This month we
are going to hit two separate venues -- a Thai New Year's festival in the outer Virginia suburbs, southwest of Dulles Airport, and a trendy Russian restaurant south of Dupont Circle.
Songkran Festival in Virginia
On Sunday morning, April 28, at 11 a.m., join fellow
alumni as we head to Aldie, Virginia for the annual Songkran festival at Wat Pananchart - Songkran is the New Year's festival where Thais "make
merit" by feeding the monks, and there is a lot of scrumptious homemade
food for sale at VERY reasonable prices (and yes, it IS allowed, and even
expected, to feed yourself). If we are lucky and the weather is nice enough, we
will be there for the water-throwing part of the festival.
The various temples in the area take turns hosting Songkran festivals on successive Sundays. Had you tried to attend Songkran at Wat Thai DC on Layhill Road last Sunday, you would have had to park a mile away and waited on line for over half an hour to get food unless you arrived promptly at the beginning of the festival at 9 AM. Songkran in Aldie is a much lower key affair; we will plan to arrive at 11 AM and we should be fine.
40539 John Mosby Highway
Aldie, Virginia 20105
(Out Route 50 past Dulles Airport)
Rides can be arranged for those without access to wheels
of their own. Contact Paul Levy '72 for further information
or to arrange rides.
Fine Russian Cuisine, downtown DC
Then on Tuesday, April 30, at 7:30 p.m., join possibly
different fellow alumni as we enjoy a fine-dining experience at Mari Vanna, a
Metro-accessible Russian restaurant located in downtown DC. Mari Vanna is a strong new entrant on the
Russian-cuisine scene. You can stick to several different versions of blini
(traditional homemade Russian crepes) or Siberian pelmeni (handmade dumplings)
or vareniki (Ukrainian dumplings) or go dig into beef stroganoff, rabbit
solyanka, oven roasted quail, or half-smoked salmon. Mari Vanna also features
an amazing vodka collection--you can get a full glass, or a brimming shot glass
for $8. Try the vodka infused with horseradish, or honey and oats, or sea
buckthorn.
The Russian ex-pat and business crowd can be a wealthy one, and this
restaurant is definitely more expensive than the usual restaurant-club outing,
but we will be sensitive to making this meal affordable to alumni on more
limited budgets. We will need reservations, so please let Margaret Anderson know that yo are coming so that we can be sure that the reservation is big enough.
Tuesday, April 30, 7:30 p.m.
Mari Vanna Restaurant
1141 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20036
202/783-7777
Nearest Metro station: Farragut West (blue line) or Farragut North (red line).
