Spring in D.C. is marked by certain annual rituals—a flood of cherry blossoms and the bigger flood of tourists they bring with them (cue rant about navigating Metro escalators), seemingly endless rainy days (I’m looking at you April 2016), and the return of rooftop everything (actual views optional).

For Iranian-Americans in the D.C. region—an estimated 85,000, according to the Iranian-American Community Center in Virginia—the first day of spring also marks the celebration of Persian New Year, known as Nowruz (pronounced “NO-rooz”).

“We Iranians have a lot of disagreement across the diaspora, but one thing we agree on is Nowruz,” says Iranian-American cookbook author and chef Najmieh Batmanglij. “It’s the only holiday where Iranians can come together to celebrate their ancient heritage. It gives us a sense of identity and belonging for two or three weeks of the year.”

The secular holiday is celebrated well beyond the borders of Iran by more than 300 million people across the Middle East, Central Asia, the Balkans, and the Caucasus. Even though the United Nations declared March 21st as the International Day of Nowruz in 2010, Nowruz (which literally means “new day” in Persian) coincides with the vernal equinox, which takes place and can fall anywhere between March 19 and March 22—this year it’s on March 20th.

“Nowruz is a celebration of the earth and of rebirth, renewal and fertility,” says Batmanglij. “It’s not a religious holiday, that’s very important. Everyone can enjoy it no matter where they come from and what their religion might be.”

Nowruz celebrations span two weeks and do not lack for symbolism and ritual. Families begin preparing for the holiday by spring cleaning their homes, purging old belongings and buying new clothes and shoes to wear to Nowruz parties.

The most iconic Nowruz ritual is the “haft-seen” a table set with seven (“haft” in Persian and a lucky number) symbolic items all starting with the Persian letter “seen” (“S”). The haft-seen table serves the same purpose as a Christmas tree; it’s a gathering place in every Iranian home during Nowruz as family and friends take turns visiting each other to celebrate the holiday during the first two weeks of the new year (children in particular look forward to this Nowruz tradition as it’s customary for the elders in each household to give kids a gift of money). The seven items on the table are symbols of spring and renewal, and they identify the blessings that people want to attract into their lives in the new year, including seeb (apple), representing health and beauty; sabzeh (green sprouts), representing rebirth; serkeh (vinegar), representing patience; and senjed (the dried fruit of the Lotus tree), representing love. Most families take it even further—the various designs of haft-seen displays would make Martha Stewart proud.

In recent years, celebrating Nowruz in the D.C. area has become a month-long affair. In addition to dozens of community events and Nowruz galas organized by various NGOs and professional societies, there are street festivals, museum events and outdoor music festivals that attract thousands of visitors from across the Mid-Atlantic region. So mark your calendars and get ready to add a new ritual to your “it must be spring in D.C.” list.

Nowruz Celebration at the Smithsonian

The11th annual Freer|Sackler Persian New Year celebration includes a full day of family-friendly events. With pop-up concerts in the galleries, Nowruz-themed crafting stations for kids, live storytelling and shadow puppet performances highlighting the history and traditions of Nowruz, and Instagram-worthy haft-seen displays, this event attracts visitors of all ages. (Freer|Sackler, March 16, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., FREE)

Pro tip: After snapping all the haft-seen selfies, check out the three exhibits at the Freer|Sackler that showcase art and artifacts from ancient Iran (Engaging the Senses, Feast Your Eyes, and Shaping Clay in Ancient Iran).

Nowruz Festival at Tysons Corner Center

Now in its eighth year, the Nowruz Festival in Tysons Corner marks the official start of Nowruz celebrations for many Iranian-Americans across the D.C. region. The day-long event is held in the closed-off Bloomingdale’s parking lot at the mall. Despite the austere setting, the event tends to turn the austere setting into a feast for the senses: Dancers, musicians, and singers entertain the crowd from the festival stage in a series of performances punctuated with appearances by Haji Firuz, a red clad fictional character from Iranian folklore who is known as the “official herald” of Nowruz. More than 75 vendors make up the “bazaar” portion of the festival—selling everything needed for a haft-seen display as well as art, jewelry, artisanal crafts, toys and books, and traditional sweets and pastries. There are activity tents for the kids and a food court with Persian food trucks. More than 10,000 people attended the festival in 2018. (Tyson’s Corner Center, March 17, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., FREE)

Pro tip: Take Metro to the Tysons Corner stop on the Silver Line and avoid the parking crunch at Tysons Corner Center.

