THE WASHINGTON POST.
FRIDAY, AUGUST 30, 2019EZ
6
My D.C. Dream DaySelf-care for mind, body and soul
T
he first part would be waking
up and somehow magically
having lattes from Filter Cof-
feehouse & Espresso Bar and
chocolate croissants from Bonaparte
Breads — they are so rich and deca-
dent. I’d hang out with my toddler,
Jonah, and my husband, Micah, and
just have a slow morning around the
house.
There’s a homeless services program
in the Columbia Heights area called
Thrive DC — I started teaching a yoga
class there more than 10 years ago and
now I’m on the board. I’d go and serve
breakfast and connect with the clients
and the staff and be a part of that
community. I really love the work they
are doing.
For lunch, I’d go to a South Indian
buffet outside Silver Spring called
Woodlands restaurant. I’d get their
dosas, which are fermented rice batter
made into huge, crispy pancakes and
filled with potatoes and onions and
served with a coconut curry.
Then we’d go to the U.S. National
Arboretum and check out whatever’s
in bloom. I really love the azaleas and
the Youth Garden, which, right now, is
filled with large butterflies.
We’d have to go to the Langdon
Park Pool. It’s a great intersection of a
lot of communities. I always meet
someone new when we go there, and
it’s a huge form of self-care for me to
watch our kids gleefully play in the
water together.
I’d also take a yoga class, and there’s
a really good one at Willow Street
Yoga Center in Ta koma Park, taught
by Francesca Cervero. Her class is
challenging and she’s very alignment-
focused. I’m a yoga teacher, so I’m
really picky about who can take my
body through these exercises, and I
always feel so balanced after her class-
es.
Then I would have dinner with my
family. We’d go to Thip Khao in
Columbia Heights. They have a fried
watercress salad that’s served with
mangoes and cashews. I’d also get the
khao poon; it’s a tofu-coconut curry. I
think it’s the best restaurant in D.C.
Afterward, we’d get dessert at
Momo Yakitori. It’s a Japanese restau-
rant and they have this giant charred
marshmallow that comes with a sweet,
black sesame seed paste. Oh, and I
don’t know if this is weird to mention,
but they also have these amazing
toilets — imported toilets from Japan.
The seats are heated and they send you
off with a warm breeze. I just think
everyone should go experience these
toilets.
[email protected]In D.C. Dream Day, we ask our favorite people in the area to tell us
how they would spend a perfect day in the District.
Ta king time out for meditation and yoga may feel self-indulgent at
a moment when the world seems to be falling apart, but caring for
yourself and caring for the world are two sides of the same coin, says
Gracy Obuchowicz, 37, a wellness guru who grew up in Northern
Virginia and now lives in Brookland. That’s also the main message ofher new book, “Selfcarefully.”
“It’s about how to be deeper in your self-care and braver in your
social activism,” s he says. “If you’re hitting the sweet spot, one grows
naturally out of the other.” For her dream day, Obuchowicz has
imagined a full, nourishing itinerary of food, nature, exercise and cool
commodes.
— as told to Sadie DingfelderKATHERINE FREY/THE WASHINGTON POST
The U.S. National Arboretum offers quiet spots in which to relax, like the columns above, or the many gardens that are in bloom. It
also spotlights the Washington Youth Garden, which, during the summertime, is filled with large butterflies.DAYNA SMITH FOR THE WASHINGTON POSTDIXIE D. VEREEN FOR THE WASHINGTON POST
Khao poon from Thip Khao, above, a tofu-
coconut curry and a charcoal toasted
marshmallow, left, which Momo Yakitori covers
in sesame paste makes for a perfect combination.