The Weekend Round-Up: May 20-22

 

KFDC go-to posts full ideas for local fun:
* Off-the-Beaten-Path Museums
* The Great Indoors
* Best Outdoors in the DC Area
* Local Hikes with Kids
* Bike Rides
* Stunning Spaces
* Peaceful Places
* Baltimore with Kids
* Spring Things

Jazz it Up
Where: NGA Sculpture Garden | National Mall, DC
When: Friday, 6–8:30pm
Admission: Free
Start the weekend with live jazz in the fresh air! The National Gallery of Art’s free, outdoor summer music series is back for the first time in a few years, kicking off this weekend with  a performance by jazz violinist Nataly Merezhuk. Spread out a blanket, pack a picnic dinner or purchase food and drinks there, and enjoy the tunes amid the sculptures. Note: BYO alcohol is not permitted, but adult drinks (and food) are available from the pavilion. (And if tickets are all gone, snag them for next week’s show!)

Open Swim
Where: Around the DC area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
This round-up of places to swim around the area will come in handy sooner than expected over the hot weekend. Find beaches on the Bay (and even Atlantic), lakes and rivers, and swimming holes and creeks — all that welcome the public to take a dip.

Strawberry Jubilee
Where: Great Country Farms | Bluemont, VA
When: Saturday & Sunday, 10am – 5pm
Admission: $12/child, $14/adult
The longest running strawberry festival in Loudoun County takes place this weekend and next, rain or shine. Get ready for lots of fun activities for all ages, including  live music, farm contests, wagon rides, great food, and fun games for the whole fam. As if that’s not enough to keep the everyone entertained for the day, there’s also the five-acre play area, complete with the jumping pillow, slides, rope swings, mazes, a tractor tire mountain, and animal encounters. Get tickets in advance!

Artsplosion Street Party
Where: The Plaza | Downtown Silver Spring, MD
When: Saturday, 11am – 2pm
Admission: Free
The Artsplosion Street Party will have all kinds of fun for the whole fam. A Drag Queen Story Hour, interactive and uplifting art, a pop up biergarten, music from a DJ and a live performance, free kids crafts, and spin bikes are just some of the festivities to enjoy!

Dragon Boat Festival
Where: Thompson Boat House | Georgetown, DC
When: Saturday, 9am – 5pm
Admission: Free
The annual DC Dragon Boat Festival is back after a few years — now in its 19th year.  It’s an experience for athletes and spectators alike. The family-friendly event features the best premier and local dragon boat teams from along the east coast racing in multiple distances over the course of the day. The public is welcome to watch this unique event for free, and there are cultural activities to enjoy, too.

Bourbon & Bluegrass
Where: President Lincoln’s Cottage | Petworth, DC
When: Saturday & Sunday
Admission: $80/adult, $35/age 7-17, free/6 & under
The rollicking fundraiser is back in person this year!  Featuring an extraordinary line up of music, bourbon and beer tastings, and fun activities for the whole family, this is an event you don’t want to miss.  More details coming soon! Get tickets here.

Lucketts Spring Market
Where: Clarke County Fairgrounds | Berryville, VA
When: Friday, Saturday, & Sunday
Admission: $15/adult, free/12 & under
The weekend long event features all things vintage, farmhouse, industrial, garden, architectural, textiles. If you are looking for a unique one-of-a-kind piece, this is the weekend to find the perfect treasure. Food trucks with yummy fare, live music, and fun workshops are to the festivities.

Baseball at the Postal Museum
Where: National Postal Museum | Union Station Area, DC
When: Throughout the weekend, 10am – 5:30pm
Admission: Free
Enjoy some baseball outside of the ballpark at the National Postal Museum!  Baseball: America’s Home Run opened a few weeks ago and explores our national pastime through a unique, postal lens, including fan letters, post office baseball teams, the worlds of stamp and baseball memorabilia collecting, and more.  Read more about the wonderful Postal Museum, which is great to explore with little ones, here and here.

Open Streets DC
Where: Martin Luther King Jr. Ave| Southeast DC
When: Saturday, 9am – 1pm
Admission: Free
No cars, just people. Open Streets in Your Neighborhood is kicking off with Ward 8’s Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE! The event will close 0.3 miles of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE to cars and open them to people to ride, bike, walk, socialize, and participate in exciting programming! The main stage will feature music, entertainment, and demonstrations, with one activation zone along the Open Streets route providing opportunities to join a fitness class.  Other activities include Double Dutch jump rope, a traffic garden, rollerblading, bike demonstrations, a photo booth, a protected bike lane that connects the route to the Anacostia Park trail, and much more!

