California Dreamin – San Diego Style!

Hello from back on the east coast! I just returned from the most AH-MAZE-ING trip to San Diego! Between experiencing a new city, meeting so many new people, and getting incredible career experience, I can absolutely say it was one of the best trips of my life.

We hopped on a plane at an absurdly early hour at DCA, and 6 hours later rolled up to this place:

Yeah…WHOA. This property is the most beautiful and secluded resort I’ve ever been to (um, and it’s PINK!). I even woke up extra early on a couple of the days to just walk around and soak it all in. As you all know, I’m a big fan of the winter and colder weather, but honestly no one could have been unhappy in this 70 degree paradise. There was a golf course, a pool, and several delicious restaurants right on site. Check out some more pictures of the property below:

Even these hallways are unreal

The courtyard outside my room

On Thursday we took a little break and ate lunch next to the beach and then ventured down to play in the sand and stick our feet in the water for a little bit. It’s always nice when we have a little time to explore the city we’re in…and when we’re relaxed enough about the event to enjoy it! Growing up right on the Atlantic, I had never been to the Pacific Ocean so this was particularly exciting for me!

Lunch with a view!

Once Friday rolled around, we really had to buckle down and “gets to steppin'” as we say around the office. So we spent most of the day in the staff office eating chocolate covered oreos and running through seating changes and other logistics. However, we couldn’t even complain about that seeing as how this was our view from the office balcony:

Definitely broke a record for most of these eaten in a 4-day period….

Oh, and as for as the event itself – well, check us out:

Special Events team with Senator Cruz

Our set-up for the welcome reception

Check out that staging for Governor Walker!

Dessert Reception to wrap up the night

What an amazing opportunity to travel to another part of the country and learn alongside and bond with so many people who are just as passionate as you are about certain issues. My head was in the clouds the whole time – and I still can’t believe how lucky I am! We even got to meet Senator Cruz, Governor Scott Walker, and Scott Rasmussen! I learned SO much from each of my coworkers, and I can’t wait until the next big conference! Until next time, San Diego!

-S

2 Weeks, 7 Cities, and Blurred Lines on Repeat

Brace yourselves for a post FULL of pictures! This is the second catch-up post from my August recess travels and there is no better way to show you all what I was up to than a bunch of photos from the road! After hitting up Gettysburg, I left for a 2-week tour across 6 cities! But that wasn’t before traveling home to Philly for my best friend’s bridal shower and some family time (I’m leaving this part out from the post, but it still counts as another city traveled to)! From Tampa to Indianapolis, I definitely experienced more of America over these two weeks than I had in the previous 22 years!

Coffee played a MAJOR role in the completion of this tour…

It was a true whirlwind experience – fast-paced, stressful, and tiring…but I loved every minute of it! Traveling with an experienced coworker was such an incredible learning experience  – plus we just had so much fun together from gossiping, to eating, to blaring and dancing along to “Blurred Lines” on our long car rides. I’ll let the pictures do most of the talking in this post, with a little narration.

Bye, DC!!

Stop #1: Fayetteville, Arkansas!

It is fair to say that I had never truly experienced the “deep south” until I went to Fayetteville….and it was everything I imagined it to be. So quaint, such nice people, and SO beautiful. This was probably one of my favorite cities on the tour – maybe just because the venue was just so unique and fun (see below for pics of the BARN we held our event in)! Unfortunately we didn’t make it to the site of the giant Wal-mart in Bentonville, but we did visit one a little down the road in Fayetteville and I’m counting that as close enough.

This song may also have been on repeat all trip…

U. Arkansas campus

Casually getting lost on back roads trying to find Wal-Mart….

Taking a preemptive strike against day 1 – ready for anything!

the most beautiful place on earth – yes, this is real!

Inside the barn!

wish I got to test this out…

Stop #2: Tampa, Florida!

