Every year on Memorial Day weekend, the community of Vienna celebrates with Viva Vienna!, a 3-day festival of amusement rides, entertainment, food, crafts, and vendors. 100% of proceeds go to charitable, community and humanitarian organizations. Growing up in this community, I have so many fun memories of attending as a child with my family, and then with my friends as a high school teenager! It’s yet another fond memory that I’m really happy I can share with Mio and Dan now that we’re back in my old ‘hood! Mio and I went two days in a row, and she had so much fun!
On Saturday, Dan was teaching a video workshop all day to the local community youth (such a great gesture on his part — so proud of him!), and our friends SunJae, Mie, and their son Kosei were visiting from Maryland so that SunJae (who is also a video editor) could assist Dan with the workshop. So Mie and I decided to take the kids to Viva Vienna! for a few hours of festival fun!
Kosei and Mio riding the merry-go-round together! Mie is pregnant with baby #2 (a girl!), due in September.
Mio going on the merry-go-round a second time. So many ponies, but this time Mio picked the freaky monkey to ride on. They had free face-painting at the festival. The kids are happy with their painted faces! Kosei got a spider (“Spiderman!”) and Mio got to be a kitty cat.
Mio and I really enjoyed going to the festival with Mie and Kosei on Saturday, but because Mio had so much fun there and we still wanted to go with Dan as a family (especially since it’s so close!), the three of us went again the following day on Sunday. 🙂 It was actually much more crowded on the second day, probably because the vendors (who weren’t there on Saturday) had set up all their tents down Church Street on Sunday and Monday.
Mio grabbing a hold of Dan’s chicken on a stick! Mio nomming on the chicken skewer. You have some chicken in your teeth! She was SO HAPPY. She enjoyed the chicken skewer so much that even when Dan and I requested to take bites in between, she wouldn’t let go of the stick and would just guide it into our mouths, before putting it back into hers. I think she ended up eating most of it! Mio was fascinated by this “pet cool-down zone” pool they had set up. She loved watching the dogs go in and out of the water, and wouldn’t budge from the spot for about 15 minutes! We ran into the Lee family by the carousel! Here’s Mio riding with Danny and his mommy Stephanie! I’ve always wanted to go on the ferris wheel with Mio, but she was never allowed to go on them in California, even with her parents. We were really excited to ride it together! The view of Viva Vienna! from the ferris wheel. Mio bravely looking over the edge. She really enjoyed the ride! The rides she could go on were limited due to her height, but maybe next year she’ll get to go on more! We met up with newlywed friends Mimi and Sujay, and Xiaolu and her new adorable dog! Mio was of course very interested in the dog. She kept pointing at its curly tail and eventually was brave enough to pet it. It got really hot as the day progressed! Cooling down with a frozen drink on the sidewalk. Waiting for pizza afterwards at Luciano’s! Love this smile. “Enough pictures! Bring out the food!”
Mio staring at the huge pizza in front of her.
We had a truly memorable couple days at Viva Vienna! Festivals, carnivals, and county fairs are probably one of my favorite things about summer, and I love that now I can experience it with our little family. We’re looking forward to making more fun summer memories in the coming months and years ahead!
One of my favorite childhood memories was going to the local Friendly’s for an ice cream treat! We got to share the tradition with Mio the other day… Judging from her reactions, I think it’ll be a favorite of hers, too!
Waiting for our food. Mio was already content with her big girl cup and coloring pages. Taking bites of some of the cheese fries… And now for the best part: dessert! Look at that smile! Mio’s favorite part was the cone! She was playing with it as if it were a trumpet.
Dan watching Mio, amused. Pure bliss! Sheer joy! Unadulterated elation! No doubt we will be back again. 🙂
Dan and I brought home a little treat for ourselves, too! The Friendly’s Watermelon Roll is a childhood favorite of mine, and it features lemon sherbet on the outside, watermelon sherbet on the inside with chocolate bits.
The weather was beautiful last Saturday, so we spent the afternoon at Meadowlark Botanical Gardens. The park has become a favorite place for Mio to go, because my parents and I have taken her at least a half dozen times in the past six months. She loves seeing all the geese and koi fish around the pond, even in the cold winter months. We usually go during the weekdays while Dan is at work, though, so this was Dan’s first time going to Meadowlark. Spring has made it even more beautiful, as a lot of the flowers (especially the tulips!) are in bloom now.
Mio hanging out with the geese at Meadowlark Gardens
Walking hand in hand with Auntie Miwa.
She just melts my heart…
Taking a break at the gazebo and bridge overlooking the pond.
A family picture. 🙂
A picture with just the girls.
We saw some snapping turtles!