Chahar Shanbeh Soori Fire Festival

First, some background: Chahar Shanbeh Soori (literal translation: “Red Wednesday”) is celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday of the year before Nowruz. The festival dates back to 1,700 B.C. when people in ancient Persia believed that in the days of transition between seasons, the line is blurred between the world of the living and the world of the dead and the spirits of their deceased ancestors slipped into the world of the living to visit family members. As a result, bonfires are lit on the eve of the last Wednesday of the year and firecrackers are set off to ward off evil spirits. The most popular Chahar Shanbeh Soori custom—and the one that most celebrations of this night outside of Iran still honor—is the purification ritual of jumping over the bonfires (for this purpose, they’re more like small campfires than a raging bonfire) while chanting “Give me your vibrant red color, and take my sickly yellow pallor!” (“Sorkhiye toe az man, zardiye man az toe!”).

“The tradition consists of jumping over fire and essentially getting rid of your sins of the past year,” says Iman Huschmand, CEO of Exclusively Entertainment and organizer of the Chahar Shanbeh Soori celebration at Tysons Biergarten. “Bad energy out, good energy in.”

The celebration at Tysons Biergarten is complete with bonfires, music provided by three different DJs, and beer and cocktails. (Tyson’s Biergarten, March 19, 6 p.m.-9 p.m., $10 entry)

Pro tip: Get the fire-jumping out of the way before hitting up the bar for the second or third (or fourth) refill. You’ll probably want to have all your coordination skills intact for this party trick.

Nowruz Feast at a la Lucia

If whipping up a Persian feast isn’t quite in your cooking repertoire yet, you can still indulge in all of the delicious flavors of Nowruz with a six-course curated Nowruz feast prepared by “the Grand Dame of Iranian cooking” Najmieh Batmanglij at a special dining event being hosted by a la Lucia restaurant in Old Town Alexandria. Diners will feast on a six-course meal, including wine, and will go home with a signed copy of Batmanglij’s latest book, Cooking in Iran. (a la Lucia, March 24, 1:30 pm, $165)

Pro tip: Inspired to try Persian cooking at home? Start with Persian noodle soup (aash reshteh), the quintessential Nowruz dish. Recipes for this traditional dish vary by region throughout Iran and even from family to family, but Batmanglij’s recipe is a delicious place to start (and can be made vegetarian or vegan).

Sizdah Bedar Festival at Bull Run Park

Sizdah Bedar is celebrated on the 13th day of the Persian New Year and marks the end of the Nowruz holiday in Iran. It is considered bad luck to stay indoors on this day, so families spend the day out in nature, picnicking with friends and celebrating with music, food, and games. One of the customs of Sizdah Bedar is to throw the sabzeh from the haft-seen table into a running body of water (a stream, river, or creek) with the hope that it takes with it all of the negativity, sorrow and pain from your life that it absorbed while growing in your haft-seen. But mainly, Sizdah Bedar is one last excuse to party and overindulge in food and drink before Nowruz comes to an end and real life returns in full swing.

The Sizdah Bedar festival at Bull Run Park is one of the largest events marking the end of Nowruz on the East Coast—more than 8,000 people attended in 2018. A popular Iranian-American singer always headlines the event—Persian rap pioneer Sandy is this year’s main attraction—but the day is full of live music and performances provided by local musicians and dance troupes, as well as a rotation of popular DJs. There’s a “Kids Wonderland” with inflatables, moon bounces, pony rides, a train ride, and face painting. Food vendors will be grilling up kebabs and other Persian fare. (Bull Run Special Events Center, April 7, 9 a.m.-7 p.m., $15-$20 in advance, $25 at the door)

Pro tip: Blankets and folding chairs are allowed at the park, dogs are not.