We didn’t have that much time in Tampa, but it was also exactly what I imagined it to be. And yes, that means it was BLAZING HOT. But it was also beautifully sunny. I don’t think I’ve ever seen clearer skies. Tampa was my favorite hotel – which is good because I really don’t think we left it at all – hah! But check out the view from my room below!

Stop #3: Birmingham, Alabama

Birmingham is the ONLY city I don’t have pictures of, despite it being the city I was in the longest – go figure! This is probably because we were no where near close to downtown Bham. I did, however, get to experience the southern charm of suburban Alabama! I even went to  Publix for the first time. It’s no Wegmans, but I’ll admit, it was pretty nice.

Stop #4: Indianapolis, Indiana

After a full week in the south, I was SO ready to be back up to familiar territory above the Mason-Dixon line! Though I loved my time spent there, I think I’ll always be a northern girl. That being said, I was ECSTATIC to land in Indy. Especially because I’ve never been there. I was lucky enough that our hotel was right in the heart of downtown and I landed early enough on Sunday to have some time to walk around the city and relax.

Capital Building

Circle City!

Excellent photography skillz with my finger in the corner..

How much do you just want to be that guy sitting there reading a good book?

I just love this building…Gov. Pence, you home?

Stop #5: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

I had never been to Pittsburgh either, so this was particularly exciting for me too. Plus one of my best friends from school just moved there so I got to see her! We went to a delicious Mexican restaurant followed by delicious ice cream – the perfect way to spend my night before my last event!  The next afternoon we took a quick break to get the famous Primanti Brothers sandwiches…and they were SO worth it! If you’re ever in Pittsburgh you need to make sure you get a hold of one! By the time we finished up in here, I was totally worn. I would like to think I could have kept going, but my body was so beat up and tired that I was glad to come home and rest!

Just some random pretty church?

View of the city from our hotel

Stop #6: Finally home to Washington, DC!

In the end, there is no place like home! My favorite part of traveling is always coming home to my city with renewed appreciation for how lucky I am! A year later, I am still completely in love with DC and I hope I remain in this honeymoon phase forever.

the happiest home!

That’s all until my next adventure…

xO -S

Work Trip: Gettysburg

As we mentioned in an earlier post today, we’ve got a LOT of catching up to do! So here is the first of my catch-up posts on travel – my work trip to Gettysburg, PA!

Okay, so maybe I’m a total nerd, but I was SO excited for this trip! I was there to run the event (my first official trip by myself!), but I also really love learning about American History…so it was the perfect way to test my professional skills and to learn about something I was personally interested in! Win-Win. We started the day with lectures before we moved to the Gettysburg Museum for some presentations and then finally ended on a 2-hour tour of the battlefield. It was dark and rainy, but none of the guests seemed to mind since the content was so interesting. I learned so much that I didn’t know about the Civil War, and it was crazy to think that I was standing where it all happened! We walked Pickett’s Charge, ventured up to Little Round Top, and even stopped at some of the memorials and heard the stories behind them. Here are some pictures from the tour:

Little Round Top!

As the lead contact for the event, I went up the night before to ensure everything was prepped and ready for guests upon their arrival at the hotel. This meant that I had a little bit of time the night before to explore downtown Gettysburg. Let me tell you, it was everything you imagine adorable small-town America to be. Beautiful scenery, great food, and friendly people. Below are some pictures I collected from around town – including the tavern we ate at and some delicious drinkage.

Gettysburg is only about an hour and half from DC so it’s a perfect day trip! I highly recommend taking a weekend and heading up to see all that Gettysburg has to offer – I know I’ll be returning soon!

xO – S

While We Were Away….

DC is said to be a ghost town in August. Congress is out on recess, and everyone else is on vacation escaping the crazy DC heat & humidity. Well, even though neither of us are Hill staffers, we decided to embrace that outlook anyway and took a short hiatus for some summer fun (and work!) in August.

