tourist times in the new town

it's hard for me to believe sometimes that people actually want to come to the district on their vacations. i'm so far removed from the tourist culture of south florida that i forget people go on vacations and might randomly choose where i live. someday, i'll figure out how to avoid the maddening crowds when they do come. as yet, i'm not that lucky. a lot of my exploring, adventurous nature manifests in the very things that tourists want to see.

case in point numero uno. two and half years ago, a friend had an internship at a vet clinic in the district. i'm doing the legit tourist thing with his girlfriend while he's working. it's triple digits outside, even our floridian bodies were screaming for a/c. smithsonian museums are free, let's go there! air and space: comfortable, but crazily crowded. sidenote, woman wearing all black from head-to-toe passes out on steps in front of us. bad omen.

case in point numero dos through cien. weekend. nice weather. national mall. memorials. smithsonians. fuhgettaboutit!

today. previous cases in point. add cherry blossoms to the mix and ninety-nine out of a hundred of these tourists is ansel adams in disguise. [full disclosure: yes, i'm in that 99, but i was trying to avoid the cliche shots of out-of-focus monuments in the background with blossoms in the foreground and 27 unrecognizable people screwing up the shot.] makes me want to play hooky from work this week to go take picures. perhaps some day after work to try to get cool pictures with a sunset in the mix. i'm mildly disappointed with my addition the the glut of cherry blossom pictures that will soon be flooding the web. you'll see mine, but my camera's eye and mine don't often agree. an upgrade is needed.