Art Attack!

Again, I woke up at 8 this morning. Alwyn and I will check out the Philippine Independence celeb at DC. Rene and Noel didn't wanna join so it's just the two of us. It will be an adventure since we haven't tried going to DC by ourselves. The weather wasn't cooperating either so wish us luck!

First agenda is to have brekky at IHOP. It's been awhile since we last ate here. When we reached the nearest IHOP, the place was packed to the brim. I didn't know that eating at IHOP on Sunday morning is a big thing here in the US. I suggested that we check out the one in Sterling instead. Alwyn drove us there.

En route to the next IHOP, Alwyn gave me the instructions on how to get to DC. I thought he'd do the driving but he suggested that I'd do it since I'm more "experienced". Yay, I thought he'd never ask ;oP

There's a shorter line so we decided to wait. I dunno any other IHOP in VA. Teehee... After some minoots, we finally got our table. Got myself some coffee and the Chicken Clubhouse Super Stacker. Yum-O! Alwyn ordered the brekky sampler.
It started to rain so I made sure that I was doubly alert. Alwyn's the navigator. The trip to DC went smoothly with just a little hitch. There's an exit that we're supposed to take but we didn't find it. Damn, google maps! I told Alwyn to use MapQuest next time.

When I saw the Washington Monument, I got excited. I just need to use it as our guiding star. While driving along Constitution avenue, I noticed some tents already setup in the not-so-far distance so I assumed that's where the celeb is happening. I was right. We parked near Pennsylvania avenue and headed down where the tents are. Told Alwyn that my tummy was aching. We looked for a place that has a nice restroom I could use. There's a museum nearby so we went in. When we found out that it's the National Gallery of Arts, we got excited. Alwyn is the perfect company here 'cause he's got that photographer's eye. This is surely worth our one hour trip ;oP
First we checked out the bookstore & gift shops near the cafeteria. Alwyn found some Photography books. We also found Salvador Dali's "The Sacrament of the Last Supper" and a very nice fountain (a lady holding lilies). As a souvenir, I got myself Leonardo da Vinci's "Vitruvian Man".
Next stop was the West Wing where the sculptures done by renowned artists like Edgar Degas ("Little Dancer Aged Fourteen"), Maurice Sterne ("Sitting Figure"), Paul Manship ("Dancer and Gazelles"), and Auguste Rodin ("The Age of Bronze", "The Kiss", and "The Thinker") are in exhibit. Alwyn and I had so much fun imitating the "Thinker" man.
We found these fountains while walking around the building. I wished that....The next area we visited is filled with paintings of people in the Bible. From the "Annunciation", "Daniel in the Lions' Den", "The Prodigal Son", "Adam & Eve", to "The Holy Trinity".When I saw the paintings of Monet, I suddenly remembered Joyish. Monet's her favorite artist.After spending more than an hour inside the West Wing, it's time to check out the East. There we found some interesting sculptures, an area where you cannot take photos because the exhibit is owned by the British museum, and a super-sized elevator.Around 3, we went outside (still raining) to buy some lunch. I got myself some diniguan + lumpiang shanghai for 7 bucks. Alwyn bought halo-halo for 4 bucks. While eating our late lunch, an old man approached us for some chit-chat. Turned out that he's from Pampanga so I let Alwyn do the talking for us.

Some guys were eating balut and drinking cold San Miguel beer. I wanted to join 'em but I'm the designated driver for today. Oh well.

We also checked out the band that was playing. I was trying to take their photos but my phone battery died. Then suddenly, I heard my name. 'twas Loy! Oh my god. I haven't seen him in ages. I introduced Alwyn to him too. He hasn't changed much. I wanted to sing "Don't Call Me, Baby" but I'm not sure if he'll get it (or remember the steps even) ;oP

At 4 pm, we decided to go back to Ashburn. Took us almost an hour to reach our territory. I'm really happy that for the first time, I was able to drive to and from DC. It's an achievement for me. Big thanks to Alwyn.