Earlier this year we pointed out that DaVinci Code author Dan Brown's newest book, The Lost Symbol, is set here in Washington, concerns itself with the mysteries of the Masons, and is due out in September. Now via The New York Times' Arts Beat blog, we finally get a look at the cover of the book, which depicts "a shadowy skyline of the Capitol." more ›

Victory — not the concept, but the statue at State Place and 17th Street NW — is the Ghost of Christmas Past. Freedom — the Eastward-facing statue atop the Capitol Dome; not that thing that The Terrorists hate us for — is the Ghost of Christmas Present. And the Ghost of Christmas Yet to Come arrives draped in the inky robes of Grief. more ›

Former Editor-in-Chief Ryan Avent writes a weekly column about neighborhood and development issues. The Washington Highlands neighborhood of the District of Columbia is terra incognita for many Washingtonians. Tucked up against the District’s southeastern border with Maryland’s Prince George’s County, the area is walled off from the rest of the city by Oxon Run Park, the Anacostia Freeway, Bolling Air Force Base, and the Anacostia River, not to mention the yawning gap between its economic... more ›

Flickr user randomduck imagines the Washington Monument as a stake in the world's largest game of horseshoes. Besides who could possibly be playing this game (giants, God?), the other question of course is what would be on the other end of the pitch. The Capitol Dome, perhaps? Send your touched up photos of D.C. through the end of August to sommer (at) dcist.com. more ›

Banner week for SFist as the site's new editor introduced himself -- hooray for Brock! While the NY Times weighed in on SF's mayoral race, only SFist had the (insert tongue firmly into cheek) hard-hitting latest on candidate/activist Josh Wolf. Coverage of a protest vs. gentrification spawned a fantastic debate amongst SFist's readers. Finally, from the sublime to the ridiculous: video of a man that confused a Board of Supes meeting with "open mic... more ›

You know it's too late for your civil liberties when they've gone and put the Statue of Freedom in a cage. And you thought all those people worried about the PATRIOT Act were alarmists. If you haven't glanced at the top of the Capitol lately, take a gander. Over the past week, workers have constructed scaffolding around the Statue of Freedom—the 19 ½ foot bronze sculpture atop the Capitol Dome—not in preparation for her trip... more ›

The opinions expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily shared by other DCist editors or writers. This Opinionist is running today, because the film discussed opens in theaters tomorrow. Four and a half years ago, I ran from the basement of my office building across from Union Station to the street, where I stood and stared at the Capitol Dome, believing, with good reason, that I was about to witness its... more ›

Every time we crossed the 14th Street Bridge, we wondered what the rotating bar atop the Crystal City Doubletree was like. This week we decided to stop wondering, and hazard the post-urban tangle of freeways around Crystal City on foot to check it out. After some Googling we found out the hotel calls the bar the Skydome Lounge, and that it's a bar with light fare during the week and restaurant on weekends. At worst,... more ›

DCist recently saw "The Manchurian Candidate" and saw some startling similarities to Washington in the movie and Washington in reality. First off, our recent terror warning with checkpoints leading to Capitol Hill seems to fit in with the theme of the movie. more ›