DC TRAVEL GUIDE: FREE Things To Do For 24 Hours in DC!

         I've said this already, I'm saying it now, and you're going to hear me continue to say it: I LOVED DC!!!! I had only been here once before, when I was 10 years old with my parents. I really thought that going back as an adult for Easter weekend that I'd love seeing the cherry blossoms, but that would kind of being the highlight. Boy oh boy was I wrong! This place completely stole my heart, as did what I saw of the neighboring communities that border DC in Maryland and Virginia! I am absolutely obsessed now with DC, and I'm quite certain it's in my Top 3 favorite US cities to visit... which is a strong compliment!

     I feel so lucky that Charlottesville is just two hours away, and I hope to make many more DC weekend trips later in 2018! Part of the reason I fell in love with DC is because I totally forgot how beautiful it is!! This may be an interesting comparison- but out of any city I've visited prior, DC reminded me the most of Montreal. Montreal is fairly clean and beautiful as far as major cities go, and a lot of the residential neighborhoods especially in DC reminded me very much of Montreal. (If you've been to both places- do you see the similarities too?) I could have spent a full day, if not more, just wandering the cute neighborhoods of town homes. 

     One thing that I will note about DC- if you're visiting on a budget, this city is both good and bad. The good thing: the monuments, most museums, and a lot of the attractions in general are all FREE to visit- hence the title of this Travel Guide!! (Yay government!) Each one is absolutely incredible and unique, and it really is unbelievable that these things are all free. Uber is fairly cheap in DC if there isn't a price surge, and taking the Metro is an extremely affordable way to get around, so transportation isn't too badly priced. However, one thing that you do need to budget for is FOOD. Food is wonderful in DC, but very expensive. We ate at all cheaper restaurants, and still spent a minimum of $15-25 on every meal (with no drinks!), which can up quickly in a couple days. 

     So with most of my travel guides on the blog, I always include a review of where I stayed or some hotel recommendations, and lots of food recommendations as well- sometimes I even do a whole separate food travel guide! Everywhere that I ate at in DC was FANTASTIC (seriously- not a bad meal!), but I decided to hold off on posting any food recommendations yet, as I'm hoping to make more trips to DC this spring/summer, and I would rather do a larger comprehensive restaurant guide when I can, rather than just list the few places we ate at over the two days I was there! And I don't have a hotel to share this time as I stayed with my friend Mercedes, but maybe on a future trip I'll get to stay at a hotel in DC- they have some incredible ones. 😊So today's 24 Hours Travel Guide is solely recommendations of FREE THINGS to DO!

     National Arboretum: After breakfast on Saturday, this was the first place Mercedes and I went, and it was such a great start to our DC weekend! The National Arboretum is a great place to see various varieties of cherry blossoms in full bloom without the crazy crowds that the Tidal Basin gets. In addition to the cherry blossoms, they have tons of other amazing trees, flowers, and plants throughout the grounds! It's an incredible place to take a walk and enjoy a beautiful day away from the hustle and bustle of downtown DC. (Definitely wear good walking shoes if you come here- I probably would have been better in sneakers!) Like all of the government owned museums, the National Arboretum is FREE to enjoy!! Read and see more pictures from my visit there in my travel guide to DC's cherry blossoms! 

     Tidal Basin / Jefferson Monument: This is the prime spot to see the cherry blossoms in DC! I'm not going to get too wordy on this section since I wrote more about visiting here in my Travel Guide for the DC cherry blossoms. But I will say whether you visit DC when the blossoms are in bloom or not, I would still recommend visiting the Tidal Basin! It's a beautiful walk and you can see a lot of the DC and Virginia skyline. You can visit the Jefferson Monument by walking along the Tidal Basin- which was a beautiful monument to see up close and in person!

     The White House: Tours are available to the general public of The White House! However, there is a bit a process to secure a tour. It involves contacting a Member of Congress from your state of residence, and needs to be done well in advance of your DC visit. (More info about this process found here.) However- even if you're not able to see the inside of one of the most iconic homes in the country, you can still get up close and personal to the outside of it! Take a stroll down Pennsylvania Avenue and take as many touristy pictures as your heart desires! I definitely did....

