Inaugurating Summer

WITH:

Smiles, straw hats, and sunglasses

Adorable beach houses and the Maryland State Flag

SURF, SUN, SAND

Jumping in

Disturbing Baywatch flashbacks

Metal detecting couple (man not pictured)

Boardwalks

Thrasher's "Trench" Fries

FUNNEL CAKE!! (oh how I love thee)

Fish Kites

unique buildings

Cotton Candy

You guessed it: CHOCOLATE-COVERED BACON

Eating pork and chicken at a restaurant called "The Crab Bag"

Rachel stayed true to form and got crab cakes!

I have never rubbed on more aloe or popped more ibuprofen in a 48-hour period, but it was worth it! Thank you Ocean City!

In Romania!

Well, sort of...Rachel and I went to Georgetown University where a Romanian author, Gabriela Adameșteanu, was lecturing and reading passages from her novel, Dimineaţa Pierdută. 


It was fascinating to learn more about post-WWII and communism period Romania from the artistic viewpoint of someone who experienced it! We met a professor who has spent a good portion of his life learning about Romania and studying Romanian just because he likes it, a young man who wanted his picture taken with the author and subsequently failed to give me his email address (I will forever have a picture of an unidentified guy), and I even got the chance to talk to the author afterwards about the revolutions in Romania and Hungary (in Romanian! And she didn't transition to English when she inevitably realized it's not my native language!!). Overall, succes!

 It certainly pays to have the Romanian Embassy alert you when there are fabulous events going on in DC! Finished off a great evening with ice cream from a Georgetown establishment.