tea, walking, and tapas

Meanwhile, we had a 4:45 PM reservation for Afternoon Tea at Peacock Alley, so we were off to find the Willard Hotel at 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW.  This is the hotel lobby that gave rise to the term “lobbyist”.  It is very luxurious and elegantly appointed, just two blocks up the street from the White House.  The tea was lovely.  We were offered our choice of specialty teas (Cherry Blossom, Caramelized Pear and Chocolate Mint) and we ordered one of each to try.  A fresh fruit cup of assorted berries was the first course.  The promised glass of champagne (for our trouble of having to reschedule at their convenience) appeared at our table shortly thereafter.  As we settled in to the comfy furniture, a three-tiered server was brought to our table.  The top tier was filled with a variety of tea sandwiches.  All were delicious, but I, especially, liked the ones with the beets. The second tier of very light scones was served with jam, marmalade, lemon curd and clotted cream on the side.  An assortment of elegant bite-sized desserts occupied the bottom tier of the server.  As we relaxed in the luxurious surroundings, enjoying our tea, we were also entertained by a harpist, with live music. This was an excellent break after the tour, before beginning the activities for the evening.  It was good to get out of the heat and off of our feet.  I’m not sure I would survive a DC summer.

Next, we walked down Pennsylvania Ave. NW, hoping to catch the view from the clock tower at the Old Post Office.  Unfortunately, the hours were not as advertised and the tower was closed for the day.  However, we did get to enjoy the sounds of the tower bells that play every Thursday evening.  At 11^th Street, we headed west one block and continued our journey on E Street.

As we passed by 10^th Street, we took a brief detour to see the Ford’s Theater National Historic Site.  It’s quite run down, but still there.  Of course, we took photos.  The Hard Rock Café is now right next door to the theater.  We’re not sure what was going on, but there was a very long line of people waiting to get in.  Continuing down E Street, we came across a Thursday evening Farmer’s Market at 8^th Street.

Upon our 7:00 PM-ish arrival at 7^th Street, we discovered that the Third Thursday Art Walk was just not happening.  Unfortunately, we had dated information and the galleries were closed.  What to do, what to do?  Our reservation for tapas at Jaleo was not until 8:30 PM.

At first, we window-shopped the galleries in the 400 block of 7^th Street, but that did not take very long.  Barbara was tired and opted to put her feet up at Starbucks, but Kris and I headed west on 7^th Street to see what we could see.  We passed by the Verizon Center and discovered quite a lively scene at Gallery Place and Chinatown.  There were several musicians out on the street, one was even playing on plastic garbage buckets---shades of Stomp!  We were able to photograph the Chinatown Friendship arch and even do a little shopping before heading back down 7^th Street.

Fortunately, we were able to get in a wee bit early at Jaleo, where we enjoyed a fine assortment of tapas that included Tomato Bread with Manchego Cheese, Grilled Asparagus with Catalan Romesco, Garlic Shrimp, Traditional Fritters with Dates and Bacon, and Spinach Sauteed with Pine Nuts, Raisins & Apples.  An excellent Spanish white wine from the Rioja region rounded out the meal.

We were ready to head back to the Coach House about 9:00 PM.  After a fruitless search for a convenience store where we could purchase a bottle of wine, we gave up and hailed a cab.  Everything sure closes up around here in the evenings.

It was a quick trip back to Capitol Hill, with a little time leftover to plan for tomorrow.  It was a high of 76º and low of 46º and no rain.