedding as the groomsmen who cut his chin doing the "Worm." Dan drove several hours from his home in Los Angeles.

Once Dan arrived, we watched the Padres take on the Nationals at Petco Park. Petco Park was a beautiful ball field. The stadium was built in 2004 and is located in the heart of downtown San Diego. There are a number of unique features to this ball diamond, including a very large family picnic area beyond center field, which includes sand boxes, a playground area and even small baseball field. It was certainly the most family friendly ballpark I have seen.

Petco also featured a number of great food options. I devoured some of San Diego's famous fish tacos, along with a great slice of pizza. The Padres went on to defeat the Nationals in 13 innings, although we left the park a little early to catch the rest of the game from the Marriott Sky Bar, which was located across the street from park. As you can see why, this was one of my favorite stops on the trip!

  

On day three, Dan headed back to LA and Laurie and I made a few stops along the waterfront in downtown, including a stop at the USS Midway. The USS Midway was the first aircraft carrier to be commissioned after World War II and was active in the Vietnam War and in Operation Desert Storm. We took a self guided tour throughout the entire ship and was able to see everything from the Captains quarters to the kitchen and the control tower. On quick note, this was actually the same ship my Dad toured in Japan when he was stationed there in the 1970's.

More blog postings to follow, so stay tuned!!!

- Bobby

The Doctor is in!

One of my really good buddies Nick paid Laurie and I a visit a couple of weeks ago. I have known Nick since we first played baseball together in little league. Needless to say, Nick can come across as a strange fellow, but it was sure nice to see him! Here are a select few of the best pictures from the weekend.

All kidding aside, Nick has been one of my best friends for a long time and it was great to see him for a few days. Even Jimmy was excited to see him! Nick is nearing the end of his medical residency in Saint Louis Park, MN and will soon become a certified, real-live doctor. Watch out nurses!

We started his trip pretty low key by watching the Twins whip the Royals and did some grilling during the evening. We had a lot of catching up to do (and a lot of beer to drink), so we didn’t end up making it out that night.

Nick and I have actually seen a number of ballparks together, including the Metrodome (far too many times), Pittsburgh, Wrigley Field (twice), Milwaukee, Tampa Bay, and Cincinnati. Naturally, we were sure to swing by the new Nationals Stadium and Camden Yards during his visit. Laurie, Nick and I saw the Nats take on the Los Angeles Dodgers and sat in the first row down the third base line. Great seats, but no luck with the foul balls! Surprisingly, the Nats won by a score of 1-0. I have watched 18 innings of live Nats baseball and have yet to see them give up a run. Since when did these Nats turn into such a good team?

After the Nats game, we toured DC’s Mall area and eventually made it the ESPN Zone in the District to catch some soccer!? Yes, unfortunately the only games on at that time were soccer. What a stupid sport. I have never watched anything so boring! Oh well, the beers were great and the food was delicious. After ESPN Zone, we made a few stops at some of the other bars around the area and enjoyed the District night scene.

The next day, Laurie had to go to work, so Nick and I weren’t sure what to do. Who was going to feed us? Who was going to drive us home after bar close? Well, what would anyone do in that situation? We decided to drive to Philly to enjoy some of Philly’s finest cheese steak sandwiches. The hour and half drive was well worth it! We each had a “provolone without” cheese steak from Geno’s in south Philly. We also toured some of downtown Philly, including a stop at the Terminal Market and Constitution Hall. We had a few beers at the Field Bar near the Terminal Market and then made our way back to DC.

Later that evening, Nick and I headed out to a few bars in the District to watch the Capitals take on the Montreal Canadiens. The Caps played like crap and were eventually ousted in the first round.

Our next stop was a trip to Camden Yards in Baltimore. We saw the O’s take on the Yankees. The O’s surprisingly beat the Yankees 5-4, proving that the Yankees do indeed suck. We met up with one of my buddies from Baltimore, Joe at the O’s game and collectively booed the Yankees. We also made a few stops before the game, including having some beers at the ESPN Zone in Baltimore, Pickles Bar and Sliders. Each bar and all the streets of Baltimore were covered with Yankee fans, so it was nice to see them lose.

Thanks again for coming out to visit Nick! it was great to see you and I look forward to seeing you again soon!

- Bobby

Turkey in the City

For Thanksgiving this year we opted for a quick trip to New York City. Our bus travel proved to be what we expected - a little chaotic at boarding time, a little unreliable with late and unknowledgeable bus drivers, but overall a great choice - you can't beat the $17 each way fare.

Part of the sweet Hilton bennies include VIP status - which was offered to us at the Millennium Hilton in the form of a corner suite room upgrade with floor to ceiling windows - score! Past NY trips have included stays at rooms comparable to dark closets at the going rate of a car payment. We had a great view of the World Trade Center site from our room, where workers are working around the clock (and conveniently banging on metal for hours on end) to build new towers and memorials for 9-11.

