Dreamscapes Travel & Lifestyle Magazine
Issue link: http://read.dreamscapes.ca/i/821088
DREAMSCAPES SPRING/SUMMER 2017 32 W ashington, D.C., fits the bill, where all roads lead to the marble white U.S. Capitol, the legislature's meeting ground. This city is the epicentre of American government, housing Congress, the Supreme Court, and yes, the White House. If I look at the capital in the dawn's early light, I see the serenity and grandeur of a city befitting a nation that aspires to be the greatest. MARCH FROM CAPITOL HILL My morning walk started from the United States Capitol, through National Mall, and on to the White House. The colossal Capitol Building is located at the mall's east end. President George Washington, the founding father who selected the city site, laid the Capitol's cornerstone in 1793, and in 1800 Congress moved in. The originally 27-metre structure was the principal building around which all others were organized. Currently, the rotunda beneath the 55-metre dome is the principal ceremonial space for Congress. The interior features Victorian elements such as elaborate fireplaces and intricate cast-iron grilles. Richly coloured, patterned encaustic tiles cover the floor. Frescoes inside the Capitol Building are by Roman artist Constantino Brumidi, who painted murals in the Vatican before coming to the U.S. in 1852. Tour access to the Capitol is fairly simple, unlike other symbolic D.C. buildings. AMERICAN LANDMARKS In 1791, Major Pierre L'Enfant, a French engi- neer, master planned the city in a grid pattern with diagonal avenues, much like BY TAMIM CHOUDHURY A Monumental CITY WHAT MAKES A GREAT CITY? ACCORDING TO URBAN AFFAIRS PROFESSOR H.V. SAVITCH, IT HOLDS MAJESTY AND PROMINENCE, AND IS DEFINED BY ITS COMMERCIAL POWER, CULTURAL ASSETS OR MILITARY CAPACITY.