International Flair

I attended a birthday celebration for a friend Thursday night at Gua Rapo's in Arlington. I thought the sign out front looked good with the colored wall. I always try to take an informational photo that describes the event or venue that I'm visiting. It's a frame of reference, and it's especially helpful in taking photos of signs with information on it. Walking through the front door I saw an interesting lamp and neon sign atop a staircase. Friends of the birthday girl just kept arriving and we had about 16 or so in our group. This place has an upstairs lounge and dance floor, but it was closed that the time we were there. The restaurant part on the entry level has an international flair. The dim lighting and high-volume music is inescapable. The live Latin band and hookah (pipes with flavored tobacco) are a couple main attractions there. I didn't smoke anything, but sure enough, there was enough second-hand smoke floating around. You may feel a bit crowded there, and the atmosphere lends itself to loud, close talking and sharing of tapas and other not so ordinary but delicious food offerings. It's quite an experience, and when you step back outside and the smoke clears, you may find yourself feeling like you were in another country and are on your way home.