Why Washington Trumps Paris
Although few things can compare to Paris’ windy cobblestone streets, scented with the smell of freshly baked bread from the corner boulangerie, there is absolutely no capital like Washington, DC.
After a semester in Paris, I returned last week to Washington, D.C. Apart from the obvious differences, walking around Washington did not initially seem much unlike walking around Paris: outdoor restaurants teem with afternoon patrons, taxis zigzag around the cities’ bustling streets, men in suits plow through dawdling crowds on their way to work, tourists shuffle along snapping photos, and busy city life endures on both sides of the Atlantic.
As I walked along H Street, remarking on how surprisingly similar many aspects of D.C. were to Paris, I was stopped in front of the Treasury building by an Asian tour group following a man with a microphone, who was holding a rainbow umbrella above his head. Though the group was foreign, their guide was speaking in English – undoubtedly accompanied by an unseen interpreter.
While the guide explained the architectural, historical, and obvious modern day significance of the Treasury building, the tour group stood on the sidewalk snapping pictures through the surrounding iron fence. Though relatively unperturbed by the tourist sidewalk blockade, I couldn’t help but notice how outwardly similar this group was to the countless international tour groups I saw every day being herded around Paris.
Within two minutes, I was able to push past the crowd and continued up H Street towards the White House, where I stopped to take some of my own “touristy snap shots.” At one point, a British couple approached me and asked me to take a picture of them in front of the White House.
After five minutes of talking with the very excited British couple - who were waiting determinately in front of the White House, hoping to catch a glimpse of President Obama – I decided to continue my walk around to the National Mall, where it occurred to me that I ought to stop and buy postcards to send to my European friends.
As I perused the selection of postcards, most of which were not of famous attractions, but of Obama’s face, it hit me how very, very different D.C. was from Paris.
Nowhere in Paris is there a postcard with French President Sarkozy’s face on it. Nor are there tour groups that congregate outside of institutional buildings, with cameras at the ready.
People go to Paris to soak up the history, experience “la vie en rose,” and tour the infamous monarchical legacies, such as Versailles, L’Arc de Triomph, Le Louvre, and so on. Though Paris’ many attractions and alluring characteristics are far too many to list, one thing is for certain: people do not travel from all corners of the globe to see the seat of French government.
Conversely, people the world over travel to Washington, D.C. for no other reason than to witness the monumental display of history’s pioneer democratic republic. Every fixture of our government, from our President, to Congress, to the Treasury, is a tourist attraction. After waiting in hellishly long lines in the unbearable Washington summer heat, foreigners and citizens alike stand in awe as they look down on the glass-covered Declaration of Independence that sits proudly in the Library of Congress.
Although few things can compare to Paris’ windy cobblestone streets, scented with the smell of freshly baked bread from the corner boulangerie, there is absolutely no city like Washington, D.C., whose sole attraction and purpose is the functioning seat of the United States government.
Click here to read Eli Lehrer's defense of Paris.