In Washington D.C. and Paris, Seduced by a Night View

Travel Blog  •  Julia Ross  •  08.29.07 | 3:57 PM ET

imagePhoto by CrashingWaves via Flickr, (Creative Commons).

Two recent stories on Paris and Washington D.C. after dark are a good reminder that taking in cityscapes by night can yield an entirely different travel experience than tromping around at mid-day. A Washington Post article and slide show on the patchwork system used to illuminate the monuments lining the National Mall nicely conveys the city’s nocturnal alter-ego, while a New York Times piece on ascending the Eiffel Tower at night actually made me want to brave the interminable line to try it.

Of the nation’s capital, the Post’s Philip Kennicott writes: “At night, there is a second city that emerges in Washington, more beautiful and more intelligible than the city by day. The great monuments on the Mall glow a warm white, the grass and trees that surround them sink into inky darkness, and the city itself seems larger, more dramatic and more logically laid out.”

As someone who has spent most of her life in Washington, I heartily agree. Kennicott’s piece, in fact, triggered a vivid memory of my first glimpse of D.C., which came on a steamy, 1970s August night, courtesy of a family friend’s convertible. My parents had just packed up and moved the five of us from the Midwest, and I was scared to death at the prospect of starting third grade in foreign terrain.

I remember charging up the steps of a shimmering Lincoln Memorial, awestruck by the fatherly, outsized presence of Lincoln himself. I turned to catch the lights dancing off the Reflecting Pool and thought: This place might not be so bad after all.

Tags: Lincoln Memorial, National Mall, Pop Culture Travel, Europe, France, Paris, North America, United States, Washington, D.C., News and Briefs

Julia Ross is a Washington, DC-based writer and frequent contributor to World Hum. She has lived in China and Taiwan, where she was a Fulbright scholar and Mandarin student. Her writing has appeared in the Washington Post, Time, Christian Science Monitor, Plenty and other publications. Her essay, Six Degrees of Vietnam, was shortlisted for "The Best American Travel Writing 2009."


6 Comments for In Washington D.C. and Paris, Seduced by a Night View

Gretchen 08.30.07 | 12:10 AM ET

I wholeheartedly agree. A single August evening sitting next to my gorgeous tour guide on the back steps of the the Lincoln Memorial looking out over the water, and my own future sealed my fate. That night I fell hopelessly in love - one I shall never get over. So much so that 2 months later, I packed 2 suitcases and with a 1-way ticket in my hand, no place to stay, no job, no prospects, and no good excuse for my parents standing dumbfounded in O’Hare (I was 22 then) I returned to my city and this time it was for good.

DC is a far cry from Rock Falls, IL where I grew up. The people are very friendly and helpful, and just walking the streets, the Mall, the museums, and being a part of it all kept me in love with the area and helped me tolerate the traffic.

Having just gone back to the area this May with my kids made me fall in love all over again. Even though construction and urban sprawl has kept up with the rest of the country I remembered how to get to all my favorite haunts and all the backroads I took as a DC Insider. It felt like I had never left. DC had welcomed me home again. As my family and I were piling back into the minivan to drive back to Wisconsin where life is a little less exciting, George W is worlds away, traffic isn’t bad, and homes are cheaper, I realized a love I had lost. Looking in the rear-view mirror as we pulled out to leave, I took one last look in the hopes I’ll be able to return again some day…all because of that one August night. Thanks DC!

Marilyn Terrell 08.30.07 | 12:59 PM ET

One of the best DC monuments lit up at night is the FDR Memorial, located along the Tidal Basin between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials. It’s a series of landscaped “rooms” illustrating the various periods in FDR’s presidency (Eleanor gets an alcove).  At night the crowds are gone and it’s very serene,  with the sounds of the waterfalls drowning out traffic.  It’s open until midnight, and the lights are subtle and dramatic.

lotem 02.28.08 | 3:10 PM ET

hi Washington is great city

Date 06.26.08 | 6:43 AM ET

Great night view from the “capital of the world”

Travel to Paris 07.25.08 | 3:36 PM ET

Yeah, I still remember the awe I felt when I saw the washington monument in the reflecting pool from the Linclon memorial.

asbury park 09.12.08 | 3:54 PM ET

while DC is quite beautiful and clean, i never found it too exciting. i think im just too used to nyc, where there is always people around and nightlife.

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