A Week of Coincidences

Look who I found at the capitol this week!

Kate and Martin Eifrig! I saw the name Eifrig on my tour schedule and didn't even think to expect it to be them!  It was so wonderful to see a slice of Bellingham when they walked into the office!  I had a great time showing them around the Capitol, talking about important issues like healthcare, and watching the proceedings on the House floor.

The very next day, I spotted a Linfield acquaintance across the cafeteria in Longworth (another House office building that adjoins Cannon) and made arrangements to get together, and on Friday one of the kids in my tour group played baseball against Hunter's team! I love that 3,000 miles away there are still familiar faces!

On Friday night, Caroline and I had resolved to grab dinner and a movie, so we took the metro into Chinatown to an awesome Portuguese place called Nando's. Our group split two whole chickens, rubbed with a fiery peri peri pepper sauce, and delicious sangria, saffron rice, mashed potatoes, and corn. The atmosphere was awesome - lively food-sharing going on all around us - and the exposed brick and lots of wood decor was reminiscent of something you'd find in Seattle.

Though the restaurant was in an area known as Chinatown, the influence of the Chinese didn't seem to extend beyond the massive Friendship Arch and Chinese characters on all of the signs.  Our next stop was Clyde's, a Georgetown establishment with upscale decor that screamed "East Coast. " Chandeliers, wood paneling, and snappily dressed waiters who delivered local beers to our table.

Afterwards, Caroline and I headed to see Moonrise Kingdom, the newest Wes Anderson film, which we found to be spectacularly sweet. Cleverly shot with endearingly quirky characters, it chronicles the runaway attempts of Sam, an outcast foster child, and Suzy, the disgruntled daughter of two dysfunctional lawyers.  Bill Murray and Bruce Willis are awesome in the film and we had many a laugh during the late-night showing.

We also passed by Ford Theater on our way to the movie!  I can't believe that 150 years ago, people would have flooded out of the theater after their president was shot and stood on the same sidewalk.