Washington D.C. Orientation

D.C. stretches in the four cardinal directions. The Potomac River forms the jagged southwest border, its waters flowing between the District and Arlington, VA. North Capitol, East Capitol, and South Capitol Streets slice the city into four quadrants: NW, NE, SE, and SW. The Mall stretches west of the Capitol. The suffixes of the quadrants distinguish otherwise identical addresses in Washington’s grid (e.g. 800 G St. NW and 800 G St. NE). Streets that run east-west are labeled alphabetically in relation to North Capitol St./South Capitol St., which runs through the Capitol. There is no J St. After W St., east-west streets take on two-syllable names, then three-syllable names, then the names of trees and flowers, all in roughly alphabetical order. Streets running north-south are numbered up to 52nd St. NW and 63rd St. NE. Addresses on lettered streets indicate the number of the cross street. For instance, 1100 D St. SE is on the corner of D and 11th. While navigation on foot is relatively easy, both drivers and pedestrians should be aware of possible road blocks and detour routes set up by city officials to protect the security of political buildings. Some streets alternate between one-way or two-way depending on the time of day.

Major roads include Pennsylvania Avenue, Connecticut Avenue, Wisconsin Avenue, 16th Street NW, K Street NW, Massachusetts Avenue, New York Avenue, and North Capitol Street. D.C. is ringed by the Capital Beltway (I-495—except where it’s part of I-95). The Beltway is bisected by U.S. 1 and meets I-395 from Virginia. The Baltimore-Washington Parkway connects Washington, D.C. to Baltimore, MD. I-595 trickles off the Capital Beltway toward Annapolis, MD, and I-66 heads west into Virginia.

Neighborhoods

Postcard-perfect, Capitol Hill symbolizes the democratic ideal, with the Capitol, Supreme Court, and Library of Congress all facing each other. Extending west from the Capitol building is the grassy ...more

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