Tag Archives: Washington DC

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Old friends and colleagues…

The weather was nicer today, though still pretty chilly.  We took the dogs for a walk before we did our shopping.  Zane especially enjoyed himself, though it was pretty messy going thanks to the soggy ground and occasional ice patches.  On the way back, we ran into a very pleasant German couple who seemed to enjoy our hounds.  I got to tell the husband that I can’t speak German.  Still working on it, though, and making progress in understanding at least.

Well, it was another typical Sunday in Germany and we’re still in our usual rut over having lunch at The Auld Rogue.  Indeed, we did go there today after stopping at Panzer for two top ups for our phones, a new pie plate, and a bigger mixing bowl.  Somehow, I neglected to pack a pie plate, even though I know we have at least one in storage.  We also didn’t pack any decent sized mixing bowls and I have a hankering to make a blackout cake for my husband.  When I do, I’ll have to take a photo of it.  It’s a thing of beauty.  Bill will no doubt take some to work, too, since there’s no way the two of us can eat the whole thing before it goes stale.

On our way into AAFES, Bill caught sight of a familiar face.  It turned out to belong to a guy Bill worked with at the Pentagon from 2001-03.  He and his wife attended our wedding in Lexington, Virginia, and we bought them gifts for their adorable infant daughter who is now about 11 years old.  Their son, a toddler when we last saw them, must be an early teen now.  Bill traded business cards with his old friend and I expect we might hang out once or twice.  It was nice to see them again.  You never know who you’ll run into when you’re affiliated with the military.

We de-Christmased our house and, I’m hoping, tomorrow we’ll be able to start planning a quick getaway for MLK weekend so I can write about something other than life in Germany.  I am more than ready to travel so I can write more on my travel blog.

No pictures today…  but you can bet there will be more soon.

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Irish pubs are apparently a "thing" in France…

So, we’ve been back from Europe for about ten days now and I’ve been reflecting on the trip.  One thing I noticed when we were in France is that Irish pubs are apparently a “thing” there.  In Lyon alone, Bill and I actually visited three Irish pubs.  There were quite a few more that we didn’t visit.

Since Bill and I had been hoping to go to Ireland on this last trip, we found it kind of funny that there were so many Irish pubs in France.  I mentioned it to my American friend, Audra, who lives in France.  She said, “Not a one of them is very authentically Irish, are they?”

Some places seemed more authentic than others did.  In one bar, they had a good drink list that included several Irish suds and whiskeys.  But none of the Irish pubs we visited had Irish music or anyone from the Republic working there.  In fact, most of the Irish pubs we visited in France were decidedly French in terms of their menus and atmosphere.

This all made Bill and me decide that we need a trip to Ireland next.  Unfortunately, there’s no telling when that can occur.  We need to find employment and a place to settle first… then we need to do some fundraising.  I trust we’ll get to Ireland someday, though.  It will happen.  And when it does, I hope to find some real Irish pubs.

This one in Alexandria, VA comes pretty close…  Bill and I used to go there when we lived near DC.  They had quite a few Irish people working there.

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Washington, DC’s lack of competent restaurant help and my favorite SeaDream waiters…

I happened to read an article about how restauranteurs in Washington, DC are dealing with a severe lack of experienced restaurant help.  Having once waited tables myself and knowing how difficult it can be to do that job competently, I suddenly realized how awesome SeaDream’s wait staff is.  And then it occurred to me that if any of those guys wanted to wait tables in Washington, DC, they could work at one of the city’s very best restaurants without any trouble.

Last night, we were sitting at the dinner table and I started talking about Jose, who is one of my favorite SeaDream waiters.  He’s one of those rare people who has the service bug.  He’s always laid back, friendly, and seems genuinely interested in seeing that his guests have a wonderful time.  That is quite a gift, and SeaDream and its cruisers are the benefactor’s of Jose’s tremendous gift of hospitality.  I love to see him smile.  He has a very genuine, warm smile that just makes me feel good.  One time, when he was waiting on us in the Caribbean, I blurted out “Jose, you are just adorable!”  I was rewarded with yet another amazing smile.

Jose waited on us the night of our 9th anniversary…  Pablo is holding the cake up.

And he waited on us the last night of our most recent cruise.  I see Bill is wearing the same shirt as he was the last time.  Time to take him shopping!

But Jose is not the only gifted server on SeaDream’s team.  In fact, just about all the guys we ran into were excellent.  And it makes me wonder what SeaDream does to attract such talent when a city like Washington, DC is having so much trouble attracting good restaurant help… if I am to believe that article, anyway.  I think it probably has to do with the fact that DC is full of Americans, many of whom don’t really get the concept of providing excellent service.  When your pay is determined pretty much entirely by tips, you’d think it would be worthwhile to learn to be really good at your job.  But I don’t think American culture, by and large, respects people in the service industry.  In our country, service jobs for many people are just jobs…  not careers.

I joked yesterday that if Bill can’t find a new job after he retires, we can go back to Washington, DC and maybe someone will let me wait tables again.  I don’t have near the gift of hospitality that any of the SeaDream wait staff has, but I do have some experience working in a nice, fast-paced restaurant.  On the other hand, I kind of got my fill of the restaurant experience fifteen years ago.  I think the ship has sailed, so to speak.  😉

It amazes me how fast a month can pass.  It seems like we were waiting forever to go to Europe and now it’s been a few weeks since we got back.  And in a couple more weeks, we’ll be on another trip.  It may be the last trip for awhile, though I’m still thinking about what we’re going to do next.  Maybe it’ll be another SeaDream cruise… but I think it’s more likely, it’ll be something else.

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