Washington DC Area

Skyline View of Monuments on the National Mall
The National Mall is an open-area national park in
downtown Washington, DC. The term National Mall
commonly includes areas that are officially part of
West Potomac Park and Constitution Gardens to the
west, and often is taken to refer to the entire area
between the Lincoln Memorial and the United States
Capitol, with the Washington Monument providing a
division slightly west of the center. The National
Mall receives approximately 24 million visitors each
year. The Mall has many museums, like the Smithsonian and the
National Gallery of Art. It is located between the
US Capitol and the Washington Monument. It is a popular
place, and is used for exercise, recreation, music
concerts, festivals, and protests. Over 25 million people come to the
Mall each year. Some of the biggest events are the Cherry Blossom Festival, the National
Book Festival, an Earth Day festival, and parades on
Veteran's Day and Independence Day. Protests and
rallies also happen at the Mall. One of the
most famous was the March on Washington for Jobs and
Freedom in 1963, where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave
his I Have a Dream speech. A rally in 1969 to end the
Vietnam War was the biggest protest on the Mall. Over
2 million people came and marched to the White House.
In 1995, the Million Man March was held on the Mall.

The White House
The White House is the official residence and
principal workplace of the President of the United
States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW,
Washington, DC, the house was built between 1792 and
1800 of white-painted Aquia Creek sandstone in the
Neoclassical style. It has been the residence of
every US president since John Adams. Today, the White
House Complex includes the Executive Residence, West
Wing, East Wing, the Eisenhower Executive Office
Building, which houses offices for the President's
staff and the Vice President, and Blair House, a
guest residence. The term White House is regularly
used as a metonym for the Executive Office of the
President of the United States and for the
president's administration and advisers.
The property is a National Heritage Site and is part
of the President's Park.

The National Zoo
The National Zoological Park, aka the
National Zoo, is one of the oldest zoos in the US, and as part of the Smithsonian Institution,
does not charge admission. Founded in 1889, the Zoo
has two campuses. One is a 163-acre
urban park in northwest DC, 20
minutes from the National Mall by Metro. The
other is the 3,200-acre Conservation and Research
Center in Front Royal, VA. Together the two
facilities contain 2,000 animals of 400 different
species. About one-fifth of them are endangered or
threatened. Most species are on exhibit at the Zoo's
Rock Creek Park (northwest DC) campus. The best known residents are
the giant pandas. The Zoo has been the home to giant
pandas for more than 30 years. First Hsing Hsing and
Ling Ling in 1972, and, since 2000, Mei Xiang and
Tian Tian. On July 9, 2005, Mei Xiang gave birth to
Tai Shan, who went to China in February 2010. Today,
all animals live in natural groupings rather than as
individuals. Rare and endangered species, such as
golden lion tamarins, Sumatran tigers, and sarus
cranes, breed and raise their young - a testament to
the success of the Zoo's conservation and research
programs. The National Zoo is open every day of the
year except Christmas Day. The Zoo attracts 2 million visitors per year.

The National Cathedral
The "Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul",
popularly known as Washington National Cathedral, is
a cathedral of the Episcopal Church located in
Washington, DC. Of neogothic design, it is the
sixth-largest cathedral in the world, the
second-largest in the United States, and the
fourth-tallest structure in Washington, DC The
cathedral is the seat of both the Presiding Bishop of
the Episcopal Church and the Bishop of the Diocese of
Washington. In 2009, nearly 400,000 visitors toured
the structure. Average attendance at Sunday services
in 2009 was 1,667, the highest of all domestic
parishes in the Episcopal Church that year.
Construction began on September 29, 1907, when the
foundation stone was laid in the presence of
President Theodore Roosevelt and a crowd of more than
20,000, and ended 83 years later when the last finial
was placed in the presence of President George H. W.
Bush in 1990. Decorative work, such as carvings and
statuary, is ongoing as of 2011. The cathedral is
listed on the National Register of Historic Places and Congress has designated the Washington National
Cathedral as the "National House of Prayer". During
World War II, monthly services were held there "on
behalf of a united people in a time of emergency".
Before and since, the building has hosted other major
events, both religious and secular, that have drawn
the attention of the American people.

