2020 Georgetown Senior Parents Weekend - Day 4

For the first morning on this trip, Sharon and I had breakfast in the concierge lounge. After packing up the room, we got an Uber to the Georgetown campus. We met Jack for Mass at Gaston Hall.

From the Mass, we walked to the Healy Family Student Center for a light farewell breakfast in the social room. Afterwards, we walked back to his apartment and then up to the Safeway on Wisconsin. Sharon and Jack spent an hour successfully buying groceries. The three of us were just barely able to carry all of the groceries out of the store and catch an Uber back to Jack's apartment.

We walked to the tombs and then Booeymonger before deciding to say goodbye. Sharon and I caught another Uber back to the hotel. Checking our bags with the bellman, we had a late lunch at Cafe Deluxe across the street from the Marriott. We both had Ahi Tuna Nicosia [olives, tomatoes, green beans, egg, crispy capers, roasted fingerlings, herb vinaigrette]. We ate here once before at the end of our long 2017 East Coast Fall trip.

Sharon and I caught an Uber to Dulles about 2:45 pm. It was only a 40 minute trip on a Sunday afternoon.

We caught a 5:45 pm United flight nonstop from Dulles to Sacramento. We had a nice exit row in a newer 737-800. Although long at almost 6 hours, it was an uneventful flight. We were disappointed that we couldn't watch the Oscars.

We landed in Sacramento about 8:40 pm and were home just after 9:30 pm.

It is hard for me to believe that Jack is going to graduate from Georgetown in three months! Between now and then, Jack has two major trips planned. During the semester break, he is going to France and Belgium with Professor Skuba's class. At Easter, Jack is going to Miami and Jamaica with Sophia and her family.

2017 East Coast Easter Trip Day 5

Up at 4:00 am, Sharon and I caught a cab to the Reagan National Airport at 4:30 am. We boarded a 6:00 am Southwest flight from Reagan to Chicago Midway. With two hours on the ground, we had a leisurely sit-down breakfast at Harry Caray's Seventh Inning Stretch. I can't remember the last time I saw Sharon eat pancakes at a restaurant...

We boarded a 8:50 am Southwest flight from Midway back to Sacramento. We were home about 12:30 pm. I ended up spending more than 3 1/2 hours on work calls in the afternoon.

Although we covered a lot of ground in a few days, it was a very nice trip. It was great to spend some time with Jack! When we first started the planning for the trip, I questioned the effort. In hindsight, it was important. I didn't realize how much the Georgetown campus shutdown for the long Easter weekend. Jack would have been rattling around a ghost town if we hadn't gone back to see him.

2017 East Coast Easter Trip Day 4

Easter Mass

A post shared by Mark Heringer (@heringermr) on Apr 16, 2017 at 9:14am PDT

A busy day... Up early, Sharon and I had breakfast at the hotel. Afterwards, we caught a cab to Holy Trinity Church in Georgetown. Getting there a little after 9:00 am for a 9:30 am Mass, the place was already packed. Sharon made a quick decision to head up into the choir loft. We were able to grab seats in the last row of the loft! Given the number of people milling around over the next 30 minutes, I felt very lucky to have gotten some seats. At one point, the priest asked people to move together to make room for the hundreds of people in the back!?! Jack wandered over from his dorm and joined us. It was a nice service; I enjoyed the homily.

After Mass, we walked to Jack's dorm room. He changed clothes and then we caught an Uber back to the hotel.

The plan for the afternoon was to go to the Nationals versus Phillies MLB game. We walked to the Foggy Bottom/GWU Metro station and took the Metro to the game.

We had some very nice seats down the third baseline. Although it was a good crowd, the area right around us was empty, including the whole row we were in [Section 114, Row U, Seats 1, 2 and 3]. With temperatures in the high 80s, we were in the shade after about the fifth inning. [Note to self], you need to be higher up on the third base side in order to be in the shade in the afternoon.

Jack was very motivated to get a foul ball. He had one very good chance; a ball bounced on the seat right in front of him as it went for it. He was not empty with his effort.

Harper hit a two-run homer in the third inning and a game-ending, three-run drive with two outs in the ninth, leading the Washington Nationals over the Philadelphia Phillies 6-4 on Sunday.

After the game, we caught the Metro back to the hotel. Getting cleaned up, we headed to an early dinner at the Blue Duck Tavern. The Blue Duck Tavern was awarded a Michelin Star in 2016 is continuously listed as one of top restaurants in Washington, DC by the Washington Post, Washingtonian and Zagat. Sharon and Jack ate there last August and Sharon and I had a dinner there last October.

We had a very nice Cheese and Charcuterie Board for an appetizer. For entrees, Sharon and Jack had Moulard Duck Breast, while I had Braised Beef Rib. The food was very good. The service was not. The waiter was kind of a shit...

With a very early start on Monday morning, we put Jack in an Uber and sent him back to his dorms after dinner.

2017 East Coast Easter Trip Day 3

A lazy morning. Sharon, Jack and I slept late and then had breakfast at the the hotel. The lounge was not quite as chaotic as yesterday.

After packing up the room, we hung around the room and tried to talk to Jack about the next school year. We didn't use the morning as effectively as we probably should have... I had originally though about walking back to the MoMA to buy a Starry Night coffee mug; I might order one from the museum's store on-line.

A little before 11 am, we caught a cab to Penn Station. We took a 12:00 pm Acela train from Penn Station to Union Station in Washington DC. We got lucky and queued up in the right spot before they announced the track. We boarded the train, stowed our three big bags and grabbed seats quickly. Over the course of the trip, I was surprised at the number of people wandering through the train looking for seats.

