Related Washington D.C. Favorites Tips

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Favorite thing: George Washington University was founded in 1821 on Meridian Hill, on the edge of Adams Morgan, a perfect nightlife area for a college campus. Unfortunately for today's students, in either 1873 or 1910 (depending on the source) the school moved to its present Foggy Bottom location just four blocks from the White House where there is virtually nothing but tall buildings and city streets.

The main campus in downtown DC is just 43 acres, with some university land leased to the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. GW also owns 23 acres in DC's Foxhall area that was the Mount Vernon College for Women until 1999. GWU has about 9,700 full time students who, as of 2008, paid about $40,000 a year in tuition plus room and board.

Former students of GWU include J. William Fulbright, Harry Reid, Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis, Colin Powell, General John Shalikashvili, Allen Dulles, John Foster Dulles, and J. Edgar Hoover. Notable faculty include Seyyed Hossein Nasr (founder and first president of the Imperial Iranian Academy of Philosophy and whose son Vali Nasr taught at the US Naval Postgraduate School and is rumored to have advised the Democratic presidential candidates in 20007-2008).

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Favorite thing: Fort McNair, Anacostia Naval Base, and Bolling AF Base are the three biggest military installations in the city limits of Washington DC, and they are all located side by side along the Potomac River just south east of the Mall. Also along the Potomac, just south of Bolling AFB is the US Naval Research Lab. A few other military facilities in the area are the Marine Barracks and the Washington Navy Yard.

Fort Lesley J. McNair is the third oldest American military post still in use after West Point and Carlisle Barracks. The site was established by L'Enfant in his original plans for the city as a major defensive position. Today Fort McNair is home to the National Defense University, the National War College, the vice chief of staff of the army, and the commander-in-chief's guard.

Naval Support Facility Anacostia opened in 1918 as a test base for naval sea planes. Today it is primarily a helicopter facility and is a prime operating location of Marine Helicopter Squadron ONE (HMX-1) in support of the President's "Marine One" transport. Anacostia is located just across the Anacostia River form Fort McNair.

Bolling AF Base also opened in 1918 and was a flying base until 1962 when there was too much congestion between this site, Anacostia, and National Airport. Today Bolling is home to the Air Force District of Washington, The United States Air Force Honor Guard, The United States Air Force Band, and Defense Intelligence Analysis Center. It is located along the south side of Anacostia Naval Base.

US Naval Research Laboratory is located at the southern end of Bolling AFB, it conducts a broad range of scientific research and advanced development for the Navy and Marines.

As a result of the 2005 BRAC, Bolling AFB, Anacostia Naval Base, and the Naval Research Laboratory will combine to become Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling-Naval Research Laboratory, D.C. in the near future.

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Favorite thing: Washington, DC's Chinatown is located next to the Verizon Center about halfway between Union Station and the White House. The neighborhood is located along H and I Streets between 5th and 8th Streets, Northwest, and is served by the Gallery Place-Chinatown Metro station.

The area was originally settled by German immigrants, and the house where John Wilkes Booth created the plan to assassinate Lincoln still stands in the heart of the neighborhood. The Chinese began to arrive in earnest in the 1930s. Many Chinese later left the area after the riots of 1968, and the area declined. In 1986 the 60 foot tall Friendship Archway was established and is claimed to be the the largest single-span archway of this type in the world. Unfortunately, the city continued to shrink when the Convention Center and MCI Center now Verizon Center) were built in the heart of the area.

Today Chinatown has about 20 Chinese and other Asian restaurants, along with several national chains like Starbuck (that display signs in Chinese to preserve local flavor).

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Favorite thing: The most fascinating thing about D.C. for me was being able to see the White House in person! Also Arlington Cemetary is very moving! The Smithsonians are great also! A great place to go visit, I want to return!

Fondest memory: Everything!

Favorite thing: Montgomery County in Maryland is a fairly good area to stay in since it is generally close in proximity to DC. Bethesda/Chevy Chase areas are nice and more upscale areas to live/be in. Silver Spring has a more genuine and "grounded" appeal.

Although Silver Spring may not be the BEST area to live in or visit, there are some good points, namely: easier navigation in the roads (there could be congestion though) compared to DC, diversity as to its residents, ethnic dining, the recent gentrification of downtown--which is good for people coming in, but unfortunately driving out old-time residents who may no longer be able to afford to live there as rental prices/real estate have dramatically soared, among others.

Fondest memory: Hiking the trail from Bethesda to Silver Spring

Favorite thing: And what would the Capital be without its protestors? Usually they congregate either in the front or back gates of the White House. You can also find them throughout the city handing out leaflets and trying to get their point across.

Fondest memory: This guy was all dressed up as Bush...his slogan says it all!

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Favorite thing: My favorite thing about Washington, DC was the "hands down" the drum circles at Malcolm X/Meridian Park every Sunday. I stayed in DC for 4 months and enjoyed the free museums. I loved the seafood. I also love the trees, the flowers, the parks. I came to DC when spring was peeking it's waking eye. I will not forget the beautiful bushes where the wind blew the petals into the street. You could ride down the street and it would be pink!

Fondest memory: My fondest memories of DC had to be the "Marina". I loved it there. It was a place where you could just go and sit by the river and enjoy the peacefulness. You can get some of the best steamed crabs, corn on the cob and garlic toast in America.

Favorite thing: What I really love about this place is its multiculturalism. Due to the fact that Washington hosts a huge number of embassies and international organizations, it is very easy to find people from anywhere, as well as their foods and culture. Most embassies and consulates do a great job getting their nationals together or promoting spectacles with national groups or artists, who can be arranged to perform either in a private venue at the ambassador's house or in the Millenium Stage of the Kennedy Center.
For example, you can easily find Mexican, Malayan, Indian, Thai and Ethiopian restaurants. You can also buy African, Asian and Latin American stuff in the stores. You can easily find books in Spanish or French in the bookstores, something that is not commonly seen in other large cities. You can even find directions in the metro station or in shops translated into Spanish, considering the huge Latin American population living and working there. An important number (including myself) came because we work at the Organization of American States or any of their related bodies, like the Inter American Development Bank.

Fondest memory: The huge Latin American and Peruvian community I found in here.