The Capitol City

Introduction

Let’s paint a quick picture. Your early morning Greyhound bus pulls up to the street-level bus bay at Union Station, and you are ready to explore this new city all of your friends were talking about just a few weeks ago. The bus driver says on the PA.: “Passengers, Welcome to Washington, D.C.!” and you begin getting ready to take on the long day trip ahead of you. You take your backpack and exit the station, looking out to the small, but eventful city that awaits you. It’s only 9 a.m. but the city streets are bustling with men and women in formal wear; The metro buses are stopping letting passengers on and off; There are children running around in a park with their dogs; There are posters and advertisements plastered on buildings and sidewalks. This is Washington, D.C..

Washington, D.C., or just DC for short, has been the place that I have called home for the past 18 years. It’s the place I was born, the place where I went to school, the place I got my first job, the place I found friends and community, and the place I was leaving behind when I moved away for college. Over the years, I have grown to love where I came from. It’s rich in history, art, music, architecture, politics, culture, etc., and I always wondered why people loved the city so much. Now I understand.

The 4 Quadrants

The city is most evident in its ability to be diverse. Similarly to a bigger city, New York City, DC has different regions and areas consisting almost of smaller cities within all the 4 different quadrants. In NW, you have the Smithsonian Zoo, Georgetown University, M Street, The White House, The Washington Monument where you can view the cherry blossoms, the Capital One Arena to catch a hockey or basketball game, streets full of free museums with art, artifacts, letters, and history, and Chinatown, where you can immerse yourself with mini Chinese culture. In NE, you have the H Street corridor, the US National Arboretum, Catholic University, and Union Market where you can shop and dine for your pleasure. In SW, you can catch a baseball game or holiday event at Nationals Park or go to the waterfront and shop at small businesses at Navy Yard. Finally, you can cross a small bridge and make it over to SE, where you can go through Anacostia and walk along the park and riverfront, Eastern Market to shop, or watch people play street basketball at schoolyard courts. These are all just a few of the various activities and events you can visit (just not in a day unfortunately.) But, this city is a perfect example of a hub of cultures and diversity, making the city fun and enjoyable.

As said before, I didn’t really used to understand the “hype” around my city and why it was popular. I would always see lines of tourists in the museums, walking and picnicking on the National Mall, and large crowds on the Metro trains. What was once a brief inconvenience, is now a full understanding of why. The city itself is interesting, I mean come on, it's the capital of the United States! You can also learn a lot of history and background while here as well, making it not just fun, but educational. (Now I see why there are so many school trips visiting). There are historical landmarks in pretty much every quadrant of the city, so that will be a nice round trip you can take a journey on. For all art and music lovers, I can guarantee there will be a place you can find full of it. There are bars, clubs, recreation centers, record shops, museums, etc. playing music and displaying various art and sculptures. I can also guarantee you will come across beautifully painted murals on every other street when you make it downtown and through the residential neighborhoods.

A Better City

Although there is a lot of good happening on the avenues and streets of Washington, D.C. there is one pressing issue that I have seen living here: gentrification. Many of the old neighborhoods and storefronts are being changed and erased of history. Neighborhoods like Anacostis, Navy Yard, Shaw, Barry Farms, and several more have rapidly changed over the years. The city used to be nicknamed as “Chocolate City” due to its high population of African Americans. It’s sort of hard to call it that to this day though. Gentrification has unfortunately pushed many families out of their homes and neighborhoods, raised the costs of living in the city, and caused amounts of homelessness in pretty much every ward and quadrant. As the years go on, I do hope to see improvements within the city and surrounding areas. It has lots of potential in being better, safer, cleaner, and more liveable. The city isn’t perfect and that’s okay, but it’s nice to look on the bright side of what the city has to offer to anyone who visits because now I appreciate being from DC and having the opportunity to immerse myself in the city whenever I go back home.