Things to Do

Best Things to Do in the DC Area 5/16-5/23: Silk Road Festival, Strawberries, and Cookbook Talks

Plus, a dragon boat festival!

Photograph by hiramtom/ E+ via Getty Images.

Itโ€™s Humid Out There.

Hello Neighbor,ย 

Hope you had a great weekend, and hope you have a wonderful week!ย 

ย 

So, What Should You Do May 16-23?

For your convenience, this newsletter includes emojis to help you during these unprecedented times:ย 

  • The ๐Ÿ›‹ indicates an event is happening in-person inside.
  • The ๐ŸŒฒ indicates an event is happening in-person outside.ย 
  • The ๐Ÿ’ป indicates an event is happening virtually.ย 
  • And lastly, the ๐Ÿ†“ indicates an event is ๐Ÿ†“.

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Top 5 Picks of the Week

  1. Central Asia. ๐ŸŒ Explore the Silk Road Festival (Sun, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹, Foggy Bottom), which will showcase arts and crafts, live entertainment, traditional food and drink, and film screenings. Related to the festivities: the debut of a wearable-art exhibit, โ€œNews from Central Asia,โ€ (starts Mon, ๐Ÿ†“โ€”donations encouraged, ๐Ÿ›‹, Foggy Bottom). You could also enjoy Mongolian cuisine at an evening at the Embassy of Mongolia (Wed, $55, ๐Ÿ›‹, Georgetown).
  2. Dinosaurs and dragons. ๐Ÿฆ–๐Ÿฆ•๐Ÿ‰ย See over 50 animatronic dinosaurs as part of a walk-through of the Jurassic Encounterย (starts Fri, $24+, ๐ŸŒฒ, Centerville). There will be digging for bones, a dino villageโ€“and pets are allowed! Head to the Georgetown waterfront to watch the ornate dragon boats race (Sat, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, Georgetown).
  3. Nighttime parties. ๐ŸŒ™๐Ÿ•บย Celebrate 90 years with Dumbarton House at Dusk (Thurs, donation, ๐Ÿ›‹, Georgetown) with cake, music, lawn games, and a self-guided tour of the museum. Dive into the world of pop-art at this yearโ€™s Hirshhorn Ball (Sat, $500+, ๐Ÿ›‹, National Mall)โ€“ an evening of dancing, open bars, light bites, and a fashion contest under the stars.ย 
  4. Bike to Work Day. ๐Ÿšดโ€โ™€๏ธ Change up your commute this week and stop at one of the 100 pit stops in the area for a free T-shirt (Fri, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, various).ย 
  5. A springtime festival anyone? ๐ŸŒท๐ŸŽชย The Bourbon and Bluegrass Festival (Sat-Sun, $80, ๐ŸŒฒ, Armed Forces Retirement Home) is upon us: kick back with bourbon cocktails, beer tastings, and music while enjoying an exterior tour of Lincolnโ€™s Cottage. The Village of Shirlington will be having a Spring Fling (Sat, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, Arlington) with over 40 local makers and artisans, craft stations, live music, and pet adoptions. Take a trip to Strawberry Village (Sun, $, ๐ŸŒฒ, Sandy Spring), filled with strawberry baking contests, strawberry art, strawberry crafts, and strawberry pastries. See dozens of rare and exotic cars up close at The Old Town Festival of Speed & Style (Sun, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, Old Town Alexandria) while shopping at over 40 local merchants.ย 

 

ย Everything Else This Week

  • Call it fashion. ๐Ÿงตย Thereโ€™s an AAPI fashion show (Thurs, $35, ๐Ÿ›‹, Logan Circle) as well as workshops to learn how to read patternsย (Mon, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ’ป), wax and dye Indonesian batikย (Sat, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹, National Mall), and eco-print fabric with flowers (Fri, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ’ป).ย 
  • In case you missed the embassy open houses. ๐Ÿ‡ช๐Ÿ‡ธ๐Ÿ‡ญ๐Ÿ‡น๐Ÿ‡จ๐Ÿ‡ท๐Ÿ‡ซ๐Ÿ‡ท Enjoy film screenings of โ€œMalgrรฉ-Nousโ€ (Tues, $10+, ๐Ÿ›‹, Glover Park) at the Embassy of France and โ€œLa รบltima primaveraโ€ย (Wed, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹, Columbia Heights) at the former residence of the Ambassador of Spain. In terms of celebrations, you can spend an evening at the Embassy of Costa Rica (Thu, $64, ๐Ÿ›‹, Kalorama) and celebrate Flag Day (Wed, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹, Dupont Circle) at the Embassy of Haiti.ย 
  • Ukraine. ๐Ÿ‡บ๐Ÿ‡ฆ There are a few fundraisers featuring Ukrainian artists including a โ€œTaking Back Zโ€ rooftop concertย (Tues, donation, ๐ŸŒฒ, Logan Circle) and a Concert to Benefit Ukraine (Sun, $45, ๐Ÿ›‹, Capitol Hill). If youโ€™re still looking to understand the war, you may be interested in attending this lecture (Sun, $13, ๐Ÿ›‹, Dupont Circle).ย 
  • A week of cookbooks. ๐Ÿ‘จโ€๐Ÿณ๐Ÿ‘ฉโ€๐Ÿณย Thereโ€™s Peter Serpicoโ€™s โ€œLearning Koreanโ€ (Mon, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹,ย  Dupont Circle), Kwame Onwuachiโ€™s โ€œMy America: Recipes from a Young Black Chefโ€ (Tues, $18, ๐Ÿ›‹, Chinatown), and Tamika Scottโ€™s โ€œTable Set: A Taste of the Southโ€ (Fri, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ›‹, Downtown).ย 
  • The DC Arab Literature Festival. ๐Ÿ“š Uncover the growing literary landscape of Arab literature (Tues-Wed, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐Ÿ’ป).ย 
  • A hodgepodge of fun. ๐Ÿงฉ Head to an outdoor screening of โ€œCool Runningsโ€ (Wed, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, NoMa). See azalea bonsais (starts, Sat, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, Arboretum) in bloom. Attend a dance fitness party (Sun, ๐Ÿ†“, ๐ŸŒฒ, Georgetown). Taste some natural wines (Wed-Thu, $10, ๐Ÿ›‹/ ๐ŸŒฒ, Park View). Enjoy music from the Golden Age of film (Tues, $18, ๐Ÿ›‹, 16th St).ย 

 

Your Neighbor,

Jade (@clockoutdc)

Jade Womack is an energy economist by day, and an events blogger by night. She started her blog, Clockout DC, when she was moonlighting as a bartender in 2019. She grew up in Arlington, and currently lives in Adams Morgan with her dog.