Lights Out

Hey everyone! So I just had one of the best weekends I can think of that did not involve being in Europe or skiing. The combination of movies, dancing, climbing, slacklines, and photography, plus the added bonus of winning some super nice mountaineering boots at Earth Treks in Rockville, the climbing gym I go to, made this a sweet weekend.

Looking at my last post, it was definitely a “local” type weekend, I did not do anything too touristy except a little photo expedition Sunday night. Washington DC reminds me a lot of Copenhagen, even though I visited Denmark for a very short time, the comparisons are strikingly similar: a flat metropolis without much other than the city itself, plus tourists galore in the touristy areas, but at the same time there are a lot of young people that run the city and create a youth culture that makes it very fun to stay here. Also, while I was in Copenhagen and I missed my train, I spent the night taking pictures of the lights. So I decided to go on a night-photo expedition in DC after a great slackline session at Meridian Hill Park.

Meridian Hill Park

Every Sunday evening there is a major gathering of young people at Meridian Hill (or Malcolm X) Park just north of U Street. The drum circle is most excellent, and there are the slacklines (where I spend nearly all of my time), yoga, dancing, sports, etc. Everyone is there for a good time to relax and be with friends and neighbors. I highly recommend it if you are staying in DC for an extended period of time in the summer.

Night Photo Expedition

After the park, I went on a long walk to see some of the major buildings lit up, and I was not disappointed.

(Most of these photos were taken with a F2.6 Aperture and between 1/4″ to 1″ shutter speed, my camera was held by hand or propped up on a bench or gate)

Just about every monument I was at was very busy on a Sunday night, but not nearly as busy as these places are during the day. Plus, with the cool night air, it was a great way to see these places in a different light without sweaty suffering.

Anyhow, this is probably the last weekend where I’ll be doing exclusively “local” things, my parents arrive Wednesday and Darcy arrives the week after, so from here out I’ll be all about the museums, festivals, and (next weekend’s) fireworks! Check back next week to see how it’s going.