Olympic Fever

Recently I was lucky enough to attend a work event in New York celebrating the US Olympic Team, for which Hilton is a sponsor. I was excited to find out that David Backes would be attending as a 2010 US Olympic Team hopeful for the Vancouver Games. David is a Minnesotan, former MSU Mankato hockey player, and current NHL player for the Saint Louis Blues. All of this = Mankato Celebrity. I felt sort of like a stalker but told him my mom would be so impressed if I got a picture:


The next morning on the ice at Rockefeller Center I got to meet so many Olympians and 2010 hopefuls, including hockey legends Jim Craig and Mike Eruzione of the 1980 'Miracle' Gold medal hockey team. I was also astonished (not really) to find out northern MN is a curling hotbed, since most of the USA Men's Curling Team calls MN home. I can't wait until February to cheer on Team USA!



Speaking of New York, Bobby and I are gearing up for our pilgrimage there for Thanksgiving! We are going to try out the Bolt Bus for the three hour journey. I generally associate germs, crying babies and claustrophobia with bus rides (sort of like flying in coach) but the Bolt Bus promises a higher standard in bus travel. New buses, boarding groups, power outlets, free WiFi…. there is nothing Greyhound-esque about Bolt Bus.



We are excited! If anyone has any New York tourist or restaurant recommendations, please let us know!

-Laurie

An Iowegian Affair

Last weekend Bobby and I made a visit to Cedar Rapids, IA (City of 5 Smells) for the event of the year - my brother's 40th birthday surprise redneck party! This has been in the works for months, and he had no idea. Everyone did an amazing job keeping the party plans a secret. Many family members and friends came to the party, dressed in their best redneck attire. Here are a few family photos and a few of the homestead:

A lot of the happenings of the party must remain classified (a few goldfish didn't live to tell about it), but more pics can be found on my sister's blog. We had a great time!

-Laurie

Differences

We are approaching the milestone of our second full month here in DC, and there are a few key differences from living in MN that we have noticed.

1. Driving - Compared to here, people in MN take Sunday drives every day. You must be an assertive driver here or nobody will let you change lanes or merge. You can't think twice - just do it. Also on the rare occasion when traffic is moving, people are pretty pumped and increase to warp speed. We feel confident (knock on wood) we won't be getting speeding tickets anytime soon.

2. More space - We recall everything in MN just seeming.... bigger. In MN you could drive your big giant car in the nice wide open lanes and easily drive into a nice big empty parking lot. Parking was always free and available. The aisles in the stores were brighter and wider. You can have a bigger house for less money with a nice giant yard. Even your personal space in MN was bigger, a result of the lack of mass-transit options.

3. Love affair with bacon - This is one change we whole-heartedly embrace. People here are creative and add bacon to a wide variety of dishes. In Baltimore, Bobby has experienced the classic grilled cheese sandwich upgraded with hearty bacon slices packed inside. I experienced this home-baked oddity that was being offered in the coffee room of my office - the 'peanut butter bacon cookie'. The subtle hint of bacon suddenly became undeniable upon biting into the delicious chewy bacon pieces inside.

I tried to zoom on the bacon chunk with my camera-phone. My apologies that I focused on the carpet instead... you get the idea.

My review: A-

Suggestion for improvement? More bacon!!

-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

Lets Talk Politics!

As many of you know, I have always been into politics. The move to DC has only made that fact more apparent. In his short time out here, I have read a number of political books, including 'Leadership,' by Rudi Giuliani, 'Let Freedom Ring,' by Sean Hannity, and 'Glenn Beck's Common Sense,' by Glenn Beck. Needless to say, these books have really inspired me to become more involved politically.

On top of reading these good books, Laurie and I have also ran into some pretty famous politicians at the Reagan airport, including Tim Pawlenty and Norm Coleman! The visit with Norm Coleman was pretty cool. In fact, Laurie says I talk about this 15 minute conversation almost every day!

I have a feeling that this move to DC will make me become even more involved in the political landscape and who knows, maybe someday you'll find me on CSPAN!

- B0bby

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 ;)

Out of touch

We have been slackers in posting and have felt out of touch ever since we traveled back to MN three weeks ago for Laurie's grandpa's funeral. I share the sentiments of my sister's blog when I say that he has lived a full, long life. We were so happy to see him in September for Max's arrival party - we will treasure those pictures and memories!

We have a backlog of blog posts to work on, so keep checking back!