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Get to know Georgetown

Georgetown is the oldest neighborhood in the city and its founding actually predates the establishment of Washington, D.C., originating as a part of the Province of Maryland in 1751. Georgetown always tops the lists of the city’s most expensive neighborhoods, thanks to its posh reputation and high name recognition even outside of D.C. The neighborhood has immense historic charm, with cobblestone streets and gorgeous row houses, all in a scenic location. Georgetown was originally a port town and water is a constant theme, from the Potomac River and the Georgetown Waterfront Park along its southern borders to the C&O Canal. Georgetown University is here and though there are still some student hangouts, the nightlife scene is significantly more sedate than the 1980s, when the bars were flooded with preppies and punks. But Georgetown always endures and the crowded shops and restaurants on M Street attest to its continuing popularity.

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Living in Washington, D.C.

Washington, D.C., is a beautiful city with gorgeous architecture and a vibrant cultural life that also just happens to be the nation’s capital. Of course, Washington, D.C., is a company town — the company being the American government — but only a quarter of Washington, D.C., residents are federal employees, with the biggest employers being the major hospitals and universities. Washington, D.C., is an exemplar of urban planning, thanks to the vision of military engineer Pierre Charles L’Enfant. L’Enfant’s plan symbolically put the people in charge by placing Congress, and not the White House, at the pinnacle of the city, with D.C.’s wide boulevards radiating out from the “People’s House” on Capitol Hill. L’Enfant also laid out the National Mall, which stretches for more than two miles from Capitol Hill to the Potomac River, creating a public space for marches, monuments, and museums.