Weren't things easy under the old world order? You could travel to Washington D.C. and believe that you had arrived in the capital of the free world. Eyes wide open, you would walk along Capitol Hill, the Mall and the various memorials of former Presidents, and adore the achievements of the great American nation.
So it was when I first visited Washington as a child with my parents back in 1984. I was impressed, to say the least, of the great sights of this city: the dozen or more
museums of the Smithsonian Institution put almost every other city on earth to shame, White House and Capitol Hill are impressive monuments of the American democracy, and the Washington,
Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials combine great architecture with beautiful surroundings and a historical aura.
In July 1997 I returned to Washington to attend parts of the official visit of GeorgianPresident Edward Schewardnadze to the United States, and had some extra days for sightseeing and shopping in Washington. At that time I had been somewhat disillusioned by the American way of self-celebration. Thus I tried to stay clear off Capitol Hill, the White House area and the Memorial Monuments during the private part of my visit.
This is by no means a complete travel guide to
Washington DC. You would need at least a week to
discover all the sights in this city. During my last visit I adopted an attitude of strolling around Washington in a relaxed way and taking some side views. Thus my impressions are rather subjective, and limited to the parts of town I happened to explore more or less by coincidence. My aim was to come up with an authentic review, not with a shiny travel catalogue.
Selected Sights
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The Mall & Smithsonian Museums
The Mall is not a shopping centre, but Washington's main park and monuments area which spans over 2 1/2 miles from the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, and is a quarter mile wide. The concentration of museums, monuments and memorials around the mall is unmatched worldwide, at least to my knowledge. Most of the museums are run by the Smithsonian Institution, a private foundation, and admission is free. During my last trip to DC, I visited two of them, the National Museum of American History and the National Air and Space Museum (see below).
Before you embark on a tour around the Mall and its attractions, you should bear in mind that the area is very wide spread and has very poor
restaurants / cafes /
snack-bars infrastructure. Due to Washington's hot climate and the vast distances to be walked in open air between the sights, you may soon feel dried out. I would therefore recommend that you equip yourself with an armada of
soft drinks before you start. Some of the museums do have canteens, but they are rather on the expensive side.
National Museum of American History
The Museum is located in the centre of the northern strip of the Mall, between
Madison Drive and Constitution
Avenue, and spans over three floors. You might expect a complete coverage of American history from Christopher Columbus or the
Mayflower to modern day, but indeed the museum focuses mostly on 19th century exhibits.
An exception is the massive Philadelphia, a gunboat from the war of independence of 1776, on the third floor. The centrepiece of the collection is the Star-Spangled Banner of 1814, which gave the name to the American national anthem.
The greater part of the museum is dedicated to 19th century science and innovations – the railroad, telegraphs, electricity, and the industrial revolution in America. I very much liked the typical American hands-on approach on history and science: there are a lot of exhibits which can be touched, tried out and set into motion. There is also an authentic 19th century post office where you can buy old (valid) stamps and send off letters with a historical postmark.
I was, however, disappointed not
to see any reference to Native Americans (Indians) and their near-extinction by the white man. After all the heroism in the collection, a little bit of critical self-reflection would serve this museum well, but that seems to be a problem of American society at large. Maybe I am overly critical here as a German, coming from a people that has elaborated self-reflection to self-torture.
National Air and Space Museum
The Air and Space Museum is my favourite
science museum worldwide (although the Deutsche Museum in Munich comes close). It is located on the southern strip of the Mall between Jefferson Drive and Independence Avenue, and is a real
treasure box for aerospace enthusiasts. The exhibits here are really breathtaking.
The Space Flight section includes original exhibits such as Apollo and Gemini command modules, and models of the Viking Mars Lander, the Apollo Lunar Explorer and the Space ShuttleColumbia. Full size rockets of the early American Space programmes stand erect next to German V1 and V2 rockets from the Second World War. As for Air Flight, there are hundreds of exhibits including some real legends. These include the Wright Brothers' Flyer (first air plane ever), the Spirit of St. Louis (Charles Lindbergh's first transatlantic flight) and the Bell X-1 (first supersonic aircraft), but also commercial airliners such as the legendary Douglas DC-3.
If you have time for only sight in Washington on a short visit or stopover and are even remotely in science, then the National Air and Space Museum would be my
number one recommendation for sightseeing. The museum comes with loads of interactive animations,
touch screens and film shows which make a visit a truly enjoyable and enlightening experience.
Dupont Circle & Embassy Row
And now for something completely different. Dupont Circle is the centre of street life in Washington. Located in the northwest of the city, Dupont Circle is the intersection of three major avenues –
Massachusetts, Connecticut and
Hampshire – and bears a fountain at the centre of the
roundabout. The whole area is wonderful for going out, dining and alternative shopping.
In the 1960s Dupont Circle was at the centre of the Hippie movement, but has changed a lot since. The area has been transformed into a historic district with beautifully restored old mansions.
Whereas the circle itself is rather commercial with Starbuck's Coffeeshops etc., the upper part of Connecticut Avenue is full of exotic restaurants from all parts of this world, placed in the basements and ground floors of some old mansions. I very much enjoyed strolling through the shops and galleries on Connecticut Avenue – there are several second hand bookshops here, as well as alternative bookshops which are strong on rare arts books.
At night, the street cafes are packed with young people. The whole area has a cosmopolitan flair to it. I met quite a number of foreign students here, as well as young people working on interns with one of the international institutions.
Massachusetts Avenue is nobler. The finest mansions are occupied by Americas most exclusive social clubs. As you walk or drive along the Massachusetts Avenue, you will see why it is also called Embassy Row. There are around two dozens of Embassies, Ambassadors' private residences, and international societies. The upper end of Embassy Row, behind Sheridan Circle, leads through Rock Creek Park and is very nice for short afternoon walks in the green.
