DC Area Weekend - June 23-25, 2006

[duchess of malfi]

Fist and I were talking about this yesterday, and thought that if Danlo is still very busy with grad school, perhaps rather than an Elohimfest in Albuquerque, another retreat weekend might be more "doable" next year. And we thought perhaps somewhere near Washington DC so we could finally meet people like Jay, Alynna, Aliantha, and Syl? And aren't there a bunch of more people in VA and MD as well?

[dlbpharmd]

I was thinking about this on the way home yesterday. Perhaps it would be better to wait until 2007 (when FR is due to be released) for another Elohimfest - with hopes, of course, that SRD would attend.

I love the idea of a retreat in D.C. next year. Have camera, will travel.

[dlbpharmd]

And aren't there a bunch of more people in VA and MD as well?

Creator and Romeo live in that area, IIRC.

[aliantha]

Fist and I were talking about this yesterday, and thought that if Danlo is still very busy with grad school, perhaps rather than an Elohimfest in Albuquerque, another retreat weekend might be more "doable" next year. And we thought perhaps somewhere near Washington DC so we could finally meet people like Jay, Alynna, Aliantha, and Syl? And aren't there a bunch of more people in VA and MD as well?

dlbpharmd, you're right, Romeo and Creator are both here, too. Duchess, that is an awesome suggestion from my point of view! Y'all come! Goodness knows there's plenty of touristy crap to do.... And then we could do a full-blown Elohimfest in '07 in NM.

[Cail]

I'm 30 minutes from DC, so I'm all for it.

[Lorelei]

Well seeing that I'm 10 minutes from Cail...I guess I'm also 30 minutes away from DC. I look forward to putting faces to names!

[Furls Fire]

If health, kids, life allows...I'm there

[duchess of malfi]

Well, if ya'll like that idea, perhaps one or two people who live in the greater DC area can step forward as organizers? Set dates, find a hotel for out of towners, all of that sort of thing?

I'd volunteer, but I don't even know if I can come next year. My older son will be graduating high school next June, and I suspect it'll be a pretty busy summer for us, between that and getting ready for his going to college.

[aliantha]

Been there, done that, Duchess -- this past year, in fact.... I couldn't organize the whole thing by myself, but I could help someone else.

[duchess of malfi]

Been there, done that, Duchess -- this past year, in fact.... I couldn't organize the whole thing by myself, but I could help someone else.

Sounds good, Ali. I hope someone else steps forward.

I am lucky in that son has been insisting that he doesn't want an open house or big party. But I will still spend my weekends this fall planting dozens upon dozens of bulbs so the yard will look good next spring just in case.

[Alynna Lis Eachann]

I'm game to help, but I've got a lot of work coming up these next two semesters, so if it goes in fits and starts, that'll be why.

We can start off with this, though, to see how many people are interested:

1) What are good dates for people? Early summer, mid-summer, late summer? Late spring, maybe, or early fall?

2) What kind of hotel rates are we looking at? Low-end or mid-class? I imagine it's possible to get some sort of group rate.

3) MD, VA or *shudder* DC? DC-central for Metro access, or shift it to the suburbs for cheaper hotels (and worse traffic)?

4) What kind of activities are people interested in? The usual tourist stuff, or something with more local flavor? MC County Fair and the State Fair run at the end of the summer. There's a Celtic festival in VA around mid-June, and a Folk-life Festival in DC sometime in early summer, I think. There's also a Renaissance Festival that starts around Labor Day near Annapolis.

5) Van rental? Easier than a caravan of cars, around here, especially if people want to fly in. Most of the touristy stuff is Metro-accessible, but things like the Ren Faire, the Chesapeake Bay, the C&O Canal and all the large parks are obviously drive-only access.

[dlbpharmd]

1) Wide open for any dates at the present time.

2) Mid-class

3) Suburbs are fine with me.

4) The usual tourist stuff - never been to DC.

5) Doesn't matter to me.

[kevinswatch]

I'll supply the beer.





Seriously though, I'd be glad to help out however I'm needed.

Hey A, I really think we should take everyone to the Ren Fair. -jay(Runs away from A.)

[Alynna Lis Eachann]

*starts to sharpen throwing knives bought at same festival*

[duchess of malfi]

As stated before, I doubt I will be able to come, but

1. my kids are out of school from mid-June until late August, so anywhere in that range would be good

2. mid-range, but if summer that far south, a pool would be a pretty good thing to have

3. suburbs are fine -- is there any easy way such as trains to get into the city from any of the burbs?

4. have never been to DC, so anything goes, but a baseball game in Baltimore would probably be pretty cool

5. If I came, I would probably be driving, so van rental would not affect me

[aliantha]

Whoo hoo, we've got a good start!

Hmm, I'm sensing some sort of history here re: the RennFest. We've been several times and have always had a good time, but everybody's different....

1. We might also consider a spring break timeframe, as the weather here generally sucks all summer for any outdoor activities. You have not experienced humidity if you have not been to DC in July.... But spring break varies, so summer might be the only option. As for me, my daughter won't be out of school 'til late June, but don't let that stop you from picking an earlier date -- I'll be here regardless.

2. A pool is a necessity in DC in the summer (see 1. above).

3. Suburban is better if we're planning the usual tourist stops -- cheaper hotel rates, as Alynna said, and Metro is very accessible. If we're planning to do the monument tour, I wouldn't recommend driving in, anyhow -- parking is a nightmare. IMHO, a mid-priced suburban hotel, with a pool, and within walking distance of the Metro would be perfect -- and if they had a meeting room we could use, that would be nirvana.

4. Duchess, what's wrong with the Washington Nationals? Okay, besides the fact that they started fast and burned out quick -- but hey, that's never stopped Cubs fans from loving *their* team. Seriously, Baltimore is very doable as a day trip -- and Camden Yards is train-accessible from DC, as well. But you could spend a week just in DC. Heck, you could spend a week at the Smithsonian! And we have a baby panda at the National Zoo -- he'll be bigger then, but he should still be pegging the adorability meter. And BTW, for any anime fans, there's a big anime convention called Otakon in Baltimore in early August -- we could piggyback on that if there's any interest.

5. I think we can wait to decide on van rental until we firm up attendance and the itinerary.

Beer, yeah. Thanks, Jay. And the Cool Whip will go especially well with it.

[The Leper Fairy]

If all goes well in the college application/financial aid process and all that I might end up in that area next year.

1) 2006 Late late summer or early fall would be good. Colleges break in early October I think.

2) I'm hoping to go to a college roughly 2 hours from DC by train or whatever, and since I'll be flat broke I'll probably go back to campus that night or sleep on someone's floor if they'll let me.

3) Anywhere I can get to by public transportation is cool with me, or carpooling. Meh.

4) I don't care what we do, I just want to meet you guys Awww...

5) As far as cars go I'd have to mooch again...

[[Syl]]

Sounds good to me. DC's only a few hours drive for me, so whenever. If anyone wants to fly into Norfolk, I could pick up a couple people. I also have a fold-out sofa if anyone needs it. And if anything else, I have a Passat wagon and a Ford Escort hatchback for transportation.

[Rincewind]

if its in DC and amtrack has the Acela service back on-line by then i'll go

[Alynna Lis Eachann]

Just a reminder, folks. I'm still up for organizing this thing if people are interested. Keep an eye on your calendars as the summer approaches, and let's see if we can get a date worked out by mid-spring or so.

Edit: Spamalot is going to be at the National Theatre in DC from June 6 through July 9. Any interest in planning a trip around that?