My Favorite Hidden Gems of Washington, D.C. - Discovered Through Exploring In My College Years (Part I)

Hi friends! I want to share with you my favorite spots in DC that are lesser known or off the beaten track. I attended American University in Northwest DC and lived in the city for 2.5 years (I was traveling or studying abroad for half of my college degree, whoops!). DC is well known for that big white house, its monuments, and free museums, but there is so much more to the city. It took a while to peel back the layers of the capital, but its hidden gems started to slowly appear. Here are some of my favorite spots to visit in DC (I will create a separate post on my favorite eats of DC because there are way too many!)

1) The Mansion On O Street

How do I even begin to describe this crazy place? It is located close to Dupont Circle and is 5 townhouses that have been connected together with secret doors. In fact, the mansion boasts over 70 secret doors and 100 rooms. The whole mansion is also a museum of diverse art and collectibles, and everything is on sale! You can enter for $15 and spend the day searching for the secret doors and getting lost twist turned upside down. The most I've ever found in one trip was 14...this suckers are truly hidden! Each room is a beautifully different theme. One room is "Beatles" theme, with their music playing, a pool table that you can use, and an old fashioned popcorn maker. There is also a hidden wine cellar that you can only access once you find the secret door. I have found some of my favorite artists there, such as Gerald Johnson, by sorting through thousand dollar paintings just lying around. I have spent hours and hours in this mansion and have never been bored. I've just emerged with sore feet from wandering around so much!

2) Meridian Hill Park / Malcom X Park Weekly Drum Circle

This is my favorite place in the whole city. I am from San Francisco, and found myself a bit lost on the East Coast, unaccustomed to the fast paced life and ambitious mindsets. My first time stepping into this park, I knew I found a place to wind down and connect with a community. I first went for my friend's birthday picnic, and got to witness the most gorgeous and simple wedding between two beautiful women. I then was told about their weekly drum circle, which has been going on for 50 years. Every Sunday between 1-5 people gather and drum. From 3-5 is when it really picks up, and there is a woman who leads a crowd in African Dance. Any one can join, you just need something to bang on or some feet to stomp. It was first started on the week of Malcom X's assassination, and has roots in black awareness in a predominately black community (though gentrification is quickly changing that).

3) Dupont Farmers Market

I love all farmers markets, but this one in particular has a community feel. It is on the smaller side, but is one of the few community gatherings in the area. The produce is fresh, local, and sometimes organic. The artisan cheeses are a creamy Sunday morning pick me up. And the music is jamming! The last time I went a street performer was playing a traditional instrument from Zimbabwe, his mother country, in order to support his project of healing ancestral trauma through ancestral music. How cool is that??

4) U Street Music Hall

I love going out on a Friday or Saturday night (or Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday...really who's keeping track?) and dancing to some great music. No, I'm not talking about those clubs where its seems like the same track is on repeat and your body doesn't know what else to do other than bop up and down. I'm talking about the incredible sets coming out of U Street Music Hall. It is a DJ owned and operated basement dance club and live music venue. It has the capacity for only 500 people, keeping most nights pretty intimate. Rolling Stone named it one of the top 10 dance clubs in America, and it has most definitely earned that recognition. This Thump article explains it's origins: "The black-box basement at 1115 U Street Northwest emerged from DC DJs Will Eastman and Jesse Tittsworth looking to better serve the city's "homeless" underground dance scene. "I grew up in DC in an era where there were a lot of crazy warehouse parties," says Tittsworth "When that stuff went away, the vibe wasn't quite there for me. I wanted to have that, to have a club that I could be proud of that pushed underground dance music in a proper vibe and context in Washington, DC." "DC was just following what was going on in New York, LA and Europe," explains U Street manager Scott "Buster" Herman. "The city needed a place where there was no dress code and no photography, where you didn't need to buy a bottle if you were eight guys trying to go to a club. If you weren't cool or weren't accepted, U Hall needed to be a place that you could come and have a good time.""

5) Kayaking to Theodore Roosevelt Island

There is an island in the middle of the Potomac River that very few people within the city venture out to. It is a bit eerie as the overgrown forest and swamp land provide the sense that the island has been abandoned. It has miles of running trails and picnic spots. You can access the island by driving through Virginia, or by taking a kayak from the D.C. side. at Georgetown's Key Bridge Boathouse. The kayaking trip over to an overgrown island provide a wonderful respite from the hustle and bustle of city life. So...if the big buildings and honking cars are ever getting to you, hop in a kayak, paddle on over, and hang on in the marshy woodlands with a bottle of wine and some cheese!