Here’s just a few pictures and snipits of what you missed while we were away (don’t worry – we’ll go into more detail soon with some belated posts about our adventures):

S – From bridal showers to baseball games, with 2 weeks of traveling in between!

E – Traveling home, friends visiting, taking advantage of the fantastic warm weather!

What have you been up to?

xx S&E

NYC Recap!

Remember how I said that I was going to NYC a few weeks ago? I forgot to update you on the trip! If you follow me on instagram you’ve probably seen most of these but there is always a story behind every picture…

First I was there for work… in Jersey City which is ALMOST NYC.. as you can see from the beautiful view

View from the Goldman Sacs building

Finally, we united in Sty Town and headed out into the night!

The night began!

We went to Houstan Hall in the west village.  Imagine a german beer hall FILLED to the brim.

look at the size of those guys!

The crew!!!!

As the night progressed….

The next day we woke up bright and early and took the subway to Williamburg for a large food fest with a fantastic view!

Smorgasburg!

Seeing as it was Michelles birthday, we hit up a little Sushi place around the block from her apartment

Birthday Sushi!

And headed out into the night for some dancing…which somehow I got no pictures of, just instagram videos which I’m not entirely sure how to share just yet.

The next morning was brunch at the Sunburnt Cow (clearly named for me as I got burned just sitting around brooklyn) If you can imagine, is a tiny bar with fantastic breakfast and lunch items –think steak and eggs– with bottomless drinks and all Australian men servers.

The rest of the afternoon was spent walking, lounging, saying goodbyes, and grabbing dinner at this adorable 24/7 restaurant in the east village called 7A Cafe that I’ve now managed to go to every single time I’ve visited new york this year. I’m claiming it as my spot!

The next morning it was time to head back to Penn Station, but not before I got caught in a torrential downpour

No cabs to be found!

Ahh NYC… always a great visit. I think the friends are half the fun though.

xE

 

 

Maine Lobstaaa

My 4th of July was very different from Shiannes. I used the free vacation time from the office to fly home to NH and spend some quality down time with the family and the dogs. On the actual 4th, my mom and I decided to head up to the sea — stopping at Portsmouth, NH, Ogunqiut and Kennebunk ME.

I had not seen the ocean in a very long time

If you know me well, you know I don’t eat lobster.. but my moms looked pretty delish!

picture perfect scene on the ride up

Home is so relaxing…I found myself sort of home sick to leave. But I especially could not bear to part with these guys:

Davinci<3

friends fur-ever

I’m getting nostalgic just looking at pictures! Its terrifically unfair that jobs give you only a certain number of days off… I miss my summer vacations more than you know today.

xE

 

Weekend Wrap-Up: 4th of July

Hope you all had a great holiday weekend! As it was my first Independence Day in DC, I can definitely say it was everything I imagined & more! First I should admit that a lot of these pictures are stolen from my friend Sophia whose phone takes ridiculously amazing pics – even in the dark! Luckily, she is nice enough to send them all to me so I can Instagram them to death and post them up here! You’ll also notice that I’ve recently learned some new picture tools and I maaaay have gone a little overboard…but it’s just so fun!

Sophia and I on the roof of my office – that’s the Capitol in the background 🙂

Anywayyyyy…..

I started the 4th off at a BBQ with some old and new friends where we drank beer, played cornhole, and hung out up on the roof (classic!) and it was a lot of fun! I love being in a city full of young professionals – it seems like I’m always meeting new people, which is awesome! After a couple hours of hanging out there, Sophia and I walked over to my office for our Independence Day Celebration. This party was definitely as epic as it was described to be! We had Famous Dave’s catered food and specialty drinks named “Sunny Afternoon” and “A Walk in the Countryside” (I much preferred the first – but hey, it was an open bar so I had to try em both!). After mingling for a while and meeting everyone’s family & friends, it was time for fireworks. We had an INCREDIBLE view and the weather was perfect! Just when I think my job can’t get any better they throw this at me….

My 4th in review – pretty epic!