Statue at Viet Nam Memoriaal
The Three Soldiers is a bronze statue, on the
National Mall commemorating the Vietnam War. This
well-known sculpture portrays three young US
fighting men, completely dressed and outfitted in
uniforms and equipment used by US infantrymen. While the military attire is meant to be
symbolic and general in nature, the personal combat
equipment displayed is actually quite specific in
representing the figures as serving in either the US
Army or US Marine Corps. Of the three fighting men,
the lead figure (middle) represents a Marine,
as he wears a Type M-1955 body armor vest, which was
worn exclusively by Marines. The man on
the right wears combat equipment consistent with a US
Army Soldier, and the man on the left is slightly
less specific in the service representation of his
gear and uniform, but appears to be a US Army
Soldier, as he wears a Tropical ("Boonie") Hat, which
was widely worn by Army combat personnel. The Three
Soldiers statue was designed to supplement the
Vietnam Veterans Memorial, by adding a more
traditional component such as a statue that depicted
warriors from that war. The statue was
unveiled on Veterans Day, 1984.

Combat Boots Left at Wall - Viet Nam Memorial
The Vietnam Veterans Memorial honors US service
members of the US armed forces who fought in the
Vietnam War, those who died in service in
Vietnam/South East Asia, and those who were
unaccounted for (Missing In Action) during the War.
The Memorial currently consists of three separate
parts: the Three Soldiers statue, the Vietnam Women's
Memorial, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall,
which is the best-known part of the memorial.
Completed in 1982 with 58,195 names originally, the
main part of the memorial is in Constitution Gardens,
and receives around 3 million visitors each year.
The Memorial Wall is made up of two gabbro walls 246 feet
9 inches long, sunk into the ground,
with the earth behind them. At the highest tip where the
walls meet, they are 10.1 feet high, and taper to a height of eight inches at their
extremities. Stone for the wall came from India, and was deliberately chosen because
of its reflective quality. When a visitor looks upon
the wall, htheir reflection can be seen
simultaneously with the engraved names, which is
meant to symbolically bring the past and present
together. One wall points toward the Washington
Monument, the other in the direction of the Lincoln
Memorial, meeting at an angle of 125 degrees. Each wall
has 72 panels, 70 listing names and 2 very small blank panels
at the ends. There is a pathway along the base
of the Wall, where visitors may walk, read the names,
make a pencil rubbing of a particular name, or pray.

Old Post Office
The Old Post Office Pavilion, also known as Old Post
Office and Clock Tower and officially renamed the
Nancy Hanks Center in 1983, is an historic building
of the US government. It is
located at 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, in the
Downtown neighborhood. Built in 1892-99, its rustication, strong
semi-circular arches, squat clustered columns united
by a foliate Sullivanesque capital-frieze, make it
the last major example of Richardsonian Romanesque
architecture to be constructed in the District of
Columbia. Its 315 ft-high clocktower makes the
building the largest commercial building and the
third tallest structure in Washington, DC. Scarcely used as a post office, expansive interior atrium is now home
to shops, federal offices, entertainment space and a
food court. As of 2012, it has been declared surplus by the
government and is set to be completely rebuilt as
Trump International Hotel Washington, DC.

Navy Memorial at Night
The US Navy Memorial honors those who have served or
are currently serving in the Navy, Marine Corps,
Coast Guard, and the Merchant Marine. Associated with
the Memorial is the Naval Heritage Center,
open 362 days a year, closing only on Thanksgiving,
Christmas Day, and New Year's Day. The Memorial is
home to the Memorial Plaza, which features "The Lone
Sailor" statue - a tribute to all personnel of the sea
services that overlooks the "Granite Sea", an exact
replication of the world's oceans. Surrounding the
Granite Sea are two fountain pools, honoring the
personnel of the American Navy and the other navies
of the world. The southern hemisphere of the Granite
Sea is surrounded by 26 bronze base-reliefs
commemorating the various sea services. On an outdoor wall at the
Naval Memorial are engraved noteworthy sayings from
the history of the US Navy. The
Memorial was dedicated on October 13, 1987.

