No one is going to miss the White House or the Smithsonian when they go on Washington D.C. travel tours but, as impressive and important as these sites are, they don’t really give you a feel for the city itself. Find out a little more by visiting these sites that are inhabited by the locals.

    * Foggy Bottom 
      Best know for The Kennedy Center, George Washington University and the infamous (thanks to former President Richard Nixon) Watergate Hotel, Foggy Bottom used to be a working class neighborhood filled with the Irish and German immigrants and African Americans who worked in the local breweries, glass plants and at the gas company. This neighborhood is right on the Potomac River and is has been preserved as an historical site with great neighborhoods featuring houses from the 1800s.

    * Chinatown
      You enter Washington D.C.’s Chinatown through a traditional, and beautiful, Chinese gate called the Friendship Arch.
      
    

    * Chinatown is small historic neighborhood with shops and restaurants. The best restaurant in the area is Full Key, also voted one of the top 100 Chinese Restaurants in the U.S. Full Key has all the usual fare as well some unique items like Deep Fried Spicy Frog and Dungeness Crab in Ginger Scallions. It’s also a great place for kids. Here’s a list of other Chinatown restaurants.

    * Dupont Circle
      For a variety of ethnic food, as well as an impressive array of museums, historic homes, bookstores, private art galleries and foreign embassies, check out Dupont Circle. The ‘circle’ itself is a gathering place for friends and neighbors to relax on park benches surrounding a unique fountain. Along with the U District, Dupont Circle is also a hub of Washington D.C.’s nightlife.

    * U Street District
      In addition to several notable landmarks and architectural styles ranging over 150 years, the U Street District is also a hub of nightlife. Don’t miss U Street for some of Washington, D.C.’s best nightclubs and theatres.

Everyone knows that if you want the best Chinese food you eat at a restaurant frequented by the Chinese. The same goes with the ‘best’ of every city, and Washington D.C. tours are no exception. See the sites, but make sure you also visit a few places where the locals hang out.