Monday, February 28, 2011

Young at Heart

This weekend I went to Northern Virginia and fell in love....with the National Zoo. I know, I know...how old am I? I must admit whenever I am searching for things to do in a city I always read the "Kid Friendly" or "Best Places for Children to Visit" lists first. Its good to be young at heart, right?

Obviously I googled those searches before heading up to Fairfax and found rave reviews about the zoo. Where else can you see exotic animals in the middle of the city for free?! Not to mention, when I read about the lion cubs it went from being a simple suggestion to a must see in my mind. Lucky for me Jon was totally ok with it, or at least he obliged - probably so I would stop talking about it.

After a week of reading every paragraph on the website, the day had finally come and we arrived around 12:30 on Saturday. Let me just tell you- it exceeded every expectation. The orangutans, tigers, leopards, pandas, elephants, BABY LIONS...so great. There were hardly any cages in sight and (weather permitting) the orangutans could travel from one house to the next on lines right about the walkways! I am pretty sure I didn't stop smiling the whole day.


2 of the cubs and the Momma from the Smithsonian Mag
Now before you all convince yourselves I belong in elementary school (which is probably true), we got to do some more mature things like watch some of the Caps game (and NFL combine...go Tyrod!), visit the largest Whole Foods I've ever seen, attend a housewarming party, watch the VT/Duke game (GO HOKIES!!!) and tour the Torpedo Factory in Old Town.

Over the years my mom has told me plenty of stories of how she used to frequent the Torpedo Factory when she lived the city life. It was a nice opportunity to walk in her footsteps while seeing all the incredibly talented artists who reside there! Plus I even purchased my very first (small) piece of art!


My little painting!
All in all, it was another great weekend...except now I want a pet lion cub...or to at least live in an apartment overlooking the zoo!

Also for all you Richmonders: if you are like me, the weekday mornings are consumed by - what I like to call - organized chaos. I somehow always find myself frantically running from the shower to my closet, trying on three outfits (but always selecting the first), and then inevitably searching for my keys, phone, jacket etc. which I have no doubt "lost" in the hustle and bustle. After all of that running round, I am desperate for some morning convenience (and a cup of green tea) when I get to work. Plus the thought of the approaching weekend and a few good deals never hurt. {Enter my favorite website} This website compiles all of the daily deals (groupon, living social, etc) and posts them every morning. In addition, they also tell you free or cheap events going on in Richmond every weekend. http://www.richmondbargains.com/blog/ Free things? Discounts? Shopping? Events? Must have for my morning Google Reader list.

1 comment:

  1. Hi Jessica, thanks so much for linking and recommending Richmond Bargains! It makes my day to hear that the website helps someone :) And I love the zoo too!

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