     Renwick Gallery: Almost across the street from The White House is a little gem amongst the Smithsonians: the Renwick Gallery! This museum focuses on contemporary American art. Like the other Smithsonians, it is free to visit! I think it's a must-visit if you're getting a picture at The White House... you're already right there, why not take advantage? When Mercedes and I were there, the latest exhibit had just opened the day prior. It's called "No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man" and it will be up through next January. I'm not a huge art museum person... but I did enjoy my visit to the Renwick Gallery!

     United States Capitol: Kind of like The White House, you can set up tours for the Capitol building! Here is some info about that process if you're interested in doing that for your DC trip. If you're not able to tour the Capitol, still stop by and get some pictures! It's the most incredible building to see in person. It definitely gave me some patriotic pride to stand in awe of it- what a great country America is!

     The Smithsonian National History Museum: Out of all of the Smithsonian museums, this one is just a true classic! I had visited here with my mom when we came to DC when I was growing up, but it was awesome to see it with adult eyes. Mercedes and I spent a couple hours in here and did the Gems & Minerals Exhibit (home to the famous Hope Diamond!) and also the Insect Gallery. Museum entrance is free, but here is a special butterfly exhibit going on where you can pay for a ticket (I think it was $7.50?) and get access to a live exotic butterfly room where they fly freely and can land on you! Both Mercedes and I were glad we paid to do the butterfly exhibit, it was very cool!

     US Botanic Garden: I LOVE botanical gardens so I was so excited to see the one in DC! It is right near the Capitol building, so you could visit both one afternoon. They had an orchid exhibit up when we visited on Easter (sadly it just ended this past week) but it was so beautiful to see these flowers, as well as all of the other exotic plants there! If you're a botanical garden lover as well, make this and the National Arboretum must-stops on your DC trip.

     Night Monumenting: Mercedes told me this was a must for my visit since there was a full moon that weekend, and I'm so glad we did it! You can visit just about all of the popular DC monuments at night (it's actually quite popular to do so), and it was such a cool experience! We started at the Capitol at sunset and then strolled the National Mall, and saw the Washington Monument, WWII Memorial, and the Lincoln Memorial. The WWII Memorial was my favorite because of all of the states- I had to get a picture with each of my home states past and present! 

     And there you have it- so many great free things to take advantage of!! Minus the restaurants/eating- everything that Mercedes and I visited and did during my Easter trip to DC. I seriously cannot wait to go back (hopefully soon!) and discover even more that this city has to offer!!



     Have you visited DC before? If so- did you fall in love like I did?




     God Bless,



     xoxo Annaliese

Midweek Ramblings + Recent Purchases + Current Wishlist.

{Loving my new Evelyn Henson Charlottesville Map print! Follow me on social media @miss_alk}

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Ramblings:

• DMV debacle: If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen my rant about having quite a difficult time at the Virginia DMV this weekend! This was my third DMV visit in the past three years (NC, VT, and now here!), so I thought that I knew how this process worked pretty well and that it would be an in and out visit. Nope! Each state's laws are a little different, and so it goes, I wasn't able to register my car and get the new license plates, due to a weird law here that applies to something with my vehicle specifically. This week I have to mail some paperwork to the state DMV department in Richmond- isn't adulting fun?! On the plus side- I was able to get my new license. They didn't show me a preview of the picture... hoping when I get it in the mail next week it's not awful! 
• Weirdest weather: One thing that I forgot about life in the South is how unpredictable weather can be in early spring/late fall. Monday morning in Charlottesville began with SNOW. Weirdly this was the one year anniversary of my move to Vermont. Anyways- the end of the week and weekend is supposed to have highs around 80. That's a 50 degree temperature change in the same week! I can't y'all. I'm hoping it stays warm for good now!
• Cardi B on the Tonight Show: So since I worked in Top 40 radio at the time when Bodak Yellow came out last year... I am quite familiar from my line of work with Cardi B's early hits- ha! I am not really a fan of her music... but since I used to talk about her on the radio everyday for months, I am quite intrigued by her as a celebrity still and I was both surprised and not surprised to hear that she announced her pregnancy this weekend! Anyways- I decided to watch her co-host The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon- I didn't catch it live but I was able to watch it On Demand the next evening. OH MY GOSH. I might not be the biggest fan of all of her music but Cardi B is hilarious!!! Can she become a permanent host on The Tonight Show please? I can't remember the last time I laughed this hard. This article recaps some of her highlights from episode. 
• LiketoKnow.it changes: I'm probably the last fashion blogger ever you're hearing this from- but in case you haven't heard this from another blogger, LiketoKnow.it (the affiliate program that allows you to shop bloggers' Instagram photos!) was forced to go through a big update last week thanks to some Instagram API changes. LiketoKnow.it used to work by users liking an Instagram photo from a blogger, and then they were emailed details of what the blogger was wearing. LiketoKnow.it had to discontinue their email service due to the Instagram API changes. 😢 Good news though! They do have their own app- it's awesome and very user friendly. You can follow bloggers individually on the app, or screenshot photos from Instagram from bloggers and upload them to the app (that's how I use it!)- and still get all outfit and product details from myself and your other favorite bloggers! OR- you can always shop and get product info right here on my blog. 😊Let me know if you have any questions about this! I really do think the LTK app is super easy- I personally always preferred it to the emails!