Once we decided there was more to see in NY besides the amazingness that was our room, we headed out for some Thanksgiving dindin. We missed out on a home cooked meal and time with family and friends, but tried to re-create the meal as much as possible. In the prior days I had perused opentable.com extensively, and found a few restaurants which were ultimately vetoed by Bobby because the Thanksgiving price-fixe menu was missing stuffing, green beans, gravy, or some other (secondary in my mind) Thanksgiving staple. Eventually we found a casual sports bar, Legends, which offered all of the traditional foods. Here is Bobby eagerly anticipating his second course:

Good choice Bobby, the food was amazing! We rolled into a cab and spent the evening watching Gopher basketball in our room.

The next day was of course the holiday of American consumerism, the legendary Black Friday. While we didn't plan on doing much shopping, we still got caught up in the holiday spirit. We made the mistake of entering the Macy's store, where we were herded like cattle through the store and up the escalator - I couldn't imagine actually trying to shop there!

Next we met up with my cousin Sam and his girlfriend Romy at Kunjip Korean B.B.Q restaurant. We've realized that a restaurant in NY is great when there is a line out the door - this certainly held up to that standard! Romy and Sam ordered for us and kindly saved us from the exotic selections, involving tentacles, tongue, or who knows what else. Next we headed to a karaoke bar, where both Romy & Sam wowed the crowd with their vocals. We had so much fun hanging out with you two! See you later this month!

Our last day in NY was spent much like the first two - walking around and eating, except this time we were doing it in an organized fashion, on a Flavors of NY Food Tour in the East Village! We used this company on a food tour in Philly and loved the hilarious tour guides, laid-back format and chance to try foods at various mom & pop establishments you could easily walk by and never appreciate. Our NY tour was all about traditional NY food, so some of our stops included samplings at Pizzanini, Papaya Dog (contrary to my original reaction, this is thankfully just a hot dog which is to be consumed with a separate tropical drink - no papaya flavoring in the dog), an amazing egg cream, some delicious mystery meat at an Eastern European meat market, and a stop at David Chang's Milk Bar for some creative desserts such as ice cream flavored like cereal milk - tasted just like the real thing but sugary sludge free!

We had a great time in New York & hope to make more trips there!

-Laurie

Friday Night in DC

Two Fridays ago, Laurie and I set out for another adventure in dowtown DC, where we started the evening by having dinner at an absoluetly marvelous Asian restuarant called Asian Nine. Only two blocks from the Verizon Center (where the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards play), this place had sensational drinks and even better food. As you can tell from pictures below, I wasn't the biggest fan of my first drink, 'A Night in Bangkok.' I guess you could say it was a little too fruity. I pictured my first night in Bangkok to go a little differently. Needless to say, I began ordering Sapporos the rest of the night! Laurie however, loved her drink, 'Zombie Girl,' which was the Halloween special for the weekend.





After a few hours of drinking and eating, we decided to keep the good times rolling and head out to another bar for a few more drinks. We ended up at the 'Regional Food and Drink' located across the street from the Verizon Center. The place was considered heaven for Bobby, where they offer 300+ types of bottled beer from the world! After a few drinks, we were inundated with Caps fans filing out of the Verizon Center into the RFD for a few beers. Needless to say, I think Bobby has found his bar of choice when the Minnesota boys come visit.




- Bobby

First Visitor!

I could hardly concentrate at work the Friday I went to pick up my friend Katie from the airport. She was coming to visit for one night only! Katie and I worked together at Northwest so she still has those free flight bennies for a little longer. We used to enjoy our two hour lunches together and weekend trips to fabulous tourist destinations such as Memphis, Grand Rapids, Amsterdam and beyond!

Here is a little summary of the nightspots we visited. The best part was we could take the Metro everywhere! This serves as more of a record for ourselves to remind us to check out these places again in the future:

We got off the train at Chinatown/Gallery Place near the Verizon Center, home to the Capitals NHL and Wizards NBA teams. Apparently Chinatown used to be home to more actual Chinese establishments, however most were forced to close their doors after the Verizon Center entered the scene, causing rent prices increase exponentially. One of the only things remaining is the world's largest Chinatown arch, which is quite beautiful at night. Also, all area businesses have signs written in both English and Chinese - talk about cultural immersion!

We stepped out of the train station, crossed the street and entered Fado Irish Pub. It was a drizzly evening and this was a perfectly cozy place to start at. It would be so fun to work downtown, take the Metro everywhere, and meet friends (assuming we make some) for drinks after work. This place was packed! (unlike picture)

Next we headed to Rosa Mexicano for dinner. We ordered the guacamole which was prepared tableside, shared some chicken enchiladas and a bottle of wine. This was a fun place but Katie and I both agreed we've had better Mexican elsewhere. Maybe a Mexican restaurant in Chinatown doesn't really work? After dinner we headed to the bar area to sip tequila.

We'd had enough of Chinatown so next headed to Dupont Circle, known as one of the more upscale DC neighborhoods. Also in this area is 'Embassy Row,' where many countries have chosen their piece of land (all embassies are deemed their nation's territory). I'd like to come back here during the daylight hours to check it out. Our evening ended at Circa, a nice place to have drinks.

It was hard saying goodbye to Katie. She is such a great friend I miss her terribly! Definitely the hardest part about moving is missing family and friends. Katie, come visit again! I promise we'll take a taxi next time ;)