Weekend in D.C. to flee Chapel Hill water crisis

This past weekend I took a spontaneous trip to Washington D.C. I fled the 2017 Chapel Hill water crisis and after a four hour commute, found myself in the nation’s capital.

I stayed at an Airbnb in Brookland – a quaint, coffee shop-filled suburb on the outskirts of downtown D.C. The couple owning the town home had traveled from Colorado to D.C. and now own a yoga studio down the street. The decor of the place had a trendy Southwestern feel, filled with pictures of hiking trips around the world.

Saturday morning we headed out to grab a quick coffee at Big Bear Café before taking an Uber to brunch. Our quirky Uber driver, named William, started our day off well.

He was an older man, probably in his sixties, who greeted us warmly and didn’t hesitate to start chatting about himself. He served as a driver in the military for the majority of his life, and bragged about being the top man on the job.

“I always got the best jobs! Everybody else got mad because they weren’t as good as me!” he said with a confident side smirk. He told us he traveled the world while serving his time. His favorite place? Japan.

William said his first time trying sushi got him hooked, although the initial bite made him spit it out. After his waitress “hooked him up with some soy sauce and the green mess (wasabi)," it became his preferred food of choice.

“The sushi in the U.S. isn’t real. You gotta go to Japan for the real stuff.”

When hearing that we were from North Carolina, he yelled “Michael Jordan? Yeah he alright!” and began talking about Dean Smith’s coaching skills.

William told us his granddaughter signed him up for Uber without him knowing, but agreed to take the job and has loved it since. He said he had the D.C. area memorized and was one of the few top Uber drivers in the area.

“I know how to treat my customers. If they want to chat, I’ll chat them up, but if they want to just sit back, I respect that.”

Well, we were glad William chatted us up. We left that car ride and headed in to brunch with smiles on our faces (and were inspired to later get sushi for dinner at Sakerum in downtown).

The rest of our Saturday was filled with the National Museum of Air and Space, the National History Museum, and, of course, sushi.

Sunday we headed to Georgetown. We grabbed a coffee at Baked & Wired. An old, weathered guitarist was sitting outside playing Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song,” emanating good vibes into the morning air.

Many families and couples were appreciating the Sunday ease by walking dogs in the park overlooking the Potomac, braving the cold drinking a beer on outdoor patios, or going on runs with friends.

After a day of walking through stores and eateries feeling like there was nothing in the world we had to do, I came back to a water-filled Chapel Hill and a house full of friends watching the Super Bowl.

It’s amazing what a weekend getaway can do for a mental revival.

#WashingtonDC #Uber #Brunch #sushi