A month ago was Passport DC’s “Shortcut to Europe: European Union Embassies’ Open House.” As the name implies, the EU countries open their embassies to visitors. The following is my review of the embassies I visited:
BELGIUM: Free beer and chocolates – what could be better than that? Must visit!
CROATIA: Kind of just a walk-in, walk-out embassy. We took a cool picture though.
DENMARK: Tour of ambassador’s residence. Free cheese and bread. Ride bikes. Play with Legos. A lot fewer tourists due to location so I felt less congested.
FINLAND: Very eco-friendly building. The year I went (2010) there was a lot of free food and drinks. The food was seafood-centric. The ambassador was there, which is nice since it seems that most of the time the ambassadors do not show up to the event.
HUNGARY: Beautiful dogs. Food you can pay for. Girls dressed in traditional outfits.
ITALY: Food looked good but you pay for it. A lot of booths.
NETHERLANDS: Beautiful ambassador’s residence. Yummy free cookies.
PORTUGAL: This was probably my favorite embassy this year. Beautiful video about the country. Tour of embassy with tour guide. Free Portuguese dessert and wine.
SWEDEN: This is the most beautiful embassy. It is located on Georgetown’s waterfront. It is a very bright and open building with windows for walls. And, the rooftop is amazing – views of the Potomac, Georgetown, Kennedy Center, and Watergate. They gave away free bags here. Cookies for sale.
UNITED KINGDOM: A must visit embassy. You can tour the property. When I went in 2010 there was free Pimms (it’s a drink). Lots of free goodies including a bag I still use today.
I have also visited SLOVAKIA, CZECH REPUBLIC, LIECHTENSTEIN, and AUSTRIA.
