Washington, D.C.

5 Responses to “Washington, D.C.”

1. Nancy Weldon says:

   July 28, 2010 at 4:57 pm

   The book looked ok- but I returned it because, by the time it came, I was already in Washington.
   Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
2. Christopher Noell says:

   July 28, 2010 at 7:05 pm

   I am preparation a trip to Washington, DC, in September 2006. In order to prepare for my trip and gain insight on the many attractions in the nation’s capital, I bought the “Eyewitness Travel: Washington, DC” guide from Amazon.com in the month prior to my trip.

   I was expecting to find a non-partisan, non-political guide that would not pander to any agenda or movement (we get enough of that from the liberal news media every day, and every time we go to the movie theater, as we are force-fed leftist, politically-right propaganda spewed by the “cultural elite”). Boy, was I incorrect!

   The first few pages deal with the history of Washington, DC, with pictures of the various protests over the years, from women’s sufferage, to anti-Vietnam War rallies, and anti-Persian Gulf War demonstrations. At first this didn’t concern me, until I recalled the copious pro-life rallies that have taken place in DC, drawing tens of thousands of anti-abortion opponents on an annual basis. Or how about the many “support the troops” (pro-war) rallies that have occurred in 1991 and since the 2003 liberation of Iraq (and I am a member of the Army National Guard, by the way)? None of persons pictures were shown, but then again, that wouldn’t be very PC.

   Pertaining to security, page 212 of the guide attempted to minimize Washington, DC’s notorious crime problems, stating: “Although as in any major city there is crime, Washington has made fantastic efforts in sinking problems and cleaning up its streets, and with fantastic success”. That’s news to me, because Washington, DC remains one of (if not THE) murder capitals of the nation, with crime beginning to affect some of DC’s more elite neighborhoods and tourist areas. In late July 2006, news coverage spoke of increasing robberies, muggings, assaults, and rapes at or near the Mall, mainly during late evening and night hours. As for cleaning up the streets, I hope that DC has made progress since my last visit there in the summer of 2003, as the block behind the J. Edgar Hoover FBI Building (10 Street NW) was riddled with homeless people and the sickening sight and smell of human waste. But then again, it would be very un-PC to focus on DC’s crime and homeless problem.

   The kicker was when I flipped to page 203 and viewed the “cultural events pages”. Mixed in with the area theaters, opera halls, ballets, clubs and bars, was a seperate section naming the location of three of DC’s “well-known” gay bars. Again, political correctness is force-fed to us, as the gay agenda finds its way into a tourist guide.

   In all, the guide was very informative with detailed information about the many things to do in the nation’s capital and surrounding area, but why was such a liberal slant allowed to ruin an otherwise very enjoyable and helpful booklet. If I had known this, I would not have bought the “Eyewitness Travel” guide to Washington, DC.
   Reader’s Rating: 2 / 5
3. Daryl L. Sparks says:

   July 28, 2010 at 9:25 pm

   My new Washington, D.C. Eyewitness Travel Guide is MISSING the first 24 pages.

   Can the seller please send me another copy of this book?

   D. Sparks
   Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
4. Angelo Gomez says:

   July 28, 2010 at 11:51 pm

   As a 10 year resident of Washington DC, I reflect that there are many areas that have developed recently that deserve to be mentioned here. Also, there are reasonably a few inaccuracies. Although crime and racial discrimination are part of the city living so is the new development of a multicultural city. For example, there is a large number of Latinas/os all over the city who have their own newspapers, radio stations, health centers, neighborhoods (despite the gentrification efforts by the new rich or yuppies), restaurantes, theaters (e.g. Teatro Gala), bars and discos, which are very excellent and cheap, and a large number of Latina/o intellectuals; also the Ethiopian community is reasonably strong here with lots of restaurants to delight in so there is more than black and white but the whole rainbow of human beings are here and every one has some cultural influence on the city. Also, I reflect that far beyond the Mall there are reasonably a lot of appealing and gorgeous sights that this guide fails to mention such as the National Shrine (Catholic cathedral) with some pretty sights around as the Franciscan Monastery with their catacombs and the new Jean Paul II museum among many additional sights and places beyond the Mall such as 14 St. and U St. areas. DC is very expensive place to live in. Although it is not NYC or San Francisco, DC is not far behind in rent and housing prices so even a very tiny one bedroom apartment can reach $5,000 a month, depending on the location. DC is also a college town. Yes, a college town! Did you know that the city itself has ten major colleges such as Georgetown Univ., George Washington Univ., Catholic University, Howard University, Gallaudet University, Trinity University, American University, University of the District of Columbia, Southeastern University, and Corcoran College of Art and Design. Plus the nearby University of Maryland (one of the top ten largest campuses in the US), George Mason University, and John Hopkins University, and many local chapters of additional institutions of privileged education which amount to 500,000 (yes, half a million college students!). I guess this is something worth of mentioning it in a tourist guide, right? There is a new Museum too which is the Native American Museum and the Newseum is coming up by the end of 2007 and also there is an initiative to erect one for Latinos. There is a lot more to see than the Mall in DC and Georgetown and that beyond is pretty as well and very multicultural. In synopsis, I wish that the people from this publishing company did a better job at talking to the locals and looking beyond what is classic and researched ten years ago.
   Reader’s Rating: 3 / 5
5. A. Friend says:

   July 29, 2010 at 12:42 am

   A very clear guide book. Well organized with helpful facts and photos to help identify buildings and key contents. It proved most useful.
   Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5