Romance on Valentine’s Day at the French Embassy in DC

Yes, it’s already time to start planning for a special evening with your loved one for Valentine’s Day.

On Saturday, Valentine’s Day eve (February 13th) La Maison Française, aka the French Embassy in Washington, DC is hosting another fun soirée, La Saint-Valentin.

In times past, the French had a custom that was eventually banned by the government called “une loterie d’amour” or “drawing for’ or “drawing for love”.

Single people would enter homes that faced each other and call out to each other to pair up.  However, if a man was dissatisfied with his resulting valentine, he would leave her.

The remaining or unclaimed unmatched women would then build a large outdoor bonfire and burn images of the man who didn’t select them or of any other man that had caused her romantic pain in the past.  They would also yell abusive curses at the ungrateful men.  But the French government officially banned the custom by decree after the male-bashing got a bit out of hand.

On the other end of France’s romantic spectrum, the first romantic Valentine card was sent in the early 1400s by Charles of Valois, the Duke of Orleans, who was at the time an imprisoned French nobleman locked up as a prisoner of war in the Tower of London.  He was captured during the Battle of Agincourt in 1415, which was a crushing defeat for the French during the Hundred Years’ War.  During his twenty-four years of captivity, he sent many love letters and poems to his wife in France, including a Valentine’s Day love card.  Sadly, his wife died before he was released from captivity.

The embassy event includes a Parisian-style buffet dinner, live music and a DJ for your dancing pleasure, and of course…an open bar serving French champagne and cocktails.  End the evening with some sumptuous Parisian patisseries and a flowing warm chocolate fountain.

And even if you can’t visit Paris, you can have a great photo op to the embassy in front of the Eiffel Tower.  There’s also a silent auction of one-of-a-kind items – from the moderate to the luxurious.

This party is usually well attended, so order your tickets early.

La Saint-Valentin
Embassy of France
4101 Reservoir Road, NW
Washington, DC  (map it)

Dates & Times - Saturday, February 13, 2010 from 8:00 p.m. to midnight

Tickets - $75.00 and are available in advance online.

Nearest Metro Subway Station -Farragut West – Blue and Orange lines, and then a 10-minute cab ride.

Parking – Valet or parking in the embassy’s garage.

Image – Flickr – card