A red, white and black and blue weekend in D.C.

This weekend was Memorial Day weekend, so I asked myself, what better way to spend it than in the nation's capital?

Friday
The MegaBus left from Penn Station at 8 a.m. I got there at 7:45, and much to my surprise, there was a line down the street! I thought to myself, "How in the world are all of these people going to fit on this bus?" But sure enough, the double-decker MegaBus came strolling down the street (20 minutes late, might I add) and all of us passengers magically got a seat. Thus began the 4 1/2-hour trek south through New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, and finally, Washington.

Kelsey picked me up at the bus station (NW quadrant). We took the Metro to her brother's house, where I dropped my bags off and freshened up a little. From there, we headed to Chinatown for some amazing Mexican at Rosa Mexicano (Mexican in Chinatown???).

Oh my goodness, it was probably the best Mexican food I've ever had. And I found out that there are a few locations in NY, which is even better!

Our Mexican fiesta... hi, Kelsey!

After our feast (and a bit of a Mexican food coma) we headed to Capitol Hill for some much-needed photo ops, and then went to the Newseum, which is basically a journalist's heaven. It was a museum filled with all kinds of information/artifacts from the big news stories of decades past. There, we saw the needle that was at the top of one of the World Trade Center towers, the Unabomber's cabin he built himself, Patty Hearst's ransom note, and a gallery of every front page of every major newspaper in America. Too freaking cool.

After the Newseum, we headed back to Kelsey's bro's house, where we met Regan. We got all dolled up and headed out on the town to Sign of the Whale, a really, really fun bar. And the bartender loved us and gave us free drinks and chocolate-covered strawberries (????) and simply had a blast. I want to go back NOW.

Saturday
We woke up at a decent hour and began our touristy day. We were not prepared at ALL to how much we'd be walking (case in point: I wore the most unsupportive sandals that day). We started at Arlington National Cemetery and saw the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the ceremony for that and visited JFK and Jackie O's graves. And walked up and down the millions of hills in the cemetery.


The Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

From there, we walked a good two miles (well, it felt that long) across the Potomac River to the Lincoln Memorial. There were SO MANY people in D.C. this weekend because of Memorial Day, so the Lincoln Memorial and all surrounding areas was packed. We visited the Korean War Memorial and Vietnam Memorial, then took a stroll along the Reflecting Pool to the WWII Memorial and the Washington Monument. By this time, my feet were about to fall off, but we thought we might as well keep walking...

Our next stop was the oh-so-famous residence at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Is it weird that I thought it was much bigger when I was younger? But it was cool to see all of the Secret Service and police officers guarding the place on the street and on the roof. We walked around to the front for more pictures and ooh's and ahh's. Finally, we headed home after a good few hours of walking. We think we did about eight miles that day.... you be the judge!

Knock, knock.... Obama's? You home?

Saturday night we went to the GORGEOUS and upscale area of Georgetown! Swang went to school there last summer, so she knew the ropes pretty well. We ate dinner at Clyde's, where I had a HUGE and marvelous lobster. When I say lobster, I don't mean lobster tail. I mean an entire lobster served to me intact on my plate. Kind of scary when you first see it, but you get over it pretty quickly.

There she is....

After dinner, we headed to this cool bar, Old Glory in the heart of Georgetown. It was filled with people our age, so we had a good time striking up conversations (Ex: "Do you know who won the hockey game?" :))

After OG, we came home to find a bona fide karaoke contest in the Swango Residence. And what song did I sing? Taylor Swift's "Love Story," of course....

Sunday
We had only about half a day on Sunday to explore, so Swang and I visited the National Museum of American History, a Smithsonian Museum. My favorite sections were the First Ladies Inaugural Gown display and the Star Spangled Banner display (the original that inspired Francis Scott Key). I was overly excited to go to the Pop Culture section, but it was SUCH a letdown! The only cool things they had there were the ruby slippers from the Wizard of Oz and Edith and Archie Bunker's chairs from "All in the Family."

"Those were the days...."