Purchases:

• I've tried a different scent of dry shampoo from this line before and it was one of my favorites! It works well and it's under $10! I decided to try a new scent of their dry shampoo this week and I love it so far! 
• My friend Niki from Nicholle Sophia reviewed these lashes on her blog a couple weeks ago, so I had to try them for myself! They are so popular right now that they were sold out at a couple stores I tried, but I finally found them at CVS. 
• In not very exciting purchases for the week- I finally bought a microwave for my apartment! My current apartment is the first place I've ever lived that didn't come with a microwave in-unit. This weekend I finally went microwave shopping (how boring and adult is that?), this is the one I bought if anyone is curious! I really like it so far. 

Wishlist:

• One thing that is lacking in my closet right now is a cute pair of dress shorts!! I definitely need a new pair for this summer and I have my eye on these dress shorts- they come in two colors! 
• I've been trying to wear more of my statement earrings for work lately to make my weekday outfits more fun. I have such a crush on these beautiful blue earrings.
• This isn't a fashion item... but I'm dying to get my hands on the Virginia Atlas!! I have the Maine and North Carolina atlases and love looking at them for fun- I'm a maps nerd! I know getting the VA one will inspire me to take road trips in my new state. 
• How cute are these leopard print flats! I love the strap on them- it adds such a fun twist. 
• Tie-front tops are so in right now. This striped one is so classic and chic. 

Recipe of the week: Pork Empanadas from Southern Living Fix It & Freeze It & Heat It & Eat It.  I tried making an easy empanada recipe this week from a cookbook I got for Christmas- and I LOVED IT!!! This recipe sadly isn't online, but this recipe is really similar! It uses beef but you could use ground pork instead if you wanted I'm sure. I never would have thought to use biscuit dough for empanadas but it worked so well.

Song of the week: Breathe by Jax Jones ft. Ina Wroldsen. Clean Bandit Radio on Spotify has been my jam this week! They play some Jax Jones songs in the mix, and that's how I discovered this one. It's so upbeat and should be a must-add to your workout or running playlist if you have one. I seriously love any European dance pop type music so much! 

On the blog this week: 

• DC Travel Guide: Cherry Blossoms - How + When to See Them
• Lilly Pulitzer Sophie Dress + 4 Books I've Read Lately 
• Guide to Moving Out of State: Part 1 - Pre-Move Checklist

    Enjoy the rest of your week! My day is off to a funny start... I'll share this story on Instagram Stories once all is well, but I have to head to the dentist unexpectedly this morning!! I'm hoping all will be resolved with this visit.



     Wednesday Afternoon Update: Just got word that one of my favorite jewelry retailers is having a big sale starting today!! If you need some pretty new pieces for spring, now is the time to stock up! (Their stuff can normally be a little pricy so I like to shop the sales!) Shop the sale here! 

     God Bless,

     xoxo Annaliese 

Guide to Moving Out of State: Part 1 - Pre-Move Checklist.

      If there's one thing that I've become very familiar with in the last few years, it's moving out-of-state! When I was a little girl, I never thought that I'd leave my home state of Maine. It wasn't until middle school that I started to dream about living my adult years out of state, and then looking at colleges during my junior and senior years of high school in different places was when I knew moving would be a reality! I actually never moved in my life until I went to college, so the act of moving was something very foreign to me for my childhood and high school years. Anyways, I moved seven times from Maine/North Carolina and vice versa in my college years, and in the last year alone I've done two big East Coast moves for radio jobs (North Carolina to Vermont, Vermont to Virginia). Moving out of  state is now something that I'm very familiar with!