Mio loved seeing the geese, turtles, and fish in the pond. She kept pointing and naming them.
An exultant Mio.
Mio against a sea of tulips!
A picture with Mama… …on the condition that I let her try on my sunglasses. Planting a kiss on Auntie Miwa’s cheek. Giving Mama a kiss! She’s on a kissing spree! So sweet I think I’m going to get cavities just looking at this picture. Gorgeous tulips at Meadowlark Gardens A fountain surrounded by tulips.
Dan also took some great video clips from this past weekend, including some moments from this outing. We’ll post when he’s done editing it! 🙂 Â I love that the weather is getting warmer and we can have more outdoor outings!
Last Saturday, we attended Xiaoyi and Bochen’s beautiful wedding at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton, Maryland! We’d never been to the gardens before, but it was a beautiful location full of flowers, perfect for the couple’s very colorful and lovely celebration! Xiaoyi is a dear friend from college, fellow graphic design major and we even worked together at the same media lab. I have so many wonderful memories with her, and was so happy to be able to attend and witness this happy occasion!
First kiss as husband and wife. Beautiful ceremony!
The program for Xiaoyi & Bochen’s wedding
The happy couple!
I loved her dress!
With the hubster. ♥
I loved seeing some of my favorite girlfriends again… 🙂 We’d just seen each other the previous weekend at Yoon’s wedding!
Love these girls!
Reunited and it feels so good!
With Hanna in fron tof the beautiful paper flowers that Xiaoyi constructed.
Some more of my lovely girlfriends from college!
Wonderwomen…?!
Graphic design ladies from Virginia Tech!
Everyone looked great!
Some of the gentlemen chatting.
There was so much entertainment throughout the wedding! A lion dance during the cocktail hour and a peacock dance, belly dance, and Chinese yoyo during the reception.
The lion shaking its tail at us.
Possibly the most beautiful wedding cake I’ve ever seen!
Such intricate details!
Beautiful handmade flower favors, with my favorite chocolate embedded in the center!
The bride, groom, and bridal party entering the reception.
Busting out in dance! The whole wedding was like watching one of Xiaoyi’s elaborate Chinabration culture shows again. 🙂
Chinese tea ceremony with the parents.
The groom’s brother is an award-winning calligrapher in China who has his own calligraphy school! He created this beautiful calligraphy on the spot at the reception, to wish the couple a lifetime of happiness.
A reception game in which the groom trying to guess whose hand is his bride’s.
Changing into a sexy dress for dancing!
The guys getting down on the dancefloor!
Cake cutting!
Congratulations Xiaoyi & Bochen!
It was a beautiful day and we were so happy we could be a part of it! (Special thanks to my parents, who watched Mio for us while we were at the wedding.) We wish the couple a lifetime of happiness together! ♥
The cherry blossoms at Kenwood may not be as famous as the ones in DC, but they are just as stunning… I know a lot of people who actually prefer the trees in Kenwood! I had heard of Kenwood, but had never taken the chance to go see them until last Thursday, when I went with Mio, my father, and my sister Miwa. The canopy of blossoms that continues for as far as the eye can see makes it feel like you’re walking through a pink cloud… it was truly breathtaking!
I only had my phone camera on me to snap photos, so the pictures don’t quite do the blossoms justice, but I’m glad that I could capture some of the beauty of these gorgeous sakura.
Mio with the Kenwood cherry blossoms behind her.
Mio and I in front of the cherry blossoms that flank the roads.
Mio with Auntie Miwa. There’s a little stream that runs through the neighborhood, between the cherry blossoms.
It seemed like every road you turned onto was enveloped in the cherry blossoms.
The Kenwood community boasts 1,200 Yoshino cherry blossom trees.
With my father and sister.
One of my friends from Japan likened Kenwood to Ueno Park, which is also very beautiful in springtime with its cherry blossoms.
Taking a rest under the sakura.
Making our way back to the car. There was such beautiful, scenic views throughout!
Here’s a video I took on my phone as we were driving out of Kenwood, so you can see just how many cherry blossoms there are turn by turn. I apologize for the shakiness and poor quality. Dan tried to improve it a little by stabilizing it so that the blossoms themselves don’t shake very much (hence why you see the edges of the video shifting).
I feel that Kenwood is not an alternative to the Tidal Basin blossoms, but a primary destination in its own right, and I think I might actually prefer it to the DC blossoms! I loved how we felt surrounded by the cherry blossoms everywhere we turned, and how they formed impressive canopies above us. I also liked the fact that it was not as crowded as the Tidal Basin, and I didn’t have to worry about navigating through the seas of people and making sure I didn’t bump into strangers while admiring the blossoms. This might be our go-to place for hanami from now on!
