Arlington

after hours
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By Laura Mullane / Photography by Regis Lefebure

THE COUNTY ’S EMPHASIS ON CREATING COMMUNITIES WHERE PEOPLE CAN LIVE, WORK, SHOP, AND PLAY MEANS
an equal amount of attention has been paid to “play.” Arlington boasts an exciting nightlife, thriving arts scene, an
abundance of recreational opportunities, and a wealth of tourist attractions and accommodations, including 41 hotels
offering 10,000 hotel rooms. A visitor staying in Arlington can zip right over to the capital for the day (in fact, Crystal
City hotels are actually closer to the White House than some hotels located right in DC). The joke in Arlington

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used to be that if you were looking for nightlife, go
across the river to Georgetown. Even just 10 years ago
Arlington had a reputation as a place where the sidewalks
rolled up after 5 o’clock. No longer. Due in large part to
the transformation of Clarendon, Arlington has become
an after-five destination not only for those who live and
work here, but also for others throughout the
Washington area.
Even on a rainy, cold weekday night, a visitor to
Clarendon will find large crowds dining at the neighbor-
hood’s homegrown restaurants, like Faccia Luna and
Clarendon Grill, and crowding the many bars and clubs
to catch the latest up-and-coming band.
One such club is IOTA, so named for its size—it had
a capacity of less than 60 people when it first opened in
1994, though it has since expanded. Owned by the
brother and sister team of Stephen Negrey and Jane
Negrey Inge, who were raised in Arlington, it has become
known as the place where promising musicians play
A restored Tiffany window at the Arlington Arts Center; a taste of the Middle East at Layalina; the Iwo Jima Marine Corps War Memorial.
before moving on to bigger venues. Norah Jones, John
Mayer, and Jack Johnson are just a few names who played
at IOTA before they hit it big.
Galaxy Hut is another small space that opened in
Clarendon before its big boom. Strictly a beer-and-wine
joint, it opened in 1990 before the bar scene in
Clarendon was a “scene” at all. “I was the first bar on the
strip,” said owner Alice Despard. “It really was a rundown
retail area from the ’30s. Then the floodgates opened.
Clarendon became the center of gravity.” The popularity
of Clarendon has changed the clientele of her bar (“We
were more bohemian before; now we’re a little more well-
heeled”) but not the neighborly feel of the place.
The same can be said for Clarendon as a whole. “It has
a small-town feel,” says Liane Kluge, a Clarendon regular
who worked at Clarendon Grill before becoming the mar-
keting director for a healthcare association in Arlington.
“You always see the same people, especially around the
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holidays when former residents are coming home.”
If the bustling nightlife is a surprise for those new to
Arlington, get ready for an even bigger one: Arlington’s
thriving arts scene. Arlington is home to more than 500
individual artists and 50 arts organizations—including
theater companies such as Signature Theatre and Teatro
de la Luna, artist studios, dance companies like Bowen
McCauly, and musical groups and events like the Rosslyn
Jazz Festival. It is one of the few communities of its size
to have its own symphony orchestra and opera company.
“Every night there are six or seven performances,
exhibits, or concerts to choose from,” says Norma
Kaplan, division chief for Arlington County Cultural
Affairs. In addition, the county’s annual arts audience is
estimated to be nearly twice the population.
The explosion of Arlington’s arts community can be
attributed to the county’s innovative Arts Incubator
program that was launched in 1990 to grow the arts in a
cost-effective way. Through this initiative, Arlington was
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able to find an audience for the arts and, as a conse-
quence, grow both. The program has become a model for
government-arts partnership. In fact, in December 1996,
the Arts Incubator became the first arts organization in
the country to win one of 10 “Innovations in American
Government” awards given each year by the Ford
Foundation and the John F. Kennedy School of
Government at Harvard University. From a sporty denim dress to a little black dress, nowhere will you find more choices than at a Simon mall.
Signature Theater, located in Shirlington, is a Choose as much as you like at Macy’s, Nordstrom and over 170 premier retailers and restaurants.
nationally-known theater that grew out of the Arts 1100 S. Hayes Street Arlington, VA. Take the Metro to Pentagon City. Shopping line 703-415-2400 simon.com
Incubator program. Signature soon will be moving to a
new state-of-the-art theater/library complex.
Interestingly, Arlington has become famous in the arts
community for its cutting-edge projects—not something
that would typically be associated with a community that
more choices SM
is home to the Pentagon. “We’ve developed a reputation
as more unique, more risk-taking, and more funky than
DC,” said Kaplan. In fact, the Washington Post described
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Arlington as “the hotbed of cultural abandon” and “one unknowns remembering the unidentifiable dead of the
of the hippest local jurisdictions at attracting adventurous Civil War, World War II, and the Korean and Vietnam
arts and artists.” wars.
The success of the arts in Arlington is also attributable When standing on the hill in front of Arlington
to the number—and quality—of its arts facilities. In House, you can look across to the Lincoln Memorial on
January, a gleaming Arlington Arts Center reopened after the other side. It is both a literal and figurative bridge,
a significant renovation. The new building is a work of linking Washington, DC and Virginia; Lincoln and
art in itself, featuring three Tiffany stained-glass windows Robert E. Lee; North and South.
that the county rescued from demolition years earlier. When President Kennedy stood on that spot just 11
While Arlington’s nightlife and arts scene occupy the days before he was killed, looked down the hill and across
evening hours, the county’s abundance of recreational the bridge to Washington, he said, “I could stay here
opportunities and tourist attractions easily fills the days. forever.” After he died, the place where he stood was

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With 1,100 acres of parks and open space, the out- selected to be his gravesite. This made Kennedy only the

doors is very accessible. This open space includes 36 miles
of walking and biking trails plus an additional 53 miles of
bike routes. The avid cyclist can enjoy seven self-guided
tours, including a 23-mile Arlington history tour.
One of the more popular walking and biking trails
runs along the Potomac River all the way to Mount
Vernon. Along the way you can enjoy spectacular views of
Georgetown, the monuments of Washington and, in
warmer months, boats quietly moving down the river.
You also get an up-close look at Reagan National Airport
and low-flying planes on approach for landing.
At the north end of Crystal City, a $100 million
28-acre indoor/outdoor acquatic center and recreational
complex is under construction. Called North Tract, it is
Watching low-flying planes land near Gravelly Point; martinis at Faccia Luna,
expected to be completed in 2008. In addition to a 50-
meter pool, North Tract will include a hydrotherapy pool,
a rock-climbing wall, on-site walking trails, plenty of
space for playgrounds, and spray gardens.
One of Arlington’s most famous sites is the Iwo Jima-
Marine Corps War Memorial. Modeled after the Pulitzer
prize-winning photograph by Joe Rosenthal of Marines
raising the flag at Mount Suribachi during World War II,
the Iwo Jima memorial is the largest bronze sculpture in
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second and, so far, last president to be buried at the
cemetery. William Howard Taft was the first.
The burial of these two men did a lot to bolster the
a Clarendon watering hole; a rider enjoying one of the 53 miles of bike routes. reputation of Arlington National Cemetery, which had
long been considered second-rate because it was meant to
the world. From the memorial, visitors can walk to what be the burial ground for poor soldiers. Today, the
is without question the most famous attraction in cemetery is seen as our country’s most hallowed ground.
Arlington: the National Cemetery. Leaving the cemetery and strolling across Memorial
Arlington National Cemetery occupies 567 acres and Bridge into Washington, the importance of Arlington
is the final resting place for more than 260,000 people. County’s proximity to the capital is clear. Their shared
More than 20 funeral services are performed each day and history, economy, and culture link them inextricably. Yet
about 4 million people visit it each year. as Arlington continues its headlong push toward
But it is more than just headstones. There are also maintaining a smart-growth, wholly livable community,
numerous memorials and monuments to wars, it’s how they’re different that will matter the most. Ai
individuals, military units, and
groups. Some of them are
well-known—the gravesites of
President John F. Kennedy and
Jacqueline Kennedy, the Robert E.
Lee memorial (Arlington House),
and the Space Shuttle Challenger
memorial. Others are more
obscure—the Rough Riders memo-
rial, the Iran Rescue Mission monu-
ment, and the Spanish-American
War Nurses memorial.
Undoubtedly the most famous
memorial at Arlington National
cemetery is the Tomb of the
Unknowns, better-known as the
Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The
idea for the Tomb of the Unknowns
came after World War I, when the

Arlington nation was trying to come to terms

Monuments, memorials, and museums…
Broadway productions, independent
theater, or a simple matinee…
Symphonies, opera, a rock concert
or a small indie band…
Arlington has it all.
with the incredible losses it had suf-
fered. The tomb sits on top of the
grave that holds the remains of a
Whether you’re visiting the Washington, D.C. region for business or leisure – or a little soldier exhumed from an American
of both – there are a million things to do. Stay in Arlington, and you’ll be in the heart cemetery in France and is meant to
of the action, with Metro access to any destination in the region. Enjoy Arlington’s symbolize all of the country’s war
vibrant urban villages, providing doorstep access to exciting restaurants, dead who have not been identified.
sights, shopping, nightlife and more. There are additional tombs of
To learn more about Arlington, and get a FREE Visitors Guide, call
866.456.0595 or visit www.arlingtontourism.com