Jefferson Memorial
Composed of circular marble steps, a portico, a
circular colonnade of Ionic order columns, and a shallow
dome, the Jwfferson Memorial is open to the elements. It is situated
in West Potomac Park, on the shore of the Tidal Basin of
the Potomac River. The interior of the memorial has a
19-foot tall, bronze statue showing Jefferson looking out
toward the White House. This statue was added four years
after the dedication. Most prominent are the words which
are inscribed in a frieze below the dome: "I have sworn
upon the altar of God eternal hostility against every form
of tyranny over the mind of man." This sentence is taken
from a September 23, 1800, letter by Jefferson to Dr.
Benjamin Rush wherein he defends the constitutional refusal
to recognize a state religion. On the panel of the
southwest interior wall are excerpts from the Declaration
of Independence, written in 1776.

Smithsonion Castle
The Smithsonian Castle, located on the National Mall
behind the National Museum of African Art, houses the
Smithsonian Institution's administrative offices and
information center. The building is constructed of
red Seneca sandstone in the faux Norman style and is
appropriately nicknamed The Castle. The Castle was
the first Smithsonian building, begun in 1847 by
architect James Renwick, Jr., whose other works
include St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York City and
the Smithsonian's Renwick Gallery. Renwick was
selected by a unanimous vote following a design
competition in 1846. A cardboard model of Renwick's
successful design survives. The East Wing was
completed in 1849 and occupied by Secretary Joseph
Henry and his family. A statue of Secretary Joseph Henry is
displayed in front of the building.

Iwo Jima Memorial
The Marine Corps War Memorial (also called the Iwo Jima
Memorial) is a statue outside the Arlington National
Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. The memorial is dedicated
to all personnel of the United States Marine Corps who have
died in the defense of their country since 1775. The design
of the massive sculpture was based on the iconic photo
Raising the Flag on Iwo Jima, taken during the Battle of
Iwo Jima. The memorial features the Marines and Sailor who
raised the second flag over Iwo Jima. In 1951, work
commenced on creating a cast bronze memorial based on the
photo, with the figures 32 feet tall and flagpole 60
feet. The granite base of the memorial bears two
inscriptions: "In honor and memory of the men of the United
States Marine Corps who have given their lives to their
country since 10 November 1775" and "Uncommon Valor Was a
Common Virtue." This is a tribute by Admiral Chester Nimitz
to the fighting men on Iwo Jima.

Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial
The Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is located in West
Potomac Park in Washington, D.C., southwest of the National
Mall (but within the larger area commonly referred to as
the "National Mall"). The national memorial is America's
395th unit in the national park service. The monumental
memorial is located at the northwest corner of the Tidal
Basin near the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, on a
sightline linking the Lincoln Memorial to the northwest and
the Jefferson Memorial to the southeast. The official
address of the monument, 1964 Independence Avenue, SW,
commemorates the year that the Civil Rights Act of 1964
became law. Covering four acres, the memorial opened to the public on
August 22, 2011. A ceremony dedicating
the Memorial was scheduled for Sunday, August 28, 2011, the
48th anniversary of the "I Have a Dream" speech that Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered from the steps of the
Lincoln Memorial in 1963 but was postponed until October
16 (the 16th anniversary of the 1995 Million Man March on
the National Mall) due to Hurricane Irene.

Union Station
Union Station opened in October 1907, and is one of Washington's
busiest and best-known places. Visited by 32 million
people each year, it has many shops, cafes and
restaurants. Passenger services include Amtrak; the MARC and VRE commuter
railways; and the Washington Metro Red Line, which is located
underground beneath the western side of the building,
and is the busiest station in the Metro system.
Union Station is at the southern end of the Northeast
Corridor, extending north through major cities including Baltimore,
Philadelphia, New York City, and Boston.

Georgetown at Night
Georgetown is a historic neighborhood, commercial, and
entertainment district located in northwest Washington,
D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751,
the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the
federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years. The primary commercial corridors of Georgetown are the
intersection of Wisconsin Avenue & M Street, which contain
high-end shops, bars, restaurants, and the Georgetown Park
enclosed shopping mall, as well as the Washington Harbour
waterfront restaurants at K Street, NW, between 30th and
31st Streets. Georgetown is home to the main campus of
Georgetown University and numerous other landmarks, such as
the Volta Bureau and the Old Stone House, the oldest
unchanged building in Washington. The embassies of France,
Mongolia, Sweden, Thailand, and Ukraine are located in
Georgetown.