It was an easy three hour trip to Washington DC. I was surprised how good the wireless was on the train. We got to Washington DC just after 3:00 pm. Unlike LaGuardia, it was easy to get a taxi. We are staying two night at the Georgetown Marriott. Since we stayed at this hotel during the move-in weekend, they finished a major upgrade of the rooms and the concierge lounge.

While Jack wandered back to his dorm room, Sharon met Mary Maloney at The Top of the Gate at the Watergate Hotel. I ran about five and a half miles on the treadmill watching the second half of the Cavs versus Pacers round one NBA playoff game. The Cavs won the game by the score of 109 to 108. CJ Miles missed a shoot at the buzzer that could have won the game for the Pacers.

Getting all back together about 6:45 pm, we finished the night at the Teddy and the Bully Bar. We had Caviar Deviled Eggs, Duck Fat Steak Fries and Oysters as appetizers. For entrees, the Jack had Oven Roasted Lobster, Sharon had Whiskey Braised Short Ribs and I had Seared Scallops. The entrees were unremarkable. While I had a very nice drink [The Conservationist], I don't recommend the restaurant.

Afterwards, Jack took an Uber back to his dorm.

2017 East Coast Easter Trip Day 2

While Sharon and I were working our way through the Oscar nominated films, we must have seen a trailer for the movie Dunkirk at least a half a dozen times. While I was reading No Ordinary Time, there was a fairly long section that talked about Dunkirk and Churchill's speech afterwards. Sleeping late, Sharon and I went down to get breakfast at the Residence Inn. As we walked into the dining room, the thought that popped into my head was "My God, it is the beaches of Dunkirk." There were people everywhere with dirty dishes scattered across many of the tables and long lines at most of the food stations. It was chaos.

The plan for the day was to hit a couple of museums. Jack is considering a minor in Art History. With a quick stop at St. Patrick Cathedral, we walked to the MoMA. Over the years, I have probably been to the MoMA at least half a dozen times. Nevertheless, I always enjoy the fifth floor gallery; Starry Night has always been one of my favorite paintings. Jack was disappointed that the fourth floor collection was closed. In an odd twist, a member ended up buying our tickets. As a result, we were able to tour a members only collection titled "Women Artists and Postwar Abstraction."

From the MoMA, we caught a cab to the Guggenheim Museum. Sharon and I had only been to the New York Guggenheim once in June of 1998. It seems to me that some of the building was closed when we there before. We had a forty plus minute wait to get into the museum. It was worth it. I really enjoyed this museum; it is a nice collection and a very interesting building.

Exiting the Guggenheim, we walked east towards the Upper Eastside to find a place to get a snack. We stopped at Ristorante Morini for some Carciofi (crispy artichokes, lemon) and Burrata (soft cow's milk cheese, olivada). Although we had been using cabs, I called for an Uber to take us back to the hotel.

While Sharon and Jack lounged in the room, I went for a walk about. I trucked about 2.5 miles to Madison Square Park and back. Ever since I read the Chester Allan Arthur biography, I have wanted to find his statue in New York City. I believe that it is the only tribute to him.

Back at the room, I got cleaned up. We had dinner across the street from the hotel at Avra Estiatorio. This is a Greek restaurant that specializes in seafood. After some oysters and stuffed calamari, Sharon had bronzoni, I had swordfish and Jack had Youvetsi (Shrimp, scallops, clams and mussels in tomato and herbs with orzo and feta cheese). We had a very nice bottle of Kosta Brown Pinot Noir.

From there, we caught an Uber to the Hudson Theater. Sharon and I had debated for a long time which Broadway play to see. With Jack's interest in art, we settled on Sunday in the Park with George. The play is a musical with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by James Lapine. It is limited-run revival starring Jake Gyllenhaal as George and Annaleigh Ashford as Dot/Marie. It opened February 13 and is only scheduled to run until April 23. The original Boardway production opened in 1984. It tells the story of Georges Seurat painting A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte.

Both Sharon and I were lukewarm on the show. I am not going to run out and buy the soundtrack. Reading about the history of the play afterwards and realizing it was a limited run revival, I felt more fondly about the production...

Much to Sharon's chagrin, we walked back to the hotel from the theater. Jack and I finished the night watching game 2 of the San Jose Sharks versus Edmonton Oils NHL playoff game.

2017 East Coast Easter Trip Day 1

Up at 3:15 am, Sharon and I caught a 6:10 am Southwest Flight from Sacramento to Denver. With a short layover in Denver, we caught a 10:30 am flight to New York's LaGuardia Airport. We landed at LaGuardia on time about 4:00 pm. It was a very easy and uneventful set of flights... I finished reading No Ordinary Time, Doris Kearns Goodwin's biography of FDR.

At this point, the fun began. It took us an hour to get our luggage and get a taxi. The taxi line was at least 30 minutes long. It then took us almost an hour to get into Manhattan to the hotel. I am going to have to look, but I think that it is only 6 miles.

It was after 6:00 pm by the time we got to the hotel. We are spending two nights at the Residence Inn on East 48th. Jack had taken a noon train from Washington DC and met us at the hotel.

After getting settled in the room and finding some refreshments, we caught a cab to Gato. Sharon had made an 8:15 pm reservation for dinner. Gato is a Bobby Flay restaurant. We had an assortment of appetizers that included meatballs and eggplant. We split a pizza with green tomato. For entrees, Sharon and Jack had rabbit, while I had kale and Wild mushroom paella. It was an excellent meal.

By the time, we got back to the hotel and to bed, it was after 11:30 pm. It was a long day.