When In DC: Eat, Sleep, Pole, Repeat

It’s hard not to draw parallels to Sex and the City when there’s four best friends—each loosely falling into their role as the Carrie, Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte of the group—stomping the streets of a big city. Four 20-somethings: two realists and two romantics.

A little bit of back story, first, We met in high school as fresh-eyed and bushy-tailed freshman. It was 2006; three of us were in our district’s law program, one in global languages (and though we’ve each strayed from the our initial career interests, our respective classes were pretty spot on when it came to our personalities and paths). Making the school’s dance team was by chance: but it’s how we came to be a foursome.

Ten years later—a.k.a. ONE DECADE—we’re still together. (Insert SATC quote about how your girlfriends are your soul mates, not the men we date.) Ten years. Enough time to cement a sisterhood (and go through enough sh*t where kind of have to stay together, because explaining old stories that are fundamental to current affairs to new people is a pain) so strong that it passes the test of long-distance.

You guys: I think I’ve found the forever kind of love.

Our annual-ish Washington D.C. reunion fell on our 10-year anniversary by happenstance—but what was even more beautiful was that it came when we all needed it most. We happened to all be (finally!) free this past weekend. We found a sweet hotel at an even sweeter deal (The Embassy Row Hotel on Massachusetts Ave., conveniently located by my favorites: Le Pain Quotidien and Pizzaria Paradiso) last minute.

This shit was written in the stars. (Also important to know after 10 years of being with these girls: Everything works out when you have the right people in your life. This friendship is proof.)

When in DC: We eat, sleep, pole dance, repeat. We cash in at least 12,000 steps walking the entirety of the city—tourist spots, museums, Eastern market, Dupont Circle, Bethesda, Georgetown, you name it, we’ve trekked it—stopping only to refill on coffee, buy books, and eat. Pole classes were a tradition that we started last year; I’m obsessed. I feel powerful, I crave the sore muscles that come the next morning. Granted, I can only do a basic spin and the odd headstand (pictured above), but hey. In the downtown DC area? Sign up for a free intro class at Pole Pressure. The place is pretty ideal: not intimidating, photogenic enough for the ‘gram (again, see above), and near Starbucks (for a pre-pole boost), Whole Foods (for a post-pole fill-up), and Lululemon (for a little bit of motivation. Literally.).

Baby steps. Sexy baby steps. (So many wrong things going on in that sentence. Let’s forgive, forget, and proceed.)

So that’s DC by day. By night…

.   .   .

Part II, coming soon.

xx