After the Smithsonian Swang and I got some ice cream and walked to the Mall and got a great view of the Capitol and Washington Monument. For some reason, there was a massive motorcycle brigade going on throughout the streets of D.C., which made it extremely hard to cross streets.

I said my final goodbyes at 3:45, and the bus headed out at 4. Due to unexpected stops and delays, I didn't get back into the city until 9 p.m. Needless to say, I was incredibly tired.

But it was a perfect weekend. I'll be seeing you again soon, D.C.!

Work, SATC2 and then some

These past few days have been nuts!

Monday was my first day at Us. Did I mention that their office is the SAME office as Rolling Stone? Yep, most definitely have to walk through Rolling Stone to get to my desk. Muahahaha :)

The first day went great! There are a lot of different tasks that the interns do, basically keeping up with other Web sites and blogs and watching celeb appearances and whatnot. It is going to be one heck of a summer with them and possibly get to do some red-carpet events... we'll see :)

After work, I happened to be able to attend the premiere of Sex and the City 2 because it was at Radio City which is right next door to my work. Haleigh was already there and had a place between the gates, but I couldn't get in because everything was roped off. However, when I went to talk to Haleigh, a woman next to me sort of "broke in" through the gates, and I was able to slide in right after her. Jackpot! It was amazing. Sarah Jessica Parker did her rounds with the fans and signing autographs (sadly she was the only castmember who did so), so I was able to get some great pics of her. Other celeb sightings that night: Kristin Davis, Kim Cattrall, Cynthia Nixon, Matthew Broderick, Chris Noth, John Corbett, Jason Lewis, Valentino, Patricia Field, Ashanti, Whitney Port, Amanda Peet, Estelle, and some other people from the movie. What a great beginning to a fabulous summer!

Yesterday I was off, so Haleigh and I did some minor sightseeing. We went to the NY Public Library and got our official library cards, and got to see Bryant Park. Although it was so, so hot outside, we decided to walk down 5th Ave. in the heat and go to Central Park. At the park we layed out on the huge lawn and worked on our tans! And met some new Dutch friends haha.

Last night we went with Stef and her mom to this bar, Blarney Rock, on 33rd between 7th and 8th. It is a cool pub and of course it is all things Ireland. We had a delicious dinner! After that, Haleigh and I headed back to the apartment while Stef and her mom went to a show. While we were walking back, Macy's was having a red carpet event (still have no idea as to why), so we decided to hang out there and see if we could spot any celebrities. Ended up seeing Jodie Foster, but we got bored waiting for other celebs to arrive that we left.

Around 11 p.m., Stef, her mom and I took a ride on the Staten Island Ferry for a look at the city at night., It was beautiful. We also got a great view of the Statue of Liberty at night as the ferry passed the front of her. Overall a great day.

So I decided to make a spur-of-the-moment visit to D.C. this weekend to see Kelsey! She is interning there this summer, and Us is off on Friday (but we have to work on Monday despite Memorial Day), so it made for a good little 3-day weekend. So I'm heading out to D.C. bright and early Friday for more East Coast fun! Can't wait.

Getting comfortable with my new surroundings

Another great few days here in NYC. And it's only the beginning.

Yesterday (Saturday), was the big move-in day! The apartment is great, MUCH more spacious than my London flat (and that is saying a lot), and it is in a good location. We unpacked my two huge suitcases and one carry-on, and I met my new roommate Lauren!

After unpacking, my parents and I decided to be adventurous and take a bike tour through Central Park. It was PERFECT. We were in a group of about 15 people, all with little green helmets on, and we biked the 6 1/2 mile radius of the park. I never realized just how big it is! We saw all of the places where they film movies, the place where the ice skating rink is located (Serendipity), the Mall (Gossip Girl and Kramer vs. Kramer) and the bridge and the big fountain with the angel (One Fine Day and Home Alone). We also saw the hotel where John Lennon was shot, Strawberry Fields and the hotel where Marilyn Monroe lived. All in all, a very successful and educational tour. I never knew there are boulders in CP that are the original bedrock of the island of Manhattan. You learn something new everyday! :)

