Artomatic

Location: Artomatic, Crystal City, Virginia, USA
Visited: June 2012

Though I'd heard of it numerous times in the past, this was my first time visiting Artomatic, which is arguably the biggest art show in the area. I say arguably because with 1500 artists you're bound to have a whole bunch of crap, but the awesome thing is that there is enough great stuff that it's totally worth visiting. I found it insanely inspiring, and while I didn't manage to join in on the sketchcrawl (which was the main reason I went, actually), I am so glad I went and I will definitely have to block off a few days next year to go again. There's simply no way to see it all in a single day, much less a single afternoon. On this page is only a very small sampling of the many amazing things I saw. If you're in the area, you simply must check it out.

St. Mary's County, MD

Location: Colton Point, California, Piney Point, St. Mary's City, and Scotland, Maryland, USA

Visited: May 2012 

This was one of those "pick a place and go" sort of days. I started at Colton Point to visit the St. Clement's Island Museum (but didn't visit the island itself, as it's only accessible by boat), then had a delightful guided tour of the Piney Point Lighthouse and Museum. After a brief detour through the Cecil's Mill historic district, I wandered down to Point Lookout Park where I saw the lighthouse and took a stroll through Fort Lincoln. Finally, I enjoyed an evening walking tour of St. Mary's City. I was completely exhausted and soaked with sweat by the end of it, but it was loads of fun.

International Spy Museum

Location: Washington, DC, USA

Visited: May 2012 

 When my in-laws visited a few weeks ago, we decided to visit the International Spy Museum for the first time. It was interesting but not worth the $20 admission fee. Still, it's nice to have done. Afterward we stopped by the American Art Museum where we visited the Art of Video Games exhibit and I finally found the DC Art-o-mat machine. Good times!

Washington, DC - and beyond!

Location: The embassies of Indonesia, Dominican Republic, Chad, Haiti, Peru, Bahamas, Australia, Kazakhstan, Guatemala, Trinidad & Tobago, and Japan in Washington, DC, USA

Visited: May 2012

When a friend invited me to the Around the World Embassy Tour, I knew I couldn't resist. The best one, in terms of scenery, was Indonesia, but the best in terms of free stuff was Kazakhstan. I learned a lot and had a really great time. Highly recommended, but don't expect to be able to visit every embassy in a single day - there's way too much to see. Maybe I'll check out the EU embassy tour next year.