The Boro’s Gambit
Where: The Boro | Tysons, VA
When: Saturday, 11am – 1pm
Admission: Free to spectate, $30 to play
Join The Boro as they welcome chess enthusiasts of all levels and watch them face chess grandmaster Rashad Babaev in The Boro’s Gambit. Up to 50 players of all levels will go head to head against the only grandmaster in the area. The top three players will take home prizes! Aren’t ready to face the grandmaster yet? Join us as a spectator and watch all the action go down! Kids can even enjoy activities in Boro Park. Bring the whole family out for this not-to-miss event!

Art Outside: Indonesian Batik
Where: National Museum of Asian Art | National Mall, DC
When: Saturday, 1-4pm
Admission: Free
Experience the art of Indonesian batik in the museum’s Moongate Garden at this drop-in demonstration — batik is a method of resist textile dyeing that is achieved by adding alternate layers of wax and dye to a fabric to produce elaborate designs. Artists will demonstrate aspects of the process and give visitors the opportunity to try out materials and experience the process firsthand. They will also share examples of traditional Javanese batik and discuss their creative process and the range of artworks created in their studio.

ConstructionFest
Where: Cleveland Park, DC
When: Starting Saturday through June 16
Admission: Free
Cleveland Park Main Street is undergoing a major streetscape project for the next 20+ months — but that doesn’t mean the fun has to stop! To help counter the impact of the construction on Cleveland Park’s small businesses, CPMS is organizing ConstructionFest, a 4-week fun and wacky celebration featuring unique window displays withlocally-created artwork & illustrations, food & drink specials, Friday night music series (live music on June 3, 10, and 17), a ConstructionFest mascot scavenger hunt, and more!

Gaithersburg Book Festival
Where: Bohrer Park | Gaithersburg, MD
When: Saturday, 10am – 6pm
Admission: Free
The City of Gaithersburg welcomes you to their annual literary event! Festivities will include the chance to see and meet some of the world’s best writers, from best-sellers to acclaimed up-and-comers; join in literary workshops; and a full day of fun at the Children’s Village. Bohrer Park is located at 506 S. Frederick Avenue.

2022 Teen Twelfth Night
Where: Synetic Theatre | Crystal City, VA
When: Friday & Saturday, 8pm | Sunday, 2pm
Tickets: $20-60 (get discount)
If music be the food of love, play on! The brilliant young artists of the Teen Company present Synetic Theatre’s celebrated 1920s take on Shakespeare’s whirlwind of romance and slapstick.

Show Way the Musical
Where: Kennedy Center | Foggy Bottom, DC
When: Friday, 7pm | Saturday & Sunday, 1:30pm & 4pm
Tickets: $20 (get discount)
A show for kids… Soonie’s great-grandma was just seven years old when she was sold to a big plantation without her ma and pa, with only some fabric and needles to call her own. She began to stitch a Show Way, a quilt with secret meanings to show enslaved people the way to freedom. As each generation passes, the Show Way shines a light on the past and paves a road to the future, stitching together possibility and promise. Education Artist-in-Residence Jacqueline Woodson’s book of history, love, and resilience becomes a world premiere stage adaptation. This moving, lyrical account based on Woodson’s own family pays tribute to women whose strength and knowledge illuminate their daughters’ lives—from enslavement to freedom, through segregation, freedom marches, and the fight for literacy. Recommended for ages 7+.

Into the Woods
Where: Creative Cauldron | Falls Church, VA
When: Friday & Saturday 7:30pm | Sunday, 2pm & 7pm
Tickets: $40/adult, $25/child
Catch a performance… With an imaginative book by James Lapine that skillfully intertwines the stories and characters from Grimm fairy tales, and a luscious score by Stephen Sondheim, this Tony Award-winning musical has become a timeless masterpiece. A baker and his wife wish for a child, Cinderella wishes to go to the King’s Festival and Jack wishes to sell his cow, so into the woods they must go in search of their prize. Happily ever after eludes them, however, as they soon learn the tangled consequences of getting exactly what you wished for.

The Fantastic Tale of Rumpelstiltskin
Where: The Puppet Co. | Glen Echo Park, MD
When: Friday, 10:30am | Saturday & Sunday, 11:30am & 1pm
Tickets: $15
In this production, the Puppet Co. gives you the full story of what happens after the gold has been spun and the day has been saved. This hilarious and smart comedy will be a great romp for adults and kids alike. Can you guess Rumpelstiltskin’s new name?! Recommended ages 4+, and run time approximately 50 minutes. Sunday’s show is a sensory friendly performance.

