Though Washington's public image may be defined by monuments, museums and the Mall, her soul resides in her neighborhoods. To really see, smell, taste and feel the rhythm of D.C. life, one must explore the patchwork of the small neighborhood communities that make up the city.
Some neighborhoods are very consciously elegant, while others feel like old shoes.
Some are steeped in history, while others are shiny and new. Some shelter residents who swim proudly outside the mainstream, while others are home to people who virtually define the establishment. For a city reputed to be a company town, these areas are surprisingly, and refreshingly, distinct. Fostered initially by the creation of the Metro system, the Pennsylvania Avenue redevelopment project and construction of the Washington Convention Center, the neighborhood received a more recent boost from the creation of the grand Navy Memorial at 8th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue and the brand-new MCI Center, where you can eat and shop as well as watch sporting events and concerts. Apartment houses, condominiums, fine restaurants and office buildings have sprung up in the area, and an art gallery strip and the new home of the Shakespeare Theatre have made 7th Street the hub of a vibrant cultural scene.