Shoes, Ships, and Sealing Wax

Cherry Blossom time

It's that time of year here...the annual invasion of tourists for the Cherry Blossom Festival. In a fit of bad planning, I arranged to do some errands and meet a friend on the other side of the Potomac this morning, not thinking about the fact that today, with the kite festival and the tree stuff, would be a bad transportation day.

Luckily it rained, so the traffic wasn't nearly as bad as it could have been. I have several days to go downtown in the next couple weeks, though, and I am very likely going to be grumbling and moaning about people who block the escalators and the doors to the Metro cars. I'm not really very tourist friendly, I admit it.

I like cherry trees, but I don't go to the Tidal Basin to see them. I don't feel the need...I have one on my street. My usual route home from work is full of them. I've actually only been to see the trees in bloom once, just a few years ago, when I was riding with a friend from New York who insisted that we go. He couldn't believe I'd lived here my whole life and only seen them on the news. They are pretty and all, but hardly worth fighting the crowds.

Hardly worth it...but if the weather is really nice, and I have some extra time next week while I'm down, I may try to go snap a few pictures. Because as much as I get frustrated with the crowds and their apparent inability to navigate public transportation, I wouldn't mind having the classic shot of the Jefferson Memorial framed with blossoms in my album.