June Festivals and Events in the DC Area

The Washington, DC area and its surrounding communities in Maryland and Virginia host lots of annual festival and special events.  Here are just a few during the month of May, for a full list and detailed information, visit dc.about.com.

Alexandria Waterfront Festival
June 14 & 15, 2008. Oronoco Bay State Park in Old Town Alexandria, Virginia. The event includes historic tall ship tours, live entertainment, arts & crafts exhibits and a children’s sea hunt adventure.

Reston Town Center Taste of the Town
June 14, 2008, noon-10:30 p.m. Enjoy a variety of food from the region’s finest eateries, live music, activities and games. Admission and parking are free. Tastings start at $1.

National Capital Barbeque Battle
June 21 & 22, 2008. If you love barbecue you’ll love the food samples, cooking demonstrations, interactive displays and children’s activities at this sizzling summer festival on Pennsylvania Avenue, NW between 9th & 14th Sts.

Smithsonian Folklife Festival
June 25-29 and July 2-6, 2008. Celebrate cultural traditions from around the world. The Festival includes daily and evening music and dance performances, crafts and cooking demonstrations, storytelling and discussions of cultural issues. This is one of Washington, DC’s most popular summer devents.

DC Caribbean Carnival
June 28-29, 2008. Enjoy the colorful parade and festival with live performances from local and international artists, food, crafts and entertainment.

Montgomery County Heritage Days
June 28-29, 2008, 12-4 p.m. More than 30 historic sites in Montgomery County, Maryland showcase the county’s rich history with free music, dance, food, and children’s activities.

Home Price Drop Accelerates

Home-price declines are accelerating nationwide, pushing a hoped-for turnaround in the housing market further down the road.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller index that measures home prices in 20 major metro areas dropped 12.7% in February from a year earlier — the sharpest decline in the data’s two-decade history.

Areas of the country that saw the greatest run-ups in prices in the first half of the decade are now seeing some of the steepest declines. Home prices in the Las Vegas, Miami and Phoenix markets fell in February by more than 20% from a year earlier.

 Even after sharp drops for more than a year, however, home prices in Los Angeles, Miami and Washington, D.C., remain more than double their levels at the start of the decade.

Full Article

Source: Sudeep Reddy, The Wall Street Journal, 4-30-08

 

Stagnant DC Area Market Has Ups and Downs

The District far outshone its suburban neighbors in housing prices in 2007.

As median sales prices fell in Northern Virginia and grew by only a smidgen in suburban Maryland, the price of single-family houses and townhouses in Washington rose 7 percent.

In 2007, the median price was $480,000, up $30,000 from the year before.

For the full article, click here.

Source:  Barbara Ruben, Special to The Washington Post

May Festivals & Events in DC

The Washington, DC area and its surrounding communities in Maryland and Virginia host lots of annual festival and special events.  Here are just a few during the month of May, for a full list and detailed information, visit dc.about.com.

National Cathedral Flower Mart
May 2-3, 2008, 10 am-5 pm. Enjoy the grounds of the cathedral, floral displays, children’s activities and musical entertainment. Free admission.

Passport DC - Open Houses at Washington, DC Embassies
May 3-17, 2008. A new event, sponsored by Cultural Tourism DC, features a wide range of performances, talks, and exhibits at DC’s foreign embassies.

Cinco de Mayo Festival
May 4, 2008, noon-6 pm. The annual Latino celebration features live music and family entertainment on the National Mall.

Spring Garden Party at Mount Vernon
May 10-11, 2008. Just in time for Mothers Day, enjoy a festive Spring Garden Party at Mount Vernon with free wagon rides through Washington’s fruit garden and nursery.

Food & Wine Festival at National Harbor
May 16-18, 2008. The upscale, waterfront festival is part of National Harbor’s grand opening. Enjoy food and wine pairing, artisanal and organic products, lectures on culinary and wine trends and more.

Taste of Arlington
May 18, 2008, noon-5 pm. Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA. Enjoy a lively street festival, complete with local entertainment, children’s activities and, of course, lots of food!

Grand Opening of National Museum of Crime & Punishment
May 23, 2008. The new Washington, DC museum opens its doors! Through interactive exhibits visitors will explore the history of crime, law enforcement, forensic science, crime scene investigation (CSI) and the consequences of committing a crime.

Rockville’s Hometown Holidays
May 24-26, 2008. Rockville, Maryland hosts a three-day street festival in celebration of Memorial Day with live music, children’s entertainment, a parade and more.