Washington DC is the capital of the United States and is named after the first American president, George Washington. All the main administrative and government buildings of the United States are located here – the White House, the headquarters of the Congress, the residence of the Ministry of Defense, as well as the buildings of the State Department, the Supreme Court and other influential organizations.

There is not a single skyscraper in Washington – it is forbidden to build buildings higher than the Capitol (55 m high).

Washington is an independent administrative unit and is not the capital of any state. The second name is the District of Columbia.

Entertainment and attractions

There are many museums and other sights in Washington DC, it takes several weeks to see them all. The National Mall is the main pride of Washington. It contains all the main monuments and monuments of the American capital. Viewed from the air, the alley is in the shape of a cross: the White House is to the north, the Jefferson Memorial to the south, the Capitol to the east, the Lincoln Memorial to the west, and the Washington Monument in the center.

The Washington Monument is a giant granite stele lined with marble; before the construction of the Eiffel Tower, it was the tallest building in the world (170 m high).

The Jefferson and Lincoln Memorials are considered outstanding architectural monuments. The Lincoln Memorial is made in the style of an ancient Greek temple with a colonnade of 36 columns – according to the number of states united at the time of the president’s death. In the center is a statue of Lincoln, proudly sitting on a massive chair, his gaze is turned to the Capitol. The Jefferson Memorial is built in the style of the ancient Greek pantheon: in the center of the marble rotunda is a statue of the “Founding Father” of the United States, and an excerpt from the Declaration of Independence is carved on the wall.

The Library of Congress is considered the largest library in the world. Here is a unique collection of books.

Washington Cathedral in the Gothic style. It is considered the largest Catholic cathedral in the Western Hemisphere.

Museums

The Smithsonian Castle is a magnificent Gothic mansion that now houses the Smithsonian Institution. There is also a tourist information center where you can buy maps, guides and audio guides in different languages.

On the territory of the National Mall there is a museum complex, which includes: the National Museum of Natural History, the American Holocaust Museum, the National Gallery of Art, the Museum of Journalism and News, the National Museum of the American Indian and many other museums (11 in total).