My parents (that’s them at right) have been going around the U.S. on some business, and they dropped by DC for the weekend to visit, staying with my uncle and aunt in Arlington. (Unfortunately our 1BR downtown DC apartment does not have guest space).

Funny thing is, they’ve done the whole “DC thing” for decades, so the first thing they wanted to see wasn’t monuments or museums, but shops: Gotta Run at Pentagon Row, the Bailey’s Crossroads REI, an Apple Store at Market Common, and other retail outlets you don’t get in the Philippines (at least, not without paying extra for steep import tariffs). Even a plain old CVS was like a Disney theme park. That made the weekend shopping fun in its own right.

Besides all the suburban mall-hopping we also attended a reception at Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton (with a performance by Barbara Cook who is astonishingly spry for 80), went to mass at St. Charles, and had burgers at Whitlows. I dropped Mom and Dad off at the airport Tuesday morning; next we see them will be after Christmas.

Some quick snapshots from the weekend, including a Jelly Belly carrot, a Star Wars Tooth Tunes toothbrush, and a box of recorders sitting in a corner at Saint Charles: