Brightest Young Things

All words and photos by: Bryan Dozier

Four floors of everything French. That is the Alliance Francais in Dupont Circle. Nestled on a quiet street off of Connecticut Ave, the language and cultural center is an awesome resource for learning about French culture. Not to mention they throw a pretty happening happy hour.

The Back To France Happy Hour Thursday evening was exactly how I imagined a Thursday evening should be spent. About 100 people showed up; the crowd ranging from the young socialite to the seasoned French sophisticate. Conversations flew across the room, ranging from French culture to how good the Kir Royales they were serving up were, most of which were unintelligible because this guy doesn‘t speak a lick of French. DJ Stylus threw down with hip-hop, west African, Brazilian and jazz fusion tunes, my favorite of which being Talib Kweli’s ‘Space Fruit’. There was an auction on several pieces of art, the proceeds of which went to outreach programs and supplies for the school at the center. The auction was led by the Deputy Director Sylvain Cornevaux, whom later gave me a grand tour of the center. If you want to see some kickass art that you can’t find in those big buildings on the Mall, this is the place to go.

Art, alcohol, music, beautiful women- maybe France is onto something? Oui, oui. Two thumbs up for this little shindig.

Check out their website for future events and if you need a resource on France, this is the spot!