Transitions: A Long Walk Outside The Hood

Life Rewind

Warrior Walkers!
©July 2017

My avid walker husband has managed to turn his used to be avid runner
wife into a weekend warrior walker! It doesn't matter when or where, for the hubby is bound to go walking. Throughout the years, I have accompanied my husband on long walks through and around our neighborhoods, but I have never really paid attention to the surroundings. I am used to the daily routine of hopping in the car and going about our daily business of school and work. One day I see an abandoned building on the corner lot of despair. Then the next month there's a fence around it with signs of renovations about to begin. There are a lot of transitions happening inside and outside of our neighborhood. It's one thing to see the changes from inside the car, but seeing the changes up close on foot is another eyeopening experience.

So when my husband asked me to take a walk with him outside of our current neighborhood last summer, I said okay. What I thought was just an ordinary walk to get fit and stay healthy, turned into a walk of discovery about the city we call home. We have been Washington, DC. residents for the past 15 and half years. For twelve years we lived in the NE quadrant section of the city by the infamous R.F.K Memorial Stadium where Washington's football, baseball, and soccer teams have played. Unfortunately, the stadium is a shell of itself. However, there are still events taking place there from time to time. It also happens to have an expansive parking lot, which is a great spot to teach a teen how to drive!

R.F.K Memorial Stadium Event
© September 2016

 What I liked most about the area when we lived in the neighborhood was the walking and running path. It is located on the outskirts of the stadium. There is also a playground located along the path, but closer to the residential homes. We would often take the kids down to the playground, roller skate, and taught them to ride bikes. The path around the stadium was also where my husband and I would often walk. Also I would attempt to channel my inner Flo Jo and run (not really, for my knees say otherwise!).

Trail next to Suitland Pkwy
© June 2018

For the past three and half years we have lived in the SE quadrant of the city. I guess the landmark I can give would be the infamous Suitland Parkway located just off the 295 highway, and one of the roadways to Prince Georges County Maryland (oh the morning and afternoon traffic headaches!). Another landmark that folks in the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia) would know is the historic Barry Farms. It is a Southeast neighborhood located east of the Anacostia River, and is about to undergo redevelopment and revitalization by the DC Housing Authority (stay tuned). Just like our former Northeast neighborhood, our Southeast neighborhood and surroundings are going through some transformations. It has been within this past year of taking walks with my husband that I have begun to appreciate the changes. I have begun to document our walks by taking photos of the sites we have passed while stopping to read some of the history markers that are located in various locations.

Now Press Forward

Now pressing forward to let us say two weeks ago, my husband and I managed to walk three days out of the fourth of July week (yes we walked on the 4th!). It was exhausting, but I pushed myself enough to tackle some hills. I had to channel my inner self from my cross country days in high school. Our walk normally starts with us walking down hill (Stanton Road) towards Suitland Parkway, crossing the parkway, and then walking through the neighborhood on the other side of Stanton Road. We then would walk through the streets of historic Anacostia to get to the Fredrick Douglass Memorial Bridge.

View of the Douglass Bridge
coming from Suitland Pkwy
© June 2018

Now family and friends who know me may remember that I had a phobia of driving or riding in a vehicle across bridges. The Verrazano-Narrows Bridge that connects the boroughs of Staten Island to Brooklyn in New York is to blame. Back in the day we took family trips to Brooklyn to visit extended family, and the sight of the bridge literally was terrifying as a kid. Although the suspension bridge still freaks me out as an adult, I now appreciate its industrial beauty! My phobia may have subsided throughout the years, but walking across the Douglass Bridge tends to bring back the fear of falling into the river below. The bridge shakes when driven across, and walking across is no better. The Douglass bridge is a swing bridge that carries South Capitol Street across the Anacostia River, and one of a few bridges that connects Southeast to the rest of the city. Southeast is only accessible via a bridge. I have managed to channel my inner calm of silence when crossing by foot, which means my husband can't talk to me until we are completely across the bridge! Once we walk over the swing section of the bridge, I am in my "Thank you Jesus" mode! Check me out!

I can do this!
© June 2018

                  

               I made it across!
          © June 2018

Douglass Bridge from
South Capitol Street
© July 2018

A long walk outside the hood means just that. On average, my husband and I walk approximately six miles round trip. Our long walks tend to last about two and half to three hours, because we tend to stop to take in the view. To be frankly honest, our long walks give us that much needed couple time away from our offspring! Shh...don't tell the kids! We have found walking outside of our neighborhood is very intriguing with an insight to DC history. At times we have accidentally stumbled upon unknown sites. One little unknown site we discovered on July 7th was the Field House, which was hosting a viewing of the World Cup. It's like an outside bar area located just in back (depending on which street you are on) of the new DC United Soccer Stadium. The stadium had it's grand opening last weekend (July 14th). When we had discovered the Field House, the event guide at the gate stated the site had only been open for about a month. Residents from the neighborhood (Southwest quadrant of the city), military personnel from nearby Ft. Lesley J. McNair Army Post (I used to work on the post!), and other folks heard about it through word of mouth. 

Inside the Field House
located outside Audi Field.
© July 2018

 The Field House
perimeter fence with Ft. McNair
in the background. © July 2018

I am sure the Field House was packed during the World Cup final. Shout out to France for winning the World Cup! I liked how the countries that had played in the World Cup Series were represented by their flags posted along the perimeter fence.  The Field House is free to get in with ID check, and very family and pet friendly. At the time of our visit, there was just one LED video screen, bars to buy beer and soft drinks, and two food trucks (more to come).  There was also a game area for the kids to play. The field and soccer stadium is located directly across from the Nationals Park (baseball stadium), which makes it one of the prime locations to hangout for social gatherings and sporting events. This Southwest area is known as Buzzard Point. The     hubby and I plan to bring the kids by the Field House soon. They were curious as to why we had stamps on our hands when we got back to the house! For more information on the Field House, check out the website www.fieldhousedc.com. 

I hope to document more sites from our long walks, for this experience has given me a reason to keep writing. I hope to share a little more of the many transitions that are taking place throughout the city for which I live. I have enjoyed seeing and experiencing the Nation's Capital outside my hood on foot. I've seen a lot of changes thus far, and there is more to come. Stay tuned.

Kaisha


Photos courtesy of Kaisha S. Goring
Blog post copyright © July 23, 2018
All Rights Reserved.