MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11
DRINKS Several Georgetown bars and restaurants are giving discounts on pairs of drinks this week. Each restaurant has its own specialty, from the simple (two glasses of rosé wine at ENO Wine Bar) to the complex (a wild hibiscus gin topped with sparkling rosé and edible flowers at Sequoia). $14 for 2 cocktails. Through February 17.
BOOKS Washington Post journalist Jason Rezaian will speak about his memoir, Prisoner: My 544 Days in an Iranian Prison—Solitary Confinement, a Sham Trial, High-Stakes Diplomacy, and the Extraordinary Efforts It Took to Get Me Out at the National Press Club. Accused of espionage in Iran and convicted in a closed-door trial, Rezaian spent eighteen months in Iranian prison before his eventual release. $40 (includes a copy of the book), 7 PM.
TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 12
COOKING Want to try making sushi? Chef Chericia Easton is teaching a class on sushi and tempura at the Hill Center. Learn some of the classic rolls—California, dragon, and tuna—plus, veggie rolls and veggie tempura. $85, 6:30 PM.
BOOKS Author and DC native Chris Wilson will talk about his memoir, The Master Plan: My Journey from Life in Prison to a Life of Purpose, at Politics & Prose at the Wharf. Convicted of murder at 18 and sentenced to life without parole, Wilson used his prison time to be as productive as he could, getting through his ongoing to-do list of reading, language-learning, and fitness sessions that he called his Master Plan. In his mid-30s, he petitioned a judge to reduce his sentence; now, Wilson lives in Baltimore, where he runs a furniture restoration business and a construction company that employs returning citizens. Free, 7 PM.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13
FILM In 1969, Czech student Jan Palach set himself on fire in Prague’s Wenceslas Square to protest the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia. After his death, thousands attended his funeral in protest of the new totalitarian regime, making Palach a symbol of courage and resistance. As part of The Avalon’s “Lions of Czech Film” series, the theatre will show the 2018 film Jan Palach, which follows Palach’s final few months and the changes in Czechoslovakia at the time. $12.75, 8 PM.
FILM Celebrate the unofficially official Galentine’s Day—yes, Valentine’s Day for you and your gals—with a screening of the Kristin Wiig and Maya Rudolph comedy Bridesmaids at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History. Show up early for a cocktail party before the film, and enjoy photo opps and live music. Party and film: $25-$40, 6:15 PM; Film only: $10, 7:55 PM.