     Since I most recently moved about three weeks ago and a lot of the moving process is still fresh in my head (and I'm still dealing with some of it, like DMV fun), I wanted to do a mini-series of posts here on Southern Belle in Training all about the tips and tricks that my dad and I have picked up over the last few years between my college moves and my apartment moves! There are so many logistics that go into pulling off a successful out of state move. Even though we've done it several times now, I still don't think that we have it all down. But, there are aspects to it that get better each time, and things I've learned in past moves from trial and error that I do automatically now.


     Today's post will focus on things to do before you move out of state- a countdown and checklist if you will! The second post in this series will focus solely on packing, and I'm still figuring out what to do for the third post (maybe a moving Q&A?).

     Before launching into the checklist, I want to say a disclaimer about moving out of state, and three things to keep in mind during the process. My disclaimer: I believe 100% that moving out of state while you're young is one of the best gifts that you can give yourself!! There are few things more incredible than building a new life for yourself and experiencing culture in a different part of the country- it builds your personal strength and character like nothing else, and gives you experiences beyond your wildest dreams! I've made it pretty known on my blog that Vermont was not my favorite place to live, but with that said, I'm still grateful that I moved there for my first job and spent 11 months there, because the experiences that I had in that time were unique and helped shape me into the person I am today. And obviously I'm so thankful I went to college out of state in the South and am now living here in Virginia- yay moving!


     With that said- three things to keep in mind. First, moving is really emotional. Partly because of the stress of everything that you have to coordinate and get done to actually execute the act of moving (I'll break down as much of it as I can in today's post to make it easier for you!), and partly for more psychological reasons. One chapter of your life is physically ending... with a move! There's going to be lots of distance between yourself and the life you once knew everyday. While that could be a good or a bad thing depending on the experience you had in your former state, it's natural to feel emotional. Second, ask for help! It is impossible to move all by yourself. I am so thankful that my dad has been my moving partner for all of my moves in the past years. I couldn't do it without him! (Literally- as he drives the rented moving truck and I drive my car!) This year, I was also thankful to have one of my Vermont friends come to my apartment and help me pack my kitchen, which made that part of the packing go a lot more smoothly. If you're Type A, it can be tempting to want to do everything yourself, but I promise that the more you ask for help, the quicker and easier it will go! Third and finally, moving is really expensive!! I can't stress this enough. There are ways to cut some of the costs and move somewhat on a budget, but all in all moving is extremely expensive. Sometimes if you move for a job your new employer will give you a moving reimbursement or cover a lot of the costs, which is nice. Unfortunately, the radio industry isn't one where this is very common. I've been very blessed that my parents have helped me with some of my moving costs for my past two moves (as I'm still paying off student loan debt right now), but even with them helping, there has still been a lot of unexpected expenses that I've had to pay for. I'll try and touch on that later in the post!


     Okay- now that that's all out of the way, let's get to my pre-moving checklist! I'm writing this from the timeline of two months out pre-move. I had two months before my move to Vermont, and just a month before moving to Virginia. The more time that you have, the better!



2 Months Before:



     *You're officially moving! YAY!! Take a second to jump up and down, get excited, and call your closest friends and family! Decide when you're going to share the news publicly on social media. A big life change and new adventure is headed your way, ENJOY THIS SPECIAL TIME!


     *Begin apartment search (either online or in-person if you're able!). If you're not able to look at apartments in-person in your new home state, try and plan a brief weekend trip out before the move to look at apartments. If you're not able to do that, research temporary housing accommodations (short-term rentals, Air BNB, extended stay hotels, storage for your furniture etc). I do not under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES recommend signing a lease for an apartment that you have not personally toured and visited in person, so if you're not able to visit your new home for a housing search trip, prepare other temporary arrangements and work on finding a permanent home after the move!


     *If your situation involves leaving your current job for a new one, plan out when to tell your supervisor(s) that you'll be leaving your current position. Depending on your relationship with your former employer, it might be best to let them know far in advance, or you might want to wait until just the standard two weeks notice.


     *Figure out all of the important dates and get them set on the calendar! (Approximate last day of work or school, moving day, how long it will take to reach the new destination, approximate moving day into new home, etc). Also figure out WHO is helping you with the move, and make CERTAIN they're able to commit. Decide if you're doing the move on your own (no movers) or using a moving company. If your new employer is paying for moving costs, this would be a good time to touch base on what all they cover.


