For more than one hundred years, a tower has stood watch over 16th street.
Affectionately named the “birdhouse” by the building’s residents, the tower room tops the Embassy of Lithuania at 2622 16th Street. Once part of a two-building structure, the embassy now stands alone, sandwiched between the Embassy of Cuba, and a large apartment complex that stands in the place of the original building and dwarfs one of the longest-serving diplomatic properties in Washington.
“It used to have a view of the White House,” Marijus Petrušonis, the embassy’s political counselor tells me with a shrug, as if to say, things change. What can you do?
That embassies change – their diplomats, their buildings, their country’s diplomat status – is one of the constants in Washington. But the Embassy of Lithuania has arguably seen more change than most.
And for a century, the tower at the Embassy of Lithuania has been witness to its country’s, and the avenue’s, transformation. Read more on The Tower Standing Watch Over Sixteenth Street on Diplomatica.
The Embassy of the Philippines ushered in Filipino American History Month with a new art exhibition, a food truck, a flu shot clinic, and more. Visitors can explore Archipelagic States: Identity, Consciousness and Law in person at the consulate at 1617 Massachusetts Avenue until the end of the month, or online.More.
Looking for something to do this weekend, next week, or this month? There are lots of great in-person and remote options to explore.
~ The Mexican Cultural Institute will be hosting its annual Día de los Muertos celebration on Saturday, October 28 from 12-4pm. Newcomers should brace themselves - this is one of their largest events of the year and it is an absolute scene. But there's nothing else like it in Washington. Can't attend in person? You can support the Insittute by purchasing Day of the Dead in a Box.
~The long-anticipated Australian Embassy is finally open, and with it, a gorgeous new gallery space. Explore 50 years of Papunya Tula artists from the very first experiments of painting on scraps of board through to the epic, abstract paintings that travel the world today, in "Irrititja Kuwarri Tjungu (Past & Present Together)." Gallery is open to the public during business hours. No reservations needed but photo id and a security screening are required.
~ The gallery at the Embassy of Canada is featuring a showcase of artist Gordon Shadrach's depictions of Black history in North America. Free and open during regular business hours. No reservations required.
~ The House of Sweden is showcasing "Accelerating the Green Transition" highlighting climate change solutions. Free and open to the public on weekends.
~ On November 2, join the Embassy of Japan's Information and Cultural Center for a discussion with Smithsonian curators on curating the supernatural.
~ The Former Residence of the Ambassadors of Spain will be hosting an open house on November 10. But wander by any time and enjoy the outdoor exhibits, or visit them online for a plethora of virtual options.
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