Friday, May 8, 2009

Day 5, Tuesday

Three main things happened on Tuesday.

First, we went to the zoo. Can you believe that in DC it's free to get into the zoo? OK so you have to pay 15 bucks to park, but when you have 10 people in one car it's a complete bargain! The best part of the zoo for me, was this wire contraption that traversed the zoo, right over you out in the open. The Orangutans would climb onto it and walk anywhere they wanted, right overhead. It was amazing, and some Orangutans made the trip right as we were there...


It was a very hot day and we were so glad we had brought drinks and snacks with us...This next photo is especially for my family and friends back home in New Zealand...you never know what you'll find at the zoo... This next photo is on our way out - can you tell they were just done?? We were all hot and bothered and if you look closely you can see the hungry one trying to eat the stop sign...

The second thing...after the zoo, we dropped all the kids off at home and Anna and I went to....wait for it....a quilt shop! Woo Hoo! Finally, after faithfully reading my travelogue you get to read something about quilting! It was called Cottonseed Glory and was in Annapolis, MD.
Anna said they had over 4000 bolts so I was very excited - now looking on their website, it says they have over 6000 bolts! No wonder it was so great! They have something for everyone, from prim to contemporary, from repros to batiks. Great shop.
Here was my little haul...

Straight after Cottonseed Glory we went to a place called Mike's Crabhouse.
And now for the third thing we did that day...Anna had asked me before I came where I would like to go out to eat - I told her, well isn't Maryland famous for crabs?!! She knew the exact place she wanted to take me. We also took Anna's Mother-In-Law (like me, she loves her MIL!) so Mike's was faced with a triple threat - 3 hungry women! I was a complete crab virgin and had to learn the ropes. Anna's MIL ordered a half dozen crabs for us to share (those suckers are NOT cheap!) and I was taught 2 different ways to 'pick' the crabs. Boy oh boy what an experience! It is A LOT of work for a little amount of crab meat, but oh so worth it! They were so delicious. I don't know how I have lived without them in my life! You can see the mess we created from just 6 crabs...We also had what I would call the best soup I have had in my entire life - cream of crab soup. I cannot describe how good this was, and the photo doesn't do it justice, but if you enjoy crab, then you know what I'm talking about...And to finish up, here are the views we enjoyed as we sat outside eating our crabs...

6 comments:

Trisha said...

Fun! That quilt shop is making me drool!

Nanette Merrill said...

What a fabulous friend to show you such a wonderful time. I love all the photos and what your families did together. Wonderful, wonderful!

loulee said...

Looks like a great day out.

annafogg1@aol.com said...

ok, so I am not living vicariously here, I am feeling so lucky to view Joanna's trip to see me from the computer. On the table w/the eggs? Corned beef hash...I made Dutch Babies again, Joanna! Perfect. I used all the yolks you left, sprinkled some salt in the butter, oh my!! And that SOUP! Made with heavy cream, butter, sherry...and...Chesapeake Bay Blue crabs. Thanks for this blog, Joanna. 2 more quilt shops to come too! ~anna in md

Teresa said...

Anna is really treating you nice. I used to live in DC and still get a thrill seeing the monuments. If you ever get a chance to go back, you should take a night time tour when they are all lit up and just beautiful. We were there last year and went to the Pentagon memorial for 911 - that was so moving, more like heartbreaking.

XUE said...

The crabs & quilts made me drool! How wonderful that you hv Anna for such adventures! I enjoy living & moving from country to country but I don't enjoy not having a special woman friend to do such things with. It is hard to form close friendships when you are only in each country for a few years. I envy you both!