LIFE IN D.C.About D.C.
Students visit the Vietnam War Memorial while touring the D.C. monuments
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Founded in 1791, the District of Columbia was the world's first planned national capital. The world's most powerful city, Washington is also renowned for its handsome architecture, stunning vistas and colorful landscape, as well as its world-class cultural attractions.
Museums
Besides numerous monuments and landmarks, Washington is home to more than 90 museums and public galleries, including the Smithsonian Institution, the world's largest museum complex. The Smithsonian comprises 16 museums, art galleries, and the National Zoo, all of which are free to the public.
Theater & Music
With its vibrant theater and music scene, Washington is second only to New York in number of public performances of the arts.
Opportunities such as the Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, which gives free performances in the evenings, are abundant in D.C.
“There were numerous times I would walk through the Georgetown gates hurrying from work to class and have to almost pinch myself as a reminder that I was not dreaming. I felt the same about walking through the mall or near the capitol or sitting on the floor of the House of Representatives.”
Kelsey Beltramea
University of Iowa
Intern, Student Press Law Center
International Community
In addition to its abundance of attractions, Washington is a cosmopolitan city with the nation's most diverse international community. Tree-lined Embassy Row is home to many of the over 170 foreign embassies present in the nation's capital. These embassies, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the Organization of American States, and several other international institutions all call Washington home.
Professional Opportunities
Professionally, Washington is clearly most famous for being the home of American government. Thousands are employed on Capitol Hill and 40,000 interns flood the city each summer to network and learn. In addition, D.C. hosts the world's largest concentration of think tanks and trade associations, with its suburbs home to numerous science and technology firms. Also notable are the hundreds of distinguished nonprofits (including The Fund for American Studies!) headquartered in Washington. The nation's capital has been forecast by American Demographics to be the region leading the nation in job growth over the next ten years.
All of these factors combine to help create a city that is incredibly unique and celebrated. For visitors and residents, there is endless possibility of things to see and do.
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