     *(If your new employer isn't booking movers for you), research the best moving truck or company for your situation. The size of your apartment or home, distance that you're moving, and days on the road will all come into play for pricing. For example, if you're moving one state away and it's only a few hours, I can almost guarantee that the cheapest option would be to rent a truck and move everything yourself with family or friends. However, if you're moving across the country, it could be cheaper to get a moving company, ship your car, and fly to your new home. Research is key to save money!! Every situation is different.

     For both of my recent moves, my dad and I have rented a Penske truck. We have found their rates to be much lower than U-Haul, and they also offer an AAA discount on top of that. (I'm not being sponsored at all to say this- we just have liked using them both times!) My dad has booked local movers for an hour on moving day at each apartment- guys that will show up to carry the furniture out of the old apartment/into the moving truck, and then out of the moving truck/into the new apartment at the new place. But my dad is the one actually driving the Penske truck to my new state, and the movers we get literally only carry in the heavy stuff, we do everything else!


     *Check in with your former landlord about the process for leaving your apartment. All are different! In Vermont, I just told them verbally I would be leaving at the end of my lease and that was fine. In North Carolina- it was so different! My old roommate and I had to sign all of this paperwork a couple months in advance that we wouldn't be renewing our lease- if we hadn't done that, we would have been automatically put into a month-to-month expensive payment plan.




1 Month Before:



     *Figure out your going away plans with your friends in your former home! In Charlotte, I had the most wonderful going away party, and a few of my blogging friends also threw me a going away dinner in addition. In Vermont, I didn't have one specific friend group (each friend I had there I met through a different way), so it made more sense to say goodbye to each friend privately- breakfast with one, a shopping day in Montreal with another, and one came over to help me pack. Either way, definitely make plans ahead of time to say goodbye to your friends- take the chance while you have it!


     *Take inventory of moving supplies that you already own, and begin purchasing new supplies.


     *Begin packing non-essential items. I'll share more about my packing process in next week's post in this series!


     *Start wrapping up loose ends in your former city - things like returning any library books, using any local gift cards (I still have a couple from Vermont that I'm frustrated I forgot to use!), picking up dry cleaning, pay last month of gym membership and refilling prescriptions. If needed, pick up release sheets from your doctors and dentist for your medical records to be shared with offices in your new city.


    *Solidify last day at your former job (or school). I HIGHLY RECOMMEND if you've been working full time to have a week off after you finish work to just focus on packing and moving. Yes- it isn't fun to have a week of no pay. However I found that it was very hard for me to stay motivated with packing while I was finishing my last two weeks of work in Vermont, and I did the majority of it in the last week once I was home all day!


     *Schedule car maintenance! This one is so important- especially if you are driving a very long distance to your new state!! This time around I learned that I needed two new tires to safely get to Virginia- I'm really glad I had those replaced. Tell your mechanic that you're moving out of state and want to make sure your car is safe for the distance you're driving.



2 Weeks Before: 



     *Finish packing all non-essential items. Move into packing other things in apartment or home. Continue to purchase moving supplies.


     *ADDRESS CHANGES! This is so important and will go so much more smoothly if you set aside a couple hours to do it before you move. I made a spreadsheet on Google Docs of everything I had to change my address with and went through one afternoon until each category was completed. Here's a sample of some places I changed my address with:

• OFFICIAL CHANGE OF ADDRESS WITH USPS (This should be the first one you do!)
• Banks
• Credit Cards
• Store Credit Cards
• Store Loyalty Programs
• College / Sorority Newsletters
• Charities I Support
• All companies I've received PR mail for blogging from in past 6 months

   
     *Start packing up your desk area at work! (This actually took me a lot longer than I thought... I had a huge cubicle in Vermont and didn't realize how much crap I had stored there.)


     *Inquire with your landlord about the process for cancelling utilities. At my Vermont apartment, my landlord handled the water, electricity, and trash, but I was responsible for cancelling my cable and internet, which turned out to be a little more of a process than I anticipated. Set cancellation dates for your utilities if this is on you!


    *If you won't be saying all of your goodbyes at a going away party, begin saying your goodbyes!


    *Figure out the route that you'll be taking (if you're driving to your new state), and book hotel rooms if nights are needed on the road.