After biking, we sort of wandered around for a while, went to Bloomingdale's (hair flip, HA!) and tried to get a table at Serendipity to drink a famous Frrrrozen Hot Chocolate, but the wait was an hour and a half (eh, no thanks). We came back to the apartment and found out my other roommate (and fellow MU-er) Haleigh had arrived. We got dinner at this nice little Italian Restaurant off of Times Square, and then hit up Rockefeller Center, Radio City Music Hall and NBC. On the way home, we found one of the three NYC Magnolia Bakery locations, so we had to stop in and get a delicious cupcake (or two, or three). I got the "Carrie Cupcake," the one Carrie Bradshaw ate when her and Miranda visited the Magnolia Bakery in Lower Manhattan on an episode of Sex and the City.

After that, we were all beat. So much walking around, it's not even funny. Bedtime!

Today was a little more relaxed and chill. After grocery shopping, I found the building where I am interning, and guess what, it is RIGHT NEXT DOOR to Radio City Music Hall, where we were at the night before. Pretty much amazing, though. My parents and I also headed out to the Lower East Side and walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was huge and beautiful for being more than 100 years old.

Because we do not have a TV in our apartment, I am watching the LOST finale in my parents' hotel room. And I am making them watch it with me. I can't believe it's the last episode! I might cry. Yep, I will. Don't make fun,

Tomorrow is my first day of work. Wish me luck!

First day in the city!

Today has been magical. And a little scary.

My parents and I arrived in NYC at 1:30 this afternoon. A shuttle picked us up from LaGuardia and took us to our hotel. Let me just say, our particular driver was a pedal-to-the-medal kind of guy. We weaved in and out of traffic like hell on wheels, and I kept a firm grip on my seat the entire time. We almost collided with about five taxis and poor bikers more times than I could count! But we made it, thankfully!

After we settled into our room, we ate a late lunch and then went and found my apartment. I am pretty much obsessed already, and I haven't even moved in yet! It is located on 34th and 6th, right across the street from the biggest Macy's in the country (and the site of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade). It's also down the street from the Empire State Building one way, Madison Square Garden the other way, and about 8 blocks from Times Square. And the shopping by it is just perfect! I've arrived :)

After we made a quick visit to the apt. (we can't move in til tomorrow), my parents really wanted to hit up lower Manhattan and see the WTC and Financial District. We navigated our way through the subway (with little problem!) and successfully found our destination. We went to the 9/11 Memorial Site, which basically housed this huge blueprint of the new Freedom Towers and also had a few 9/11 memorials. We then walked around the WTC site for a while and tried to get a peek in, but it was fenced off fairly well because there is so much construction going on. We ended up walking to Wall St. and doing some photo-ops in front of the NY Stock Exchange!

From there, we made the trek to Times Square. It was a perfect day today, just pleasant enough to walk around without getting super exhausted from the heat. We walked around Times Square and found our bearings. I haven't been here since they've closed off sections of TS and made it accessible only for the public. There is open seating under the bright lights, and it allows anyone to just hang out and people watch. I like it so much better because there is less of a worry that you will get hit by a crazy taxi. We had dinner at an extremely overpriced and overrated restaurant just off 48th, then we decided to walk back to our hotel about 15 blocks away. Not too bad of a walk, honestly! I was too busy looking around and taking in my surroundings to notice the blisters on my toes and just how bad my feet had swelled. But I did walk by a tranny, the first (and I'm sure not the last) I've seen here. I about died!

The rest of the day isn't too exciting, just a trip to K-Mart to buy a pillow and blankets for my apartment and some other much-needed things I couldn't fit into my suitcase. Tomorrow is MOVE-IN DAY bright and early, then a trip to Central Park and Serendipity! I am so anxious to see the inside of my new place. Many updates to come in the next coming months. MANY!

Later, ya'll. Love, your new city girl :)

A very brief introduction

I am in the midst of packing up my life (yet again) and moving to the mecca of the media world, NYC. Follow me on my adventures as I step out into the mother-of-all cities and experience what this enticing other world has to offer. I will try my best to serve my blogging duty, so prepare yourself for many unexpected moments in the world of Jenna along the way.

So, ready?

Here. We. Go!