Georgetown
The other part of town which is excellent for going out, shopping and some sightseeing is Georgetown, located in the west of the DC area. Washington Harbour is a nice marina on Potomac River with several cafes from which you can enjoy a nice view across the river to the skyline of Arlington, Virginia, and watch the planes making their way from Ronald Reagan Airport.
Georgetown appears to be light years away from the official, statesman-like atmosphere of the White House Area and Capitol Hill, or the tourist trails around the Mall. This part of town is very laid back, yet stylish, and best enjoyed just strolling around. This promenade should lead you along the old Chesapeake and
Ohio Canal, a picturesque recreation area which has been given
National Park status.
To compulsory shoppers and diners like myself, the best part of Georgetown are the shops, restaurants and cafes. Georgetown Park is a very stylish shopping mall on M Street with lots of designer stores. More of these stores can be found on Wisconsin Avenue, mixed with restaurants and street cafes in between. Altogether, Georgetown is the place for a perfect day out, and ideal to take a break from a business trip or a packed tourist agenda.
Practical Information
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Shopping
As with all my American travels, I arrived with an almost empty suitcase and returned with a full one. That's because American designer wear is so much cheaper in the
U.S. than
in the UK or anywhere else in
Europe. Washington has an excellent department store, Hecht's
Metro Center, at the corner of 12th and G Street. Here you will find the usual collections of
Ralph Lauren,
Calvin Klein,
Tommy Hilfiger, Lewis, Nautica, Timberland etc.. For more upmarket choices such as DKNY, and more stylish surroundings, I would like to refer you to the mall at Georgetown Park (see above).
Hotels
On my last trip in 1997 I stayed at the Embassy Row
Hilton on Massachusetts Avenue. I can recommend this
hotel only for its excellent location near Dupont Circle, but the hotel itself is – excuse me – crap. This is by far the worst
Hilton Hotel I have ever stayed at (and the only one which only has three stars): small and dark rooms, unhygienic bathrooms, and unfriendly staff. The facilities are very limited, consisting of one bar, one
restaurant, a couple of conference rooms and a pool. Prices start at 150$ per room per night.
I have attended several functions at the Willard Inter-Continental on Pennsylvania Avenue, only two blocks from the White House. Without having actually stayed overnight at this hotel myself, it appears to be one of the finest in town, judging by the quality of its meeting rooms, lobby, bars and restaurants. The staff is extremely friendly and attentive, and the whole place is very stylish and prestigious. But at prices starting at around 400$ per room per night, this is probably not an applicable choice for the average Ciao user. I would however recommend that you try it out for a coffee in the lobby, if only to have a look at the beautiful interior.
Airports
Washington D.C. has three different airports: Dulles International Airport (IAD), Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI) and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA). Wherever you land, do expect to experience a climate shock when you first leave the terminal building. Coming from mild northwestern Europe, entering the hot and humid climate of Washington feels like running into a wall.
Most international passengers arrive at Dulles, 35 miles west of downtown Washington in neighbouring Virginia, and so did I on my last visit. But I really can't recommend this airport. The facilities are rather simple, immigration regulations take ages, and the airport is just too far out of town. No matter which means of
transport you choose, airport-city transit takes well over one hour. The Airport-Metro shuttle takes you to West Falls Church subway station (8$, plus
trainfare), from where you continue downtown. The Washington Flyer Shuttle goes right downtown with stops at major hotels (16$). I chose to go by taxi, which cost
me 45 bucks.
Baltimore Airport, 40 miles north of D.C., doesn't seem to be a better choice. The Airport Connection Shuttle only leaves every 1 1/2 hours and again takes more than an hour to Washington (14$).
Unfortunately, the central Ronald Reagan Airport only serves flights to the U.S. and
Canada. But for my next visit I would probably chose to connect via one of the American or Canadian
hubs to DCA (connections via Canada seem a good alternative for short immigration times). Ronald Reagan Airport has its own subway station and is located near Arlington, only a few miles from the city centre.
Getting Around
Washington has a good subway system which good connections to the city centre and neighbouring towns in Virginia and Maryland. However, the stations are quite far
apart, so you might have to walk a little to
reach your final destination.
Unlike the underground systems of some other American cities, the Washington metro is very clean and appears to
be safe. A convenient way of getting around DC are taxis. Like with buses and the subway, you don't pay for your taxi trip by distance but by zones. This helps to avoid unpleasant surprises and usually quite reasonable.
Travel Guidebooks
Upon my arrival I bought the Michelin Green Guide to Washington. Today I know a lot more about the different approaches of travel guidebooks, so at the time it was an uninformed purchase. But I would buy it again, and that's probably the best thing you can say about a product. In a city with so many sights, museums, monuments, etc., long essays and large photographs would blow up any guide to novel format. The Green Guide is factual and straight forward, and very well structured. It doesn't miss a single sight and provides comprehensive information on every one. The Guide is well structured by districts, and includes a wealth of resources in the reference section. Above all, it's a lightweight and handy companion on your excursions. It does however have no hotels and restaurants information.
Websites
A good introductory site is www.digitalcity.com/washington/visitorsguide. It includes introductions to the major sites, information on events, restaurants and shops, and some tips for excursions. A Must-See is the homepage of the Smithsonian Institution, www.si.edu. It features extensive pages on every one of their museums and an online museum shop. The virtual yellow pages of Washington DC can be found at http://dcpages.com (no www here!), with thousands of entries grouped in well structured categories.
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© 2001 Hansjörg Gebel, Witten,
Germany.
(Written between piled up boxes in the middle of moving households.)
The Capital of Self-Celebration 
