It’s white.  Eyes heavy with a hint of dark circles, I lie awake blankly staring at my uneven ceiling; I wait for the alarm to scream *Insert annoying sounds*.  Causing friction with my bedsheet, my right hand tracks down the source of the racquet that irks my ears until my fingers are greeted by the cold touch of brass on my iPhone case.  With a light smile, I press the snooze button for the fourth and last time today, it’s 6:45 AM.  With the excitement that overtook me the night prior, I managed to “sleep” roughly 3 hours and with eyes half shut in attempt to pump myself up for this trip, I jump straight into the alerting, cold shower.  What waits for me in front of my door is a suitcase, my clothes and my Tretorn NyLite shoes, but what’s behind that door, what adventure awaits us over the New York City skyline is unexpected and unknown.  This trip to Washington DC is going to be short, but definitely a memorable one.  Begin #TretornGents.

The great people over at Tretorn really supported our trip to DC, so much so they gave us all pairs of Tretorn NyLite shoes to rock!  This was exciting, not only do I get to wear one of my favorite sneakers during my trip, I was also able to involve my friends into this post, a first for me, including my friends into my blog I mean.  With our fresh shoes on our feet, we venture out into the unknown and explore the historical DC.

It’s 5:30 PM and I missed the best scenery I never got to see; I slept through the whole bus ride there *sigh*, but it’s fine because we’ve finally came to our destination.  New York avenue (how ironic right?), we arrive at our hotel and it hasn’t hit me yet, being in another state I mean. Maybe it was the work out right after we ‘settled in’, the yaks we were throwing back or just being with the same homies I see every weekend, but I felt like I was at home, in Queens.

Groggy men soon turn into excited boys when greeted by the crisp shoes I laid out for them in the morning.  For the past 5 days I have teased them with photographs of the NyLites, refusing to release them before the trip because I know they don’t have the will power not to rock them before then; I wanted the shoes to be factory clean.  We dressed accordingly with our Tretorns, grabbed our maps, my camera and headed downstairs to our shuttle (the hotel offered free shuttle service to and from Union Station which was a 15 minute drive and 5 minutes away from everything).

I almost feel sorry for the DC locals who dilly dally in the void of unexpectedness, unaware a hoard of New Yorkers barrel towards Union Station at 65 mph.  We’re about to tear it up! or just explore.. which ever.

“There it is!”.  Our ignorance took over as we pointed to the Capitol Building from a far, “look, it’s the White House!”.  Glancing back down at the map, we soon gave each other ‘the face’, the face every click has, the face one express when the opposite does or says something seriously dumb.  You know exactly which face expression I speak of.  We laugh at our ignorance, shaking off the embarrassing chills that ran down our spines.  We didn’t mean to offend anyone, we just don’t travel much.  As we walk closer the domed building or the “white house” for this instance, starts to show us its beauty, its presence was most definitely felt.  There it was, the Capitol building, surrounded by men with M4 Carbines ready to fire and bullets loaded to rip through our thin, non-bullet proof cotton button downs.  The security was heavy around this area and we didn’t feel welcomed at all, we left as soon as we got our shots and we weren’t waiting around to be in their frames.  The shot I got was good enough and really captured what our eyes were seeing, detail.

If there is one thing I love about Washington DC it would be its architectural gracefulness.  Each and every building has exquisite detail that New York seems lack.  DC can be of comparison to a real woman.  She is beautiful, curvy and full of top secrets.  The exciting part was, this was just our first stop, I couldn’t wait to see where Lincoln was chilling at!

Warm with a cooling breeze is the way I would describe the weather that afternoon and it was a great compliment to our tretorn shoes.  Rolled up pants paired up with our low cut shoes was great because we were kept cool, not sweating, at least after I took off my sweater.. yes sweater.  I don’t know what I was thinking, but what am I if not adaptable?

The neutral color of my pants really worked well with the tan and that pop of pink on my Nylite’s, admit it, pink does look good on me .  As far as style goes we gave this a 10/10 as soon as we saw it in person, but we were actually curious on how it would perform after 6 hours of walking, the boys came to a conclusion it being very positive.  My friends really complimented on the feather like weight of the footwear which made it possible for us to walk 5 miles continuously in the first place and also spoke on how comfortable the sneakers were, especially the soft inner lining.  They were really appreciative towards Tretorn and I for this.

We continue onwards, walking in a group of four men, the Tretorn Gents were visiting some of the coolest museums.  One of the more interesting museums we attended was the Museum of Man, this place was full of excitement and frankly the most enjoyable way of learning, it’s more hands on or shall I say hands-off.  From dinosaurs to rare diamonds and even mummies, Museum of Man offered interests to the curious.  My friend Danny (he is in the above photo to right, in the back) especially was having a blast, non-stop taking photos of his experience there, it was as if he was a kid in a candy store.   The following photos are a combination of Danny and I’s favorites.

New York gives us 10 seconds to cross a street, DC on the other hand gives us a full minute, 60 long seconds to walk from point A to B (I would hate to be driving).  We joked around that we can seriously have a picnic in the middle of the street without any interference, something between the lines of “lets crack an egg open, fry it on the pavement and just chill for another 45 seconds” lol.  Even with such long green lights for pedestrians, the New Yorker in us just took over and we caught ourselves jay walking all over DC.. just imagine the stares we got!  Cutting time here and there we managed to arrive at the Lincoln Memorial in no time, probably record breaking.

He sits like a boss over looking DC as 24 million visitors take photos of him each year, I was just another man with a camera floating in a sea of flashes.

For years I saw this, what was in front of my eyes, through photographs and movies and being able to experience this with my closest friends and Tretorn footwear was amazing!

