Anniversary Weekend Away Day 1

This past weekend Marc and I celebrated our 32nd Wedding Anniversary. In honor of the occasion we booked and overnight trip to DC to visit the National Cathedral.

We rented a car for the weekend since we have been having some issues with our own car. The Prius turned out to be a good deal because we traveled to DC and back on one tank of gas. And it only cost $25 to refill the tank.

We arrived in Northern VA late afternoon and headed to the local IKEA (I had a wish list of items that I was looking for) and Marc and I wanted some of the swedish meatballs. lol

Imagine our surprise when we found out they had a buffet special going on and that they were giving out a special Fathers Day gift as a giveaway. Even more surprising was finding out that Marc had one the prize. LOL

 

 

After we left the IKEA we picked up some water from a nearby Sams Club and then headed towards our hotel. We made a stop at the local Container Store (another favorite of mine that is not in my area).

It was not until the next day that we realized our hotel was directly across from the Container Store. LOL

Not sure how the days got out of order! Here is the start of Day 2 which includes a review on the Embassy Suites (our first time staying at one). The drive through Georgetown. Highlights of the National Cathedral, and my favorite part the Bishop Garden. I have a small Anniversary Haul up on my PW Life blog! I actually thought we were done traveling for this year especially since we have a wedding coming up next year..but next month we travel to PA with some of the church members to see the play Jospeh at the Sight and Sound Museum. After several failed attempts to get Marc to one of the plays we may finally succeed!!! 

The Gardens

My favorite part of the your was most definitely the gardens! Man's beauty is just that...beUtiful! But God's creations are simply breathtaking!! 

After we viewed the gardens we headed to the cafe on the property for a bit of nourishment.

View from the observation area.

A sandwich for Marc.

Soup for me! 

We ended up sharing a slice of apple pie.

The view from our table! 

Flower and garden area near the cafe.

A larger view.

We finished our lunch, walked back to the parking garage and headed back towards home! 

The National Cathedral Day 2

Driving up to this place still did not prepare me for how large it actually is!

Me talking to another visitor that day.

We also were not aware of how much damage had been done during the Earthquake a few years back. 

Marc had a ball taking pics. Between the two of us we took over 250 photos. 

We collected our tickets and only had to wait a few minutes before we were allowed into the cathedral sanctuary.

None of the pics we took does this place any justice! You have to actually be there to understand the size and scope of the place! 

There were so many chapels within the cathedral that you thought you were in a city within itself! 

Even the gift shop areas were beautiful!

Marc's favorite part of the tour was the observation area on the 7th floor. On a clear day you can see a panoramic view of DC and even the Shenadoah mountains! 

Simply breathtaking!!!

There is an area upstairs that shows some of the damage from the earthquake and some of the progress that still has to be made in order to restore the cathedral.

After we took a tour inside (we were there for hours it seems) we headed outside to the gardens!