Before getting into this post, I must first give full disclosure: I am a HUGE Braves fan. And not only that, I’m that obnoxious Braves fan who sits behind you and taunts you every time the Nats fuck up. I could blame the beer on my behavior, but I don’t drink the stuff. Nope, it’s just pure, unadulterated love for my Georgia boys! But I digress…
I was fortunate enough to receive very sweet tickets to the Nats vs. Braves game on Friday night as a bit of a birthday gift. How sweet you may ask? Four rows from the Braves dugout!!!! I could smell Jeff Francoeur’s sweat from my seat! Coming from a girl that was used to Turner Field in Atlanta, RFK left a lot to be desired. So I was anxious to see what DC came up with for the new Nats home base…okay, more like worried considering DC isn’t known for it’s stellar public policies.
Imagine my surprise when I was greeted with a well designed and thoughtfully laid out ballpark. My friend Carmen and I walked around the park before finding our seats to get a feel for it. Taking advantage of the park’s location, sections of the stadium open out to the waterfront. There are a large number of concession stands strategically located throughout the park to try to reduce long lines. BUT (and this is a huge but) there is only ONE Ben’s Chili Bowl storefront (read very long lines even almost an hour before the opening pitch). Although I had no problem waiting in line for my chili half smoke (and the line moved fairly quickly), I still wished there was at least two Ben’s Chili Bowl stands (one on each side of the park). Luckily our seats were very close to it, but for everyone on the other side of the stadium, it could be a bit of an annoyance. Just learned from a friend you can get a Ben’s half smoke at any of the Nats Dogs vendors located throughout the stadium! Problem solved!
When we finally made our way to our seats (my half smoke in my eager little hands), I was floored at just how fantastic our seats turned out to be (see the picture above…I took it from my seats without the zoom function). But my lucky break aside, the layout of the stadium provides a good sight line for just about every seat in the house. And even better, you can get great seats for the whole family without crippling your wallet. Even my choice seats only had a face value of $60…similar seats at other parks could easily cost $100 each!
It was a perfect night for a ball game…the rain stayed at bay and it was an idyllic temperature. Even though I was the only Braves fan in my section, I screamed my head off for Francoeur, Chipper and the boys (much to the dismay of Carmen and the guys in front of us). And did I mention the Braves won? I didn’t? Hmmm…I probably should have put that in big, bold, flashing letters at the front. Not that I’m bragging or anything…well maybe just a little:
Stumble It!
Adventures in Shaw 
That’s the thing I loved about going to the new park. My fiance and I went to a Mets game a couple of weeks ago and we were definitely not that close, but still amazing.
And don’t worry about being THAT Braves fan. I’m THAT Redskins fan, haha. We all have it in us.
We’re going to the Marlins game on Saturday night, and given the rain stays away, it should be great. And this time I’m DEFINITELY trying Ben’s Chili Bowl.