     *DOWNSIZE!!! This is the time for runs to Goodwill, the Habitat Store, Plato's Closet, etc. Or let friends come over and have their pick of what you're downsizing. True story: some of my favorite things in my apartment are things that I've gotten from friends who were moving!



1 Week Before:



     *Try to have your kitchen and bathroom completely packed, minus absolute essential items. I recommend keeping out travel sized toiletry items and a small makeup bag in your bathroom, and for food eating mostly takeout during your last week- as you don't really have time for washing dishes! Pack any perishable foods, and give anything perishable or that would be hard to pack to friends. (You'll feel much better than throwing it away!)


     *Get confirmations about moving truck, movers, any other logistics for move.


     *Pack suitcase for yourself during days of move. Check weather both in your former state and new state.


     *If you're driving your vehicle to your new state, start deciding which items you'll be putting in your car versus the moving truck. This time around, I put my technology (blog camera, laptops, etc), valuables, and delicate things like artwork in my car, as well as the suitcase that had things I'd wear and use until I got unpacked.


     *Finish your goodbyes with friends!



2 Days Before: 



     *Apartment should be 80-90% packed at this point! Drink lots of caffeine, put on some motivating music, and PACK PACK PACK!


     *Last minute runs for any more moving supplies. (I did much better with this when I moved from NC to VT.... on this most recent move, we were still going shopping for moving supplies ON MOVING DAY. I kept running out!)


     *Have a last meal at any favorite local restaurants.


     *Download some podcasts or new music for the road trip (or flight).



Moving Day: 



     *Clean essential areas of your apartment after furniture and boxes are moved out (bathroom, kitchen counters, vacuum floors, etc). Take out any Command hooks and take nails out of the walls.


     *Pat yourself on the back because YOU DID IT!!!! You're moving OUT OF STATE!




     I know this was a very wordy blog post, but I hope all of this information helped any of you who are curious about moving out of state or have a move on the way soon! Next week's post again will be a packing guide, and again I'm still figuring out the third and final post - maybe a Q&A?



      God Bless,



      xoxo Annaliese


   

Lilly Pulitzer Sophie Dress + 4 Books I've Read Lately.

    So excited to be "back at it" with new fashion content today - here's my first outfit post from Virginia!! I'm also sharing an updated round of book reviews with the books that I read at the end of winter. I haven't read anything in the last month since I haven't gotten a Virginia library card yet.... hoping to change that soon!

Photography by Meredith Sledge

This post contains affiliate links. Thank you for supporting Southern Belle in Training! 

Dress c/o Pink Colony // Shoes {Not online, almost identical linked} // Sunglasses c/o // Ring // Purse {new style linked} // Lipstick c/o // 

     What better way to kick off new fashion content from Charlottesville than with a spring Lilly Pulitzer outfit? Virginia is the perfect place to wear Lilly, and I am so excited to break out all of mine once the weather is a little warmer. This darling Sophie Ruffle dress is from Pink Colony, the charming Lilly speciality boutique in Stowe, VT that I got to visit and work with for SBIT this winter! (Check out my most recent collaboration post with Pink Colony here!) I cannot get over how pretty the navy and hot pink colors are for the flamingo print on this dress. I love it! I know I'll be wearing it on repeat all spring and summer. Pink and navy really is the cutest color combo that I don't wear enough of. 

     It's been so long since I've shared any book reviews on the blog, and that's made me sad!! One of my new years resolutions was to read 30 books in 2018. I got off to a strong start with three books in January... then one book in February... then no books since! 😭 Job applications and moving out-of-state, while working full time and running a blog is no joke!! My new apartment does have a pool that will be opening once the weather gets a little warmer, so once I get a local Virginia library card, I'm hoping to make reading by the pool a weekly, if not daily occurrence!! There's still time to hit my resolution goal right? Anyways- here are the four books I've read so far this year. Differing from my past reviews- 3/4 of these are non-fiction! 

