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D.C., home of the world’s largest pupusa, has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it?
The District is also home to the cast of the newest season of Netflix’s “Love Is Blind.” In case you don’t know (but… how?), the show puts singles inside “pods” to date without ever seeing each other – the couples only meet face-to-face after someone proposes marriage!
Don’t expect to see much of the District in the first six episodes that dropped today. (The singles are stuck in pods, remember?) But the Washington Post’s sleuthing revealed Urban Roast and Stone Tower Winery show up (and we have some watch parties below).
Still, episode one had a Commanders vs. Ravens moment and the dating question we love to hate: What do you do? Sounds pretty D.C. to us.
Four things to know for the weekend
- Weekend Weather: Finally! Storm Team4 says you can bet on a warm and dry weekend.
- Happy Virginia Wine Month. Here’s your guide to 50+ wineries in Northern Virginia. One fun way to celebrate this weekend: Mount Vernon’s Fall Wine Festival & Sunset Tour.
- Before shoppers could flock to D.C.’s downtown holiday market this year to buy scented candles and cashmere scarves, some big changes went on behind the scenes.
- D.C. award-winning author Jason Reynolds is among 22 new recipients of a MacArthur “genius grant.” Here’s a look at his work and what’s next for him.
Weekend highlights
Haunted Houses
🔗 See our full roundup
- Operating on the grounds of a notorious former prison, Workhouse Haunt in Lorton opens Friday and puts a frightening twist on classic fairy tales. Before and after the haunt, check your adrenaline in a festive atmosphere with a DJ, a bar and food trucks. Local artists will be selling their wares at the Haunt Pop-up Shop.
- The area’s biggest indoor haunt, Laurel’s House of Horrors, is built inside an abandoned movie theater. Run through the haunted house, or try a horror movie-themed escape room.
- Looking for something more kid-friendly? The Arundel Volunteer Fire Department in Gambrills has a Boo Loop with fairies, dancing skeletons and cackling witches for kids under 8, or a scarier trail for older kids. And Six Flags America has Boo Fest!
Free pick
Oktoberfest at The Wharf
Sat., Oct. 5, Southwest Waterfront
🔗 Details
The Scene
The most fun things to do and places to be in D.C., Maryland and Virginia
Come for the 12th Annual Wiener 500 Dachshund Dash (a wiener dog race!) and stay for steins of beer and polka lessons. It’s just about the closest thing you’ll find to Munich inside the Beltway!
DC Coffee Festival
Sat. and Sun., Dock 5 at Union Market in Northeast, $24+
🔗 Details
Coffee lovers can sample specialty roasters’ brews and visit shops with unique beans while enjoying live entertainment.
Concerts this weekend
The Softies, 8 p.m. Friday, Songbyrd, $15/$20
The seminal ‘90s twee duo are back after 24 years, touring off a new LP, “The Bed I Made,” a wonderful return to their heartfelt indie pop. Details.
Hotline TNT, 8:30 p.m. Friday, Union Stage, $18 (advance)/$22 (day of)
Anthemic, loud and catchy shoegaze from Will Anderson, who previously rattled eardrums with noise rockers Weed. Details.
The Psychedelic Furs and The Jesus and Mary Chain, 7 p.m. Sunday, The Anthem, $55-$95
A couple of celebrated bands team up for an incredible bill. The Furs’ post-punk is essential to the soundtrack of the ‘80s, and J&MC’s noisy shoegaze – also born of the ‘80s – influenced much of the new wave and indie rock in the decades that followed. Details.
Things to do in D.C.
Fierce Flora: Tales of Survival and Demise: Open now, U.S. Botanic Garden, free
Phillips after 5: Spooky Season: Thurs., 5-8:30 p.m., The Phillips Collection in Northwest, $20
Spooky Soirée with Guest Artist Katie Kirk: Thurs., 6 p.m., Postal Museum lobby, free (if event gets crowded, those who with an RSVP will get priority for entry)
Don't Tell Comedy: Fri., various venues, $25
Open Streets 7th Street NW: Sat., 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., 7th Street NW from Rhode Island Avenue to E Street NW, free
Oktoberfest at The Wharf: Sat., Southwest Waterfront, free entry
BBQ & Barrels: Sat., 3-6 p.m. (general admission), Nationals Park, $75+
Washington Capitals vs. Boston Bruins (preseason): Sat., 5 p.m., Capital One Arena
Housewives Night Out!: Sat., 8 p.m., Lisner Auditorium, $45+
DC Coffee Festival: Sat. and Sun., Dock 5 at Union Market in Northeast, $24+
Things to do in Maryland
30th annual Harvest Festival: Sat., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Agricultural History Farm Park in Derwood, $20
B&O Railroad Station Open House: Sat., 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Silver Spring B&O Railroad Station, free
Taste of Bethesda: Sat., 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Norfolk Avenue in Bethesda's Woodmont Triangle, free entry
Battle of The Bands: Sat., 6-9 p.m., SECU Stadium, University of Maryland, College Park, $20-$44.52
Commanders vs. Cleveland Browns: Sun., 1 p.m., Northwest Stadium in Landover
College Park Day: Sat., noon to 6 p.m., College Park Aviation Museum, free
PIKEtoberfest: Sun., noon to 4 p.m., North Bethesda’s Pike & Rose, free entry
Things to do in Virginia
Waterford Fair: Fri. to Sat., historic Waterford, Virginia, $20 for one-day admission
Old Town Warrenton Fall Festival: Sat., 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., Main Street in Warrenton, free entry
Rosslyn Fall Fest: Sat., 1-6 p.m., Gateway Park on Langston Boulevard, free
Art on the Avenue: Sat., 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Mt. Vernon Avenue in Alexandria, free entry
Saint Katherine Fall Festival: Fri. to Sun., Falls Church, free entry
Historic Downtown Manassas Fall Jubilee: Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Manassas, Virginia, free entry
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