After narrowly averting a crisis, Congress recessed for its summer break. This “Free for All” writer must recess as well. Hopefully the following barrage of free activities and events will provide you with enough consolation to hold you over until syllabus week!

Artsy fartsy

The first Friday of every month, thirteen galleries in Dupont Circle throw open their doors for informal open house gatherings. Links to some of the galleries can be found here.

While in Dupont, do not forget the renowned Phillips Collection. The permanent collection is free Monday through Friday, with the exception of the first Thursday of every month when the gallery hosts Phillips After 5.

The Galleries 1054, located just blocks from campus at – wait for it – 1054 31^st St., hold receptions from 6 to 8 p.m. on the third Friday of every month. If you cannot get there right away, the wait might be worthwhile as September through November the events will feature catering from Sea Catch Restaurant.

Food & drink

Washington City Paper named the coffee hour at Grace Church on Wisconsin Avenue one of the best in the city.

Bistro Lepic, also on Wisconsin Avenue, offers complimentary wine tastings every Tuesday from 6 to 8pm in addition to its variety of steep discounts.

The party don’t stop

Many thanks are due to National Geographic and the blog Free in DC for providing ideas and inspiration for this summer’s posts. Also check out the Washington Post’s Going Out Gurus blog for daily posts about free DC fun.

Photo by Amanda Downing.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 3rd, 2011 at 10:00 am and is filed under Leisure, Vox Populi. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.