     *Smart is the New Rich: Money Guide for Millennials by Christine Romans: This was the first of a few books that I asked for on my Christmas list this year! A personal goal of mine for this year and next is to become more financially savvy. I think that I already manage my money fairly well for someone my age (I'm responsible about large purchases, I've never had credit debt, I've been working hard to pay off my school loans, etc), but there's still so much related to personal finances that is foreign to me!! I want to develop the best money habits and practices I can while I'm young. This book received good reviews on Amazon and the name caught my eye, so I requested it on my Christmas list. It wasn't bad! I think it's more geared for college students... I probably could've gotten more out of this read a few years ago, during the time when I was investigating school loans and applying for my first credit card for example. But with that said, I enjoyed Christine's straightforward writing style and still got many takeaways from the book! (I will say- I do disagree with her point that millennial college graduates should live at home to save money. I'm definitely team #MoveOutofStateForNewExperiences!)

     *** 3/5 stars 

     *The Best Travel Hacking Guide by J.F. Warden: Another topic that I want to educate myself more on this year and next is the concept of travel hacking. It is incredible to me that people are traveling pretty much for free, simply by how they are able to utilize their credit cards, airline miles and rewards points! This was another book on my Christmas list, and I loved it!! It's a very small but extremely informative guide to travel hacking. The author is very well-versed in the ins and outs of the major airline carriers and rewards credit card companies and provides so much handy information. His travel style would be a bit different from mine (He writes that he's a fan of the "couch surfing" method of lodging... since I've had bedbugs in the past, you literally couldn't pay me to do that haha!), but there was still so much useful information that I got from this book. I probably won't be starting my travel hacking journey in 2018 since I just started my new job and don't start getting PTO for awhile, but hopefully in 2019 I'll reread this book and finally start this new hobby! 

     ****4/5 stars

     *Leave Your Mark: Land Your Dream Job. Kill It in Your Career. Rock Social Media. by Aliza Licht: Oh my gosh- I had such high expectations for this one. I put this book on my Christmas list because the title really grabbed me! In early December I was starting to prepare my resume and portfolio for job applications, so I thought this book would give me some motivation as I started looking for new radio jobs after Christmas. Similar to the first book I reviewed above, I think I might have a totally different view on this one if I'd read it in college (or even high school?). Aliza tells the detailed story of how she unexpectedly ended up working in Fashion PR in New York City (her original plan was to get into the medical field), and while her story is interesting, I found the book to mostly be about her personal story, and not as much about offering advice for others in their careers. The advice that was given in the book was really just geared to college students who want to work specifically in PR or fashion related industries, so I didn't find many takeaways that helped with my own job search this winter. But- there were still parts of Aliza's story that I enjoyed reading! 

     **2/5 stars

     *Love the One You're With by Emily Giffin: My former blog photographer and sweet friend Deeana gave me this book for Christmas, and I loved it! It tells the story of Ellen, a New York City photographer, and her marriage to her husband Andy. Their marriage seems perfect... until Ellen runs into an ex-boyfriend, and she starts having confused feelings for her past. This book hooked me in from the start, and it was a lovely and fun read! One quote from the character of Ellen resonated with me so much that I actually used it in my blog post where I announced my move to Virginia. 

     ****4/5 stars

     

     Thanks so much for reading today's post! I hope your week is off to a great start. My outfit details and the books are all linked below!

     God Bless,

     xoxo Annaliese 

DC TRAVEL GUIDE: Cherry Blossoms - How + When to See Them!

    Sharing all the details today about one of the best things I've ever crossed off my US travel bucket list! I knew that I'd love seeing the cherry blossoms in bloom in Washington DC, but I had not idea just how much I'd love it. 

     I can't remember exactly when I started to become obsessed with the idea of visiting DC in early spring 2018 to see the cherry blossoms. I'm guessing that it was around late fall or the holidays in 2017... aka right around the time that the temperatures dropped drastically in Vermont, and all things SPRING related were on my mind 24/7. A trip to DC when the famous cherry blossoms were in bloom seemed about as perfectly spring of a destination as I could envision! My friend Mercedes works and lives in DC, and I knew that a weekend trip to see her in early April could be doable. All winter long I was browsing flights from Vermont to DC. As I've mentioned before on the blog, the Burlington airport is insanely expensive to fly anywhere, so by early February I still hadn't bought a flight and I was hoping the ticket prices might drop at the last minute. Good news came my way in mid-February when I received the offer for my new job in Charlottesville, VA! Charlottesville is only two hours from DC, so it solidified the fact that my cherry blossom sighting dream would come true, and sans expensive flight from Vermont!


