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Washington Information
It is hard to believe, but the land on which Washington, DC?s elegant National Mall and its stately buildings stand was once a marshy swamp. George Washington created this special district as a federal power hub to avoid the problem of establishing the capital city in any one state. Its strategic location, with accessibility to the sea via the Potomac River and between the South and the North, made it an attractive site. Originally designed by the French architect Pierre L?Enfant in 1791, Washington, DC is a city of green parks, wide tree-lined streets and very few skyscrapers, all of which give it a European air. It is very much a purpose-built capital, a city of grand buildings (such as the White House and the US Capitol) and impressive monuments (the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial, to name but two).
Congress and the second President, John Adams, moved to Washington, DC in 1800, but it was a further six decades before it began to look like a capital city. In the interim period, foreign ambassadors considered it a hardship posting. Now, this political centre stage, capital of the most powerful nation in the world, is the place to be. Washington, DC is always in the international spotlight. Occasionally this attention is not welcome, for example, the world?s largest concentration of spies lurks around the city. Washington, DC has also had its share of political scandal, such as the Watergate affair, Mayor Marion Barry?s imprisonment for drug offences, the Monica Lewinsky affair and the painful struggle of the 2000 presidential elections. Washington, DC was once again in the spotlight on 11 September, but this time for tragic reasons, as a hijacked plane crashed into the Pentagon. Since that time, barricades, blocked-off streets, police and security checks have given parts of the city a different façade.
Though wealthy on the surface, Washington, DC has the dubious distinction as having a high crime rate, plus high unemployment, illiteracy and drug abuse. All of this has driven middle-class families out of the city centre into the suburbs and neighbouring states. Mayor Williams has made great strides in cleaning up and revitalising the city. Despite the city?s problems, the power and the politics are a heady mix. So much American history is crammed into Washington, DC with its wealth of monuments, public buildings, museums and memorials to past heroes that visitors cannot fail to be impressed.
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