#16: The Awakening at the National Harbor

One of the many times Matt was caught shaking his head at my lack of preparation occurred during my initial search for The Awakening.  During this ordeal, an old website directed us to The Awakening's former location near Hains Point, when we should have been at the National Harbor.  Did I want to tell Matt what we were looking for?  No.  Had he had enough of my hijinks for one year at that point, though?  Yes.  And so I explained that we were looking for a statue of a man coming out of the ground.  It was at this point I think he contemplated running the other way forever.  But he stuck with me and months later, we saw The Awakening in its new location at the National Harbor. 

I'm not sure about the foot traffic near its old location, but at the harbor, The Awakening was covered with kids crawling all over it, sliding down its limbs and screaming.  As far as I could tell, it was the centerpiece of the Harbor.

My Samsung feature phone's camera at its finest.

Matt and I took a seat on the steps as we watched families chase after kids and kids chase after each other.  The breeze was perfect and we had nowhere else to be.  After some people-watching, we walked along the pier and discussed renting boats on a spring day. 

After contemplating a visit to the Mike & Ike store, we went to nearby The Tasting Room, Boxwood Winery's...tasting room.  There we did a self-serve wine tour: we put value on a card and walked around the store sampling wines.  You pay per sample and have the option of a very small sample, a half glass or a full glass of wine.  Small plates were also available and with the purchase of some samples, you receive a coupon for $10 off a bottle of wine.  Not a bad deal!  Looking out on the walkway next to the water, sitting next to Matt and laughing, this was one of the first times in awhile that I had where I felt like there was no place to go and nothing to do that could be more important.  We weren't that far from DC, but we were far enough to "get away," and that felt pretty darn good.

Location: The National Harbor (walk to the water. It's almost impossible to miss.)
Closest Metro Stop: This was a car activity for us, but the NH1 bus reportedly runs out there (Schedule here.)
Cost: The Awakening is free; The Tasting Room's samples ranged but we spent close to $15.