    I am seriously 110% hyped up from this past week's trip and I'm convinced that Washington DC is actually a magical place when the cherry blossom trees are blooming. I hope this blog post, a.) provides you with helpful information about where and when to see the cherry blossoms in DC for yourself, and b.) convinces you that if you haven't seen them before, you NEED to make this happen in 2019 or 2020! 😉(I will also be writing a regular weekend travel guide to DC! Today's post just focuses on the cherry blossoms part of the trip.)



CHERRY BLOSSOM FAQ:



     WHEN CAN YOU VISIT THE CHERRY BLOSSOMS IN DC? This year's annual Cherry Blossom Festival in DC runs from March 17-April 15th 2018. Peak bloom week for the blossoms can run anywhere in the dates of the annual festival, and I started tracking predictions for peak blooms a few weeks ago. (It felt like a repeat of when I tracked Vermont's peak foliage week in the fall!) Originally, it was predicted that the trees would blossom early this year, due to a mild February. Then DC (and much of the South- Charlottesville included!) received some surprising snow on the first day of spring, which obviously set the cherry blossoms back again. Their new predicted peak week was near the end of the festival, but the trees changed their minds again, and Easter Weekend ended up being Stage 5 for blossoms (which means right before peak!) - so a great time to be in DC and seeing them when I did!! I really lucked out with the timing of my trip. I will say- Easter is my favorite holiday, so I did think it was especially magical to see them on Easter Sunday!



     IS IT FREE TO SEE THE CHERRY BLOSSOMS? YESSS!! How amazing is that?! I was blown away in DC by how many amazing things there are to do that are completely free. Visiting the cherry blossoms at both locations that I'm sharing in today's blog post is absolutely free! Of course, transportation to said locations isn't, but you have a plethora of options for that; Metro, Uber/Lyft, Hop-On-Hop-Off busses, cabs, driving... etc!



     WHAT ARE THE EVENTS FOR THE NATIONAL CHERRY BLOSSOM FESTIVAL? DC loves their blossoms so much that there is a month long festival with all sorts of fun events and activities! Some are free and some require tickets. Mercedes and I actually didn't attend any of the festival events- we found there was more than enough to enjoy just by seeing the cherry blossoms, photographing them and taking in the sights! But if you do want to attend events related to the blossoms, there are lots to choose from throughout the month. The National Cherry Blossom Festival official website is your best resource with their calendar of events!



Cherry Blossoms at The National Arboretum: 

      The Tidal Basin is the famous spot to see the cherry blossoms in DC, but there are lots of "hidden spots" to catch the blooming trees throughout the city as well! The National Arboretum is one of them, and Mercedes and I were excited to check it out on Saturday in the late morning. Our Uber driver ended up dropping us off kind of at a back entrance to the Arboretum, so it was a little weird when we showed up... but we just started walking and then soon found ourselves amongst stunning blooms! The National Arboretum has all different traditional gardens and tree gardens. There is a self-guided cherry blossom tour with different varieties of blossoms all throughout the Arboretum. Another BIG highlight of coming here was getting to see the Holly and Magnolia collections. I felt like I was in a Southern dream garden... these trees were so beautiful that they literally look my breath away! After getting our fill of blossoming trees, Mercedes and I also checked out the National Herb Garden and the famous columns that the Arboretum is home to. Out of all the things we saw there- I think the magnolias were my favorite!

Cherry Blossoms at the Tidal Basin: 

     This is the iconic place to see DC in bloom!! Most of the of the depictions of the cherry blossoms promoting the festival in art or photography are normally depicted at the Tidal Basin. Mercedes and I headed there on Easter Sunday morning, hoping that it would be slightly less busy that morning due to the holiday. It was still pretty crazy! A much different experience than seeing the trees in the peace and quiet at the National Arboretum. But still absolutely incredible. Despite having lots of other tourists around, we were still able to get some amazing shots. We walked almost the entire length of the Tidal Basin and checked at the Jefferson Monument, and it was about a 2.5 mile walk. Parking is limited near here the Tidal Basin during the National Cherry Blossom Festival - Mercedes lucked out finding a parking spot after we drove around a couple times. I'd recommend taking an Uber or other transportation method if you visit on a weekend like we did!

     Thanks so much for reading my DC Cherry Blossoms Travel Guide! Have you visited DC in March/April before to see these beauties in person?

     I can't wait to share more about my weekend in DC soon - and hopefully get back there soon! 😊



     God Bless,



     xoxo Annaliese