Weeks 38 – 41: Savannah to Washington, D.C. to Boston!
Before we get into the highs and lows, I feel like I need to acknowledge that this post is, um, 4 months late. That’s in part because this last leg of the trip was sort of rocky. Let’s start with the good though:
We really liked all of the Spanish moss in and around Savannah. It’s charming and it almost makes you feel like you’re in a romantic movie with it gently swaying in the breeze. Even though we were there in winter, all of the squares and parks were nonetheless lovely and tastefully done. Aaron kept expecting to see Kevin Spacey wearing a bow tie around every corner.
Mitchellville Park on Hilton Head Island is worth a visit if you’re in the area, preferably at sunset when the light is at its best. At low tide, you can walk out relatively far from the piers to enjoy the reflections of the clouds in the shallow pools of water. Just make sure you either bring boots or plan to get your feet wet because the sand sometimes gives way to ankle-deep, icy cold ocean (refreshing in summer, not so much in winter).
It was nice to get a big dose of culture in Washinton, D.C., where most museums are free! Our favorites were the Smithsonian American Art Museum (SAAM) and the National Portrait Gallery (the two are connected). The guilded photos above are from the Library of Congress and it is stunning. Marble columns, with frescos and ornate designs on all of the ceilings and walls, sayings and aphorisms painted on every surface…your neck will hurt at the end of the day from wandering around staring at the soaring ceilings in awe.
We left for this trip with tons of East Coast pride. We returned…humbled. Coming back from the West Coast was difficult and while there were certainly awesome things along the way (not the least of which being the Grand Canyon), the East Coast fell really flat in comparison. It’s just kind of impossible to beat the abundant sunshine, dreamy beaches, and jaw-dropping views in places like California.
We had a big hiccup when we were supposed to stay in Myrtle Beach for a week and realized upon arriving at 10pm that it was awful—trashy, cheesy, tasteless—and then our AirBnB had roaches! We had critters (mice, spiders, ants, wildlife) on occasion throughout the entire trip, but we don’t do roaches. Period. It forced us to scramble to find all kinds of last-minute accommodations, one of which was a night at the shittiest hotel ever. Do NOT stay at the Best Western in Myrtle Beach! We arrived at midnight to sticky floors covered in dirt and hair {shudder} and Honey was so upset she pooped on the floor when we walked in. So, so bad.
Two last-minute accommodations followed in DC, one beautiful albeit very pricey apartment in Georgetown and another not-as-nice-as-the-photos basement unit in Dupont Circle. Combined with relentless rain/sleet and overcast skies, we vowed to never stay in another basement apartment.
There was some culture shock when we arrived in DC that surprised us both. We had visited before in summer and thought, “We could live here…” This time we were both like, “Hell no.” The energy was uptight and frenetic. It seems that no other group of people wear more black and walk more quickly, even compared to NYC (it’s just a lot more diverse in NYC).
We ate a lot of Whole Foods’ prepared foods when we were in DC, which is normally something I’m pretty pumped about. In retrospect, seeing dead rats around the city (DC seems to have a problem that I’ve yet to see in other cities), and combined with the below-ground grocery stores feeling gritty like subway stations, I shouldn’t have eaten any prepared foods. But I did, and on our second to last night in DC, I got a fierce case of food poisoning. As in, laying on the bathroom floor, couldn’t move for 24 hours, praying not to have to go to the ER for dehydration. A crazy amount of Pepto and ginger tea followed, and we even considered finding a hotel for one more night because I was so sure I wouldn’t last ten minutes in the car on our drive back to Boston. To this day, prepared foods make me queasy and anything I was eating around the time I got sick (especially red lentils) I can’t touch. On the plus side: we’re saving so much money not shopping at Whole Foods.
Let’s not even talk about food, okay?
We look back on this final part of our road trip and laugh about it now. Because what a terrible way to end a mostly amazing year of adventure—”…and then we got S.A.D., Amanda got food poisoning, and we dragged our tired butts home.” I like to think of it as the universe’s way of really closing that chapter of our lives with a bang. 😉
We’ll do one final recap post with our favorite photos and also share more about what we hope is to come. That one’s going to be much more positive and inspiring, promise. xo
