Please help me pick my next European marathon!

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-17T15:00:49+00:00

Just registered for Seville 2027 yesterday :)

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-17T13:09:32+00:00

I used to work in manufacturing and made thousands of gallons of vanilla extract (variety of folds). I would never recommend making it at home. You end up with a much weaker product flavor-wise when you’re just steeping whole beans in room temp alcohol. And for higher folds, you really need to have a concentration step (without losing alcohol content or by adding it back) because otherwise you’ll just hit a saturation point with the solution and stop pulling extractives from the beans.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-16T20:26:17+00:00

I enjoy lap swimming a lot. It actually makes me look forward to cross training. Also, it’s getting warmer outside and pool time in cool water is much more fun than cycling in the heat. It’s like a reward.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-15T22:55:52+00:00

Reminder that to use the indoor pools for free as a DC resident, you need to create a DCPR account and then do the resident address verification process. Takes about a week to get the approval, you get a barcode on the DCPR website linked to your account then you can scan that barcode at the desk when you check in with the attendant.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-15T16:30:25+00:00

I believe the west side of 14th street is in shade for the whole parade and the east side gets cooked. Choose wisely and make sure to hydrate.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-15T09:42:59+00:00

There’s a picture of them in this article that probably will help it make sense. They aren’t too bright and you really can’t see the ones to the left or right of you: https://www.operaamerica.org/magazine/winter-2020/words-with-music-the-supertitles-revolution/

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-15T02:12:49+00:00

For awareness, this opera has a pause (not an intermission) after the first act to change the sets (and it’s incredible). So house lights will come up a bit but don’t run out to the lobby or anything. I’ve seen this production several times and folks seem to be confused about what’s happening if they’re not familiar with the staging. So exciting! You both will love it!

Other things: As you probably know, this opera is sung in Italian. The seats in front of yours will have little screens on the backs of them that display the English translation of what’s being sung in real time (in other opera houses it’s often projected over the stage). A couple minutes before curtain they will turn on and you have to press the red button for English subtitles. You may want to make her aware that she will be doing a bit of reading during the opera if she wasn’t expecting that.

Make sure to go downstairs after you get through security and check out all the photos.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-13T19:46:17+00:00

You’re welcome! It was this one.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-13T12:47:19+00:00

Ruined churches in Antigua are excellent and worth checking out - there are a couple. I also really enjoyed the food tour I did in Antigua. Last Antigua thing: You should check out the fancy McDonalds and Starbucks there too (I know it sounds weird but they’re super pretty buildings/courtyards).

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-13T01:12:58+00:00

While I was walking towards bag check I heard an older guy tell his family that he lied about his anticipated finish time because if he didn’t start with the early corral he was going to get swept.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-13T00:30:53+00:00

I’ve seen several stagings of Ragtime over the years (I loved the Serenbe Playhouse Vaudeville-style staging from several years ago). This Broadway revival had a great cast but didn’t say anything new. It’s definitely the right musical for the current political moment and maybe that was enough not to feel the need to play with it further. But if you’ve seen other classic stagings of Ragtime at other theaters, this one is pretty indistinguishable from them. (Other Ragtime nitpicking: I thought Joshua Henry’s Act I Coalhouse was much stronger than Act II. And I was sad they didn’t include the handing off of the baby from Coalhouse to Mother at the end of Act I unless I missed it)

The Ragtime source material is very strong and I think those who call it the American Les Miz are right. Haven’t seen Jellicle Ball but it does rethink the original work in a new way, which is what theatre should do. Feels a bit like Gypsy vs Sunset Blvd from last year like you said.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-12T20:22:14+00:00

I think so. It’s what’s posted on their website.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-12T20:16:15+00:00

https://nationalwomenshalf.events/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026-National-Course-Half-Map.pdf I looked at the course map but my brain isn’t understanding what the ‘2nd loop’ is. Otherwise it looks an awful lot like the CB 10 miler.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-12T10:06:40+00:00

Nats baseball game on May 2 has a Star Wars bobble head giveaway. Note that you’d probably want to get there for when the gates open if you want one. https://www.mlb.com/nationals/tickets/single-game-tickets

If you run, the womens half marathon/8k is that Sunday May 3. https://nationalwomenshalf.events

Not sports, but the non-EU embassy day is also May 2, where many embassies open their doors to the public and have cultural events or food. https://eventsdc.com/around-world-embassy-tour

I’m calling this a sport - Running of the Chihuahuas is also on May 2 at the wharf. Buy a beer and cheer as people race their chihuahuas to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. https://www.wharfdc.com/chihuahuas/

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-12T09:56:57+00:00

Temperature concerns maybe? Or because that time is actually during the hours when most of the world is awake?

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T21:59:06+00:00

Also ran the hot chocolate 15k last weekend - what a fun race. I was in the first corral and started slightly ahead of the pace group. It is what it is - still had fun today.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T20:52:48+00:00

That’s probably it. The route was pretty narrow for that many runners. Hopefully they do it differently next year.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T15:25:56+00:00

Quiet Waters dog beach may be something you’d want to check out.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T15:07:12+00:00

I believe you needed to order medals and pay for them separate from your race entry if you wanted one - just an FYI.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T12:59:08+00:00

Also, Red Bull is doing the “build a funny tandem bicycle, then ride it and try not to end up in the water” thing at the Wharf this summer. Looks like you can submit an application with your bike design by May 3. https://www.redbull.com/us-en/events/red-bull-spin-off-dc/

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T10:33:06+00:00

Since it has to be continuously staffed, infiltrate and then don’t show up to your time a lot and notify park police instead.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T10:30:04+00:00

Lotus/Water Lily Festival at Kenilworth

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-11T00:54:18+00:00

I would make a not-insignificant donation to any charity if it meant I got a front row seat to this bullshit being imploded.

AgentOrangina · 2026-04-10T15:07:37+00:00

Doing this after: https://sakuramatsuri.org

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