Cupcake Heaven and Gay Clubs

This has been the most amazing yet crazy couple of weeks of DC yet. Last week was the first week of Spring which means, beautiful weather, outdoor happy hours, and best of all Cherry Blossoms...and the cupcakes that go with them! Yes indeed those beautiful trees native to DC are currently in full bloom and I have gone to bask in their glory numerous times and plan on going back frequently until they are no more.

Since I discovered the Mall about a month into living in my apartment, which is approximately a 10 minute metro ride away, I have been there at least once each week. I've been having a ton of awesome visitors stay at my residence and it's about the only thing in DC I know pretty well so I love pretending like I'm a DC expert and impressing them with my DC knowledge.

I took my visitors to, guess what?! the Mall, and we explored the museum scene, went paddle boating in the Tidal Basin, and took phallic pictures with the Washington Penis...oops I mean Monument. Not only that, we just about tasted every cupcake in Georgetown, ate authentic French cuisine and allowed me to come to the realization I don't like listening to poetry that much...so much for Busboys and Poets, thankfully their food is amazing

Some fellow other U of I friends were Spring Breaking it up in DC and decided to include me in the fun. We hit up the Banana Cafe and Piano Bar (although he was no piano man) and next checked out a really sketchy gay bar with some questionable taste in TV shows/movies. Next I practiced my Hebrew with some gay? Israelis at a bar in Dupont. I topped the night off by getting super lost and walking in circles until I found the metro and just in time! I made the last train at midnight and arrived safely in my bed by 12:30pm, what a night!

Somehow cupcake heaven and gay clubs just seems to role of the tongue or at least in DC anyways. DC is home to the largest percentage of same-sex couples in the country and probably the highest per-capita number of cupcake shops (although that is just a guesstimate). Therefore, no one has had the true DC experience without experiencing a good gay bar or two and some fine cupcakes, especially if they are of the Cherry Blossom variety.

Super Tuesday and other things I don't know about...

So I must say, I finally don't hate it here. DC is actually not too shabby and I am having a lot of fun exploring the museums, yogaing in different neighborhoods, and walking through town.

I've learned the power of my own two feet and how DC is a fairly walkable city (within NW). I've also learned how to do things by myself and am at peace with that. My internship is also starting to look up, I'm meeting people from all over Africa with interesting perspectives on the world and the international development process. I am learning, living, and exploring. I am conquering a change in lifestyle head on and am now exposed to people who care more about politics than I ever could imagine.

I care, I really do. But most of the time I am just completely and utterly unaware and lost in my own realm of thought. Sometimes (Actually most of the time) I rather talk about boys, food, or movies than who is winning the primaries. Yes it is fun to argue and assert your beliefs and opinions, whether you fully understand why you care about them or not, but at the end of the day I just like watching How I Met Your Mother, and discussing things like sex, books, and Aaron's chickens...you know the usual.

I am writing as a Master's student in Political Science who has no business calling herself that. As soon as I began my studies "mastering" political science I realized what a false impression it gave people and quickly tried to reconcile that by meticulously reading the news and political blogs. While I still try to keep up as much as possible I see myself drawn to international affairs, the Middle East, and the European Union. Oh EU Center how you got me hooked! This was all well and dandy until I came to DC where everyone knows so much about politics whether they majored in it or not...and my title just became even more preposterous.

So here lies the question can I keep up with this over-politicized lifestyle and manner of socializing? I really don't know...maybe I just need to stop focusing on how the EU conducts foreign policy and think about U.S. foreign policy. Then again, what is a city like D.C. to dictate what I should care about? Anyways, in addition to all of those not-so-liberal-DC-hippies I've met, I think I've met a lot interesting, diverse, and smart people all with unique backgrounds. We'll see how much longer I can stand them and their political rhetoric :)