Washington, D.C. – maturitní otázka (4)

 

  Otázka: Washington, D.C.

  Jazyk: Angličtina

  Přidal(a): VariusMartin

 

 

Washington, D.C.

• The capital of the USA
• Located on the East coast, south of the NYC
• Centre of American political power (The White House – president, The U.S. Capitol – Congress)
• Washington D.C. is one of America’s most visited It is not just seat of the Federal Government, Supreme Court and the President of the United States; there are also memorials to commemorate important figures and events in American history
• The whole district is divided into four parts – Southeast, Southwest, Northeast and Northwest; centre of the division lines is the U.S. Capitol building
• Population: 650 000
• No taller buildings than Capitol (law)

 

History:

• American natives‘ settlement in the pre-colonial era on the Potomac River
• Became the capital after the Compromise of 1790 when Jefferson, Hamilton and Madison agreed on moving the capital from Philadelphia to the Southern United States (about 8000 inhabitants)
• First city in the world to be designed and newly built as the capital (Pierre L’Enfant)
• Former area of district was 100 sq. miles (as designed by George Washington)
• Huge economic decline prior to the outbreak of American Civil War in 1861 (first slaves freed on command of Abraham Lincoln) (about 100 000 inhabitants)
• Huge historical importance (Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech, signing place of The North Atlantic Treaty = The Washington Treaty) and many more

 

Transportation:

• Most of the transportation is public (Interstate 95 – the biggest highway on the East Coast runs around the district)
• Second-busiest subway and sixth-largest bus system
• Main train station = Union Station (over 70 000 people serviced every day)
• Three major airports: Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, Washington Dulles International Airport, Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport

 

Places to visit:

• The White House – was not always white, painted white after the War with British of 1812
• The Capitol – centre of the US government
• The Lincoln Memorial – American National monument (form of Greek temple) – site for Martin Luther King’s „I have a dream“ speech
• The Washington Monument – 170 metres tall obelisk (world’s tallest stone structure), honour of George Washington

 

Comparison – New York City:

• Height of the buildings
  • Washington, D.C.- small buildings that are not taller than the Capitol
  • New York City- tall skyscrapers
• Rivers
  • Washington, D.C.- no river
  • New York City- the Hudson river (border between Manhattan and New Jersey) and the East river
• Numbers of streets
• Population
  • Washington, D.C.- 650 000
  • New York City- 8 500 000