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It's often said that Washington doesn't have any old-fashioned neighborhoods the way, for example, nearby Baltimore does. Although it's true that Washingtonians are not given to huddling together on their front stoops, each area of the city does have a clearly defined personality, and some, such as Capitol Hill, can even feel like a small town.
The Mall
This expanse of green, which stretches due west from the Capitol to the Washington Monument, is lined on the north and south by some of America's finest museums, almost all of which are free. Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, some of Andy Warhol's soup cans, the Hope Diamond, Julia Child's kitchen, a tyrannosaurus rex, and myriad other modern and classical artifacts await you. Of course, the 300-foot-wide Mall is more than just a front yard for museums: it's a picnicking park and a running path, an outdoor stage for festivals and fireworks, and America's town green. During your visit here, you're equally likely to see residents playing soccer or softball, protestors wielding signs and banners, or children cavorting on the restored 1947 carousel. First one on gets to ride the dragon.
The Monuments
The Washington Monument punctuates the Mall halfway between the Capitol and the Lincoln Memorial, which features a somber statue of the seated president gazing out over the reflecting pool. Lincoln also sees the Mall's most recently added monument, the World War II Memorial, and is flanked by both the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Korean War Veterans Memorial. The rotunda of the Jefferson Memorial rises to the southeast beside the Tidal Basin, where you can rent paddleboats and admire more than 200 cherry trees, gifts from Japan and the focus of a festival each spring. The popular Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, which covers 7 meandering acres along the Tidal Basin, provides one of the best views of the Washington skyline.
The White House Area
In a city full of immediately recognizable images, perhaps none is more familiar than the White House. But, no matter how magnificent, it doesn't completely overshadow the neighborhood's other wonders, some of the city's oldest houses and two important art galleries: the Renwick Gallery -- the Smithsonian's museum of American decorative arts -- and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, known for its collections of photography, European impressionist paintings, and post-World War II American art.
Capitol Hill
The Capitol, where the Senate and the House have met since 1800, along with the Supreme Court and the Library of Congress, dominate this neighborhood. But the Hill is more than just the center of government. There are charming residential blocks of Victorian row houses here filled with young hill staffers, who have attracted a fine assortment of restaurants, bars, and shops. Union Station, Washington's train depot, has vaulted and gilded ceilings, arched colonnades, statues of Roman legionnaires, a shopping mall, and a movie theater multiplex. While you're in town, you may want to drop in on your state's congressional representatives.
East End
In what was once Downtown -- the area within the diamond formed by Massachusetts, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, and New York avenues -- are Chinatown, Ford's Theatre, and several important museums. Thanks to an ongoing revival, the Penn Quarter section -- now somewhat vaguely called the East End -- has become arguably the most interesting part of town. Galleries and restaurants are sprouting up behind the refurbished cast-iron facades that give the neighborhood its unique look.
Within Federal Triangle, a few blocks away and bordered by Pennsylvania and Constitution avenues and 15th Street NW, you can find the National Archives, which houses the original Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. The National Building Museum has the largest columns in the world as well as displays devoted to architecture. Other nearby museums include the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the National Portrait Gallery, and the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The Old Post Office Pavilion is also here, as is the International Spy Museum.
Georgetown
The capital's wealthiest neighborhood (and one that's attractive to architecture buffs) is always hopping, even if most of its once unique merchants have given way to stores and eateries found at malls around the country. Restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and boutiques cluster along Wisconsin and M streets. Originally used for shipping, the C&O Canal today is a part of the National Park system: walkers follow the towpath and canoeists paddle the calm waters; you can also go on a leisurely trip aboard a mule-drawn canal barge. Washington Harbour is a riverfront development of restaurants, offices, apartments, and upscale shops; Georgetown Park is a multilevel shopping extravaganza; and Georgetown University is the oldest Jesuit school in the country. Dumbarton Oaks's 10 acres of formal gardens provide one of the loveliest spots in Washington. With its cobblestone side streets and many nooks and crannies, this is one of D.C.'s best neighborhoods for a good stroll.
Dupont Circle
Fashionable, vibrant Dupont Circle has a cosmopolitan air owing partly to its many restaurants, shops, and specialty bookstores. It's also home to the most visible segment of Washington's gay community. This neighborhood is especially popular in the warmer months, when 17th Street becomes a scene -- witnessed by drinkers and diners enjoying the strip's countless outdoor eating and drinking establishments -- and the round green in the middle of Dupont teems with sunbathers, chessmasters, and musicians.
The exclusive Kalorama neighborhood is a peaceful, tree-lined enclave filled with embassies and luxurious homes. For a glimpse of that "beautiful view," look down over Rock Creek Park's 1,800 acres of green, where there's a planetarium, an 18-hole golf course, and equestrian and bicycle trails. The Phillips Collection is also in Kalorama; its best-known paintings include Auguste Renoir's Luncheon of the Boating Party, Edgar Degas's Dancers at the Barre, and a self-portrait of Paul Cézanne.
Adams-Morgan
One of Washington's most ethnically diverse and interesting neighborhoods, Adams-Morgan holds many offbeat restaurants and shops, and a brash and amazingly diverse bar-and-club scene. The neighborhood's grand 19th-century apartment buildings and row houses as well as its bohemian atmosphere have attracted young urban professionals, the businesses that cater to them, and the attendant parking and crowd problems.
Foggy Bottom
Foggy Bottom -- a name earned years ago when smoke from factories combined with swampy air to produce a permanent fog along the waterfront -- has three main claims to fame: the State Department, the Kennedy Center, and George Washington University. Watergate, one of the world's most legendary apartment-office complexes, is notorious for the events that took place here on June 17, 1972. Although the street life tapers off once you leave Pennsylvania Avenue, and many of the 19th-century architectural gems have been replaced by generic office buildings, there are pockets of Foggy Bottom that remain exquisitely charming.
Cleveland Park
Tree-shaded Cleveland Park, in northwest Washington, has attractive houses and a suburban character. Arts and Crafts bungalows abound, as do Victorian mansions and large green spaces. Connecticut Avenue, the neighborhood's main artery, holds a more satisfying selection of restaurants and boutiques than some more famous areas of town.
One neighborhood treasure is the Loews Cineplex Uptown, a marvelous 1930s art deco movie house that still has its gigantic screen and balcony seating. The National Zoological Park, one of the foremost zoos in the world, is nearby. Star denizens include Komodo dragons and two giant pandas.
Upper Northwest
This area, to the north of Georgetown and stretching up to the Maryland border, is best known for Washington National Cathedral, an eye-catching Gothic-style building completed in 1990 after more than 80 years of construction. About a mile north, just past the Tenleytown/American University Metro stop and at the highest point in the city, is Fort Reno, the site of the only Civil War battle within Washington proper.
Arlington, Virginia
Although separated from the District by the Potomac River, Arlington plays an important role in Washington life, not just as a commuter suburb but as the final resting place and memorial for many important Americans. In addition to the U.S. Marine Corps War Memorial, which captures in bronze the famous World War II flag raising at Iwo Jima, Arlington contains one of the most-visited spots in the world. Arlington National Cemetery is home to the graves of more than 250,000 veterans, as well as the final resting place of John Kennedy, his brother Robert, and his widow, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who originally suggested the Eternal Flame as a memorial to her husband. Also poignant is the vigil soldiers keep at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria's history is linked to the most significant events and people of the colonial, Revolutionary, and Civil War periods. This colorful past is still alive on the cobbled streets; on the revitalized waterfront, where clipper ships dock and craftspeople display their goods; and in restored 18th- and 19th-century homes, churches, and taverns.
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