I was able to sleep in a little bit on Friday before my family came into town and I was in full-on tour guide mode! My oldest cousin had been to DC recently, but my other cousin, uncle, aunt, and her parents had never been so it was my duty to show them how amazing this city is – all in 2 days! It was especially important since my aunt’s parents were visiting all the way from INDIA….so I had to prove that America was as awesome as they believe it to be…and that DC isn’t always as much of a mess as it seems to be on the news! Due to the blistering heat and my guests’ restrictions, we decided that a walking tour was out of the question. So Saturday afternoon I finally got to go on one of those crazy Big Bus tours I’ve always secretly wanted to go on! We literally rode ALL OVER the city, taking stops at some of the more interesting locations to get a closer look. I wouldn’t recommend the tour to anyone able to walk, as it was expensive, but it was definitely worth the money for our group! Also – just note how adorable my cousins are in the picture below – presh!!

ultimate tourists!

I hope that between all the BBQs and fireworks this weekend everyone had a chance to stop and think about what Independence Day is really about! Not to get too sentimental, but sometimes I really wonder how I got lucky enough to live in a country where freedom is cherished and celebrated. Having a father who was an immigrant and still having a lot of family overseas always helps me remember this point. Sure, every country has their issues – but I’d say we’ve got it pretty good over here and I sure as hell wouldn’t want to be anywhere else!

Creed on what he would do if he won the lottery…anyone else miss this show as much as I do? (Thanks, E, for the link 🙂 )

An incredible weekend of family, friends, and fireworks – what more could you want in life?

xO – S

Prepping for my first 4th of July in DC!

If you live in DC, you know how big of a deal the 4th of July is here. Or at least you’ve HEARD about how big a deal it is…but maybe you haven’t experienced it yet.

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This year will be my first Independence Day in the nation’s capital – and I could not be more excited! We have a huge party every year for the 4th of July at work and apparently it is the absolute best time. We’re right on Capitol Hill so the party is hosted on the roof – with a 360 view of the city & fireworks in every direction!

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 Since I’ll technically be at work, I won’t want to be too flashy – but I also have a lot more leeway than I would on a regular work day. I’m thinking about pairing a simple red dress (like the one pictured below) with a white heel (also below) and maybe some blue accessories?

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If you won’t be at work – and instead enjoying the fireworks in a more laid-back atmosphere, I highly recommend the American flag print shorts and/or sequined, white, peplum top!

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4th of July by shianne-chatarjee featuring hair bows

A couple of the items I’m particularly obsessed with are:

1. Simple red tank top from H&M – it just looks like it would drape so well!

2. Blue Bow from Etsy- great way to contain and also style my crazy & long waves!

3. White Heels from Rock&Republic – so classy & chic!

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And, of course, don’t forget my favorite accessory – red lipstick!

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What will you be wearing to the fireworks?

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-S

“Sail” la Vie

If you’re from New England (woo go Bruins!) or you’ve walked into The Lucky Knot on King Street in Alexandria, you know the brand Kiel James Patrick and their adorably preppy accessories. Sarah, KJP’s girl has one of the most fabulous blogs out there!

Do you see a theme showing up here?

Anyways, one of my best friends from NH has just started her adventure of a summer interning for Kiel and the crew, and has started a blog about her adventures which I want to share — it’ll make you wish you had gone into the Fashion industry, and that you were anywhere near an ocean. And a lake. And had a a rowboat…

SEA you later.

I know I’ll be jealous of her adventures!

xE

Puppies Worried About Sequestration

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you google “Sequester + Puppies” – fear no more, I have the answer. It is this.

 Being in DC, we’ve obviously been hearing non-stop about sequestration over the past few days and this adorable buzzfeed article with puppies definitely helped make light of it.  So regardless of how you feel about the sequester, or what side of the aisle you happen to be on, I think we can all agree that puppies make everything better.

Here’s to hoping we make it through tomorrow!

-S