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My best friend (yes, the same one I mentioned in New York City 2008 who says I can’t cross a city street) and I have an ongoing debate.  East vs. West, New York or California?  San Diego or Washington D.C.?

Of course being from California, I always say West.  We have better beaches, better waves, we’re more relaxed, we have Hollywood and Disneyland.  He laughs at me, claiming they have better cities, better public transportation, better manners, New York City and the good colleges.

In California, we don’t really have seasons.  But when we do, we can have all four seasons in one day -even one afternoon.  So when I went to Washington D.C. with my school in October of 2009, it was quite a shock seeing the trees changing colors and watching the rain fall steadily every night and early morning.

We took the red-eye out of LAX, flying out at 10:45 p.m. on my first Virgin America flight (I highly recommend this airline.  It’s super awesome.)  The inside of the cabins look like this:

They’ve got little TVs built into the seats.  You can chat, watch movies, play games, and order food/drinks with them.  Last time I was there they were working on texting and calling, the next step in air travel technology.  There are pretty lights all around the cabin and the seats are comfortable.  And  wasn’t even sitting in first class.  I was actually in the cheap seats and it was still good, which is saying something.

We landed in the Dulles Airport in Chantilly, Virginia, and took a shuttle to collect our bags.  Stopping at a McDonald’s, we ventured forth to historic Jamestown.  Only 6:30 in the morning, the sun was already strong and shining brightly through the autumn tinted leaves.

The tour guide took us into the shops, which were filled with beautiful trinkets.  Made of the export Jamestown was famous for back in Colonial days, glass baubles of every color covered the shelves in neat rows, glittering in the early morning light.  Jugs and coasters, decorative figurines, cups and pitchers were all laid out to buy.

I remember standing on the shore, the water gently lapping at the toes of my vans, and staring out at the pale blue offing, fringed with the green of a small peninsula that jutted out across the horizon.  The ocean sat still inside the bay and I could not hear the waves crashing on the other side of the greenery.  But the day was radiant from where I stood.

There were all sorts of odd monuments hidden through Jamestown, standing at the side of a winding path or quietly tucked back in a shadowy grove of trees.  The magnitude and architecture struck me, so different from the design in California.

Well I’m at risk for making this post too long so I’ll stop here.  But I’ll continue this segment very shortly.  So until I return, think about your team.  Whose side are you on?  East…?  Or West?