Although the Reflecting Pool was under going construction, it was there blinding me in my mind.  I stood on the steps looking at the dry concrete where the pool should be and replayed the moment when McDeere ran across the waters to get away from the ‘them’, some secret service men *please refer to the show The Firm*.  Surreal, I was speechless to be standing in a place of such meaning, deep history and I probably wouldn’t trade it for the world!  Standing where Martin Luther King Jr had his famous “I had a dream” speech, I look ahead with Lincoln behind me and I can see the most prominent landmark in Washington, DC from here, the Washington Monument.  I felt inspired, new and left wanting more.

9PM-3AM. For obvious reasons we will not discuss the happenings between these time frames, have some creativity and imagine.  Let’s just say the nightlife in DC is poppin’!

I asked my friends to write up a quick summary on this trip and their experience with the Tretorn footwear, lets read what they have to say.

   With great anticipation for this trip, I prepared an extensive “must do/visit” list for Washington D.C before I departed New York City. But when I saw my three closest friends at our designated hotel, that list instantaneously vanished. We were ready to enjoy a spontaneous journey around our “Nation’s Capital” with the help of our map that Fairfield Inn provided us. This map guided us through various places like Logan Circle. If you are familiar with this area, you might ask, “Out of all the other places to visit, why Logan Circle?” But for us, the area was occupied with attention-grabbing boutique clothing/art shops and lively restaurants. In order to experience all that was being offered, we had to walk an extraneous amount. The only reason why none of us complained was because of the type of shoes that were on our feet. In sync with the map, the brand new pair of Tretorn sneakers served as our main form of transportation in style. My feet were comfortable while I was greeting Washington D.C with confidence. We walked around town without a plan, but shared a simple goal to enjoy ourselves.

Milton Berle, a legendary television star stated, “Laughter is an instant vacation.” We did not care where we were (to a certain extent); but for me, the highlight of this trip was just laughing about nonsense. Regardless of the setting, my irreplaceable friends made my vacation a success. Why spend a fortune to dine at a staple 5-course restaurant in the city when you have the slightly more affordable Checkers drive-in restaurant across the street from your hotel? My long gone “must do/visit’ list did not include either Logan Circle or Checkers; however, I am glad we made our own list of “been there/done that.” I would love to move on to a more interesting topic: Going out Washington D.C’s nightlife. However, due to the nature of its content, I cannot disclose any information. Let’s just say, “Whatever happened in the DMV, stays lost within The Park at Fourteenth.”

–Eric Lee

    Visiting the nation’s capital, Washington, DC was momentous and extraordinary. There were many factors that made the trip memorable. One of the major factors that made the trip notable was the fact that Tretorn had sponsored us with sneakers so that Mr. Paul Chin aka Lavish Livez could take pictures and write about our day-to-day journey in Washington, DC. The sneakers were remarkably comfortable which helped us to walk 6 hours around the heart of the city! We walked around the National Mall to take in the sights, which included, Capitol Hill, White House, Lincoln Memorial, World War 2 memorial, Vietnam & Korean War memorials, and a variety of museums.
    One of the most memorable “Tretorn” moments I can take back from the trip was when we went into a boutique store to do some eye shopping and caught the attention of a store associate. He was so shocked that all four of us were wearing Tretorn shoes in different styles. He thought it was out of this world and did not hesitate to take a picture, which I thought was very remarkable. I felt we were somewhat distinguished for our New York “style” and “swagger” It also gave me a sense of pride for our friend Paul Chin because if it were not for him, the trip to DC would have been just any ordinary trip. I feel the Tretorn sneakers bought us guys even closer and showed us that figuratively through the sneakers, we were in unison which made the trip noteworthy.

- Norman Chung

    This weekend I went on a trip with my boys Paul (some of you might know him as Lavish Livez), Eric, and Norman. It was actually the first trip that we all took together and it was as good as I expected it to be. Being with your boys walking around taking in the scenery and visiting the museums, monuments, and enjoying the nightlife was definitely a great experience. Walking was definitely a big part of our trip. The monuments and museums alone cover a 2-3 mile radius in Washington DC so there was a lot of walking. If I remember correctly we were walking around for about 6 hours. Fortunately for us, my boy Paul got sponsored through a company by the name of TreTorn for the trip to DC and they provided each of us with a pair of sneakers of our choice. Damn were they comfortable! It was seriously like walking on clouds! Usually my feet hurt after an hour or two but I did 6 hours of walking and had no pain what so ever. From my experience with Tretorn shoe it is definitely one of the most comfortable sneakers I have worn to date and at the same time very simplistic yet fashionable. I would recommend TreTorn to everyone that is looking for their next shoe. Its affordable, comfortable, and fashionable; What more do you need? I thank my boy Paul and TreTorn with much gratitude for providing us with these wonderful sneakers and help making our trip that much more memorable! It was a great experience and glad that Tretorn is a part of our memories of our trip to DC!

- Danny Hwang

I’m entertained on how our mind works or at least how mine functions.  You see, I grew up in New York and I never thought to step foot into the World Trade center, seen the Statue of Liberty (literally) or went to the top of the Empire State Building, yet I explored Washington, DC in a matter of days.  I’ve witnessed Washington’s finest monuments and appreciated the architectural buildings, I took time to take in and learn about our Nations Capitol.  I may have to take a step back and look at New York from the outside in, become obliged to the city that never sleeps.  In another note, this getaway was very much needed.  It gave me a newer outlook on life and have become inspired to do this more often.

The boys and I really want to thank Tretorn and the Puma company for giving us the opportunity to do more and also for bringing us friends closer together.  If it wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t have been able to go out there and enjoy the scenery or even be laced up with such iconic footwear.

If you ever get a chance to either get a pair of Tretorn Nylites, visit Washington, DC or both, please do it.  You won’t regret it.

To buy a pair of Tretorn Nylites please click here!