Row Your Boat
Where: Fletcher’s Boathouse | Foxhall, DC
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Rentals start at $/hour
On the water pursuits are linked at the top, but one of our favorites is paddling the Potomac from Fletcher’s Boathouse. That area of the river is particularly pretty, verdant with trees flanking the shoreline. Wildlife sightings are likely — we always see turtles, egrets, and ducks, and have spotted hawks and herons, too. And if you paddle east toward Georgetown, you’ll catch views of the Washington Monument. Read about our first Fletcher’s paddling adventure here. And find more places for recreation on the water here.

Ride On
Where: Around the DC area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Free
There’s a quick link to bike routes above, but this is a stronger recommendation to get out for a family ride — and you’ve got your pick of good rides around the area! Take in the spring scenery, get some exercise, and have fun enjoying an activity with the fam. This post has a bunch of pedal-worthy recs, with something for riders of all levels, and this route is particularly ideal with little kids.

Vamos United!
Where: Audi Field | Southwest DC
When: Saturday, 4pm
Admission: Tickets start at $40
DC United is home this weekend, and there’s a match against Toronto FC on Saturday afternoon. I recommend taking public transportation as parking can be difficult. Or park in the Navy Yard neighborhood and plan to walk from there (and maybe grab dinner after the match — El Bebe, All Purpose Pizza, The Salt Line, and Dacha are very convenient and my top recs for family-friendly spots to eat there).

Old Town Festival of Speed & Style
Where: King Street | Old Town Alexandria, VA
When: Sunday, 10am – 3pm
Admission: Free
View dozens of rare and exotic cars up close, made famous by their speed, performance and elegance. This will be enhanced by a presentation of style, fashion and live music provided by over 40 local merchants. The Old Town Festival of Speed & Style highlights the unique offerings of the Old Town community –​ history, architecture, great food, fabulous people, art, style, energy. All proceeds benefit ALIVE! and Campagna Center.

Japan Spring Fair
Where: First Presbyterian Church | Arlington, VA
When: Sunday, 2-4:30pm
Admission: Free
May 5 was Children’s Day in Japan. To celebrate it ( a couple of weeks later), Study Japanese in Arlington is hosting a festival with lots of children’s activities, a flea market, “Boroichi” with Japanese and kid’s items, martial arts demos, youth performances, origami, and more! All are welcome to join, and participation is free!

Festa All’Aperto
Where: La Collina | Capitol Hill, DC
When: Sunday, 5-7pm
Admission: The cost of your meal
One of our favorite neighborhood restaurants is having a patio party to celebrate the (almost) return of summer! Bring kiddos—and the young at heart—for dinner delights on the patio. They’ll be featuring a fun film for little ones, along with all their favorites from the bambini menu — think chicken parmies, pasta & meatballs, plus complimentary ice cream sandwiches! Cocktails, carafes of vino, and new spring dishes at the ready for all the grown-ups! Reserve your table here.

Pick Your Own
Where: Around the DMV
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
Strawberries and a few veggies are ripe and ready for harvest, and several area farms are now welcoming guests to pick their own. This post has a round-up of where to go.  It’s always a good idea to check websites or call ahead to confirm availability the day you plan to go. Sunscreen and hat also recommended.

Hikes You’ll Like
Where: Around the area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
Getting out for a walk in the woods is a great way to enjoy some family time on the weekend. Given the hot weather on the way, you’ll probably want to opt for spots that offer good shade. Some places to find it: Scott’s Run Nature Preserve, Mason Neck State Park, Prince William Forest Park, Patapsco Valley State Park, Rock Creek Park.  Find even more places to hike here.

Get Crabby
Where: Annapolis area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Depends on how much you order!
We just enjoyed this last weekend, so it’s on my mind to recommend now.  Feasting on steamed Old Bay-spiced blue crabs is a local treat, and doing so at a waterfront crab house by the water  is a bonus. Cantler’s in Annapolis is an institution, and another family fave is  Mike’s Crab House in Riva with delicious crabs, gorgeous scenery, and a great outdoor waiting area if tables aren’t immediately available. After your feast, head into downtown Annapolis for ice cream at Kilwin’s and a stroll around town.

***MORE GOOD STUFF***
* In case you haven’t seen it yet, The 2022 KFDC Guide to Summer Around the DC Area was just posted!
* Great (long overdue) news this week!
* From the Washington Post,  7 less expensive summer vacation destinations.
* Sales alert:  Backcountry, Madewell, Target, and REI.
* Newest obsession from Trader Joe’s (so yummy).
* Just started reading this book and intrigued so far!
* I know at least one 13-year-old (okay, and one 40-something-year-old) who is excited about this.
* So beautiful.