Making Capital Gains

Beyond its politics, washington, D.C. Is making history with its modern museums and scrumptious food

- Shreevatsa Nevatia

“More Delhi than Chandigarh, no?” I asked gingerly. Capitals, I argued, all resembled each other. The architecture was stately. Even if their leaders didn’t have towering personalities, their buildings did. Though she was the photographer, I did take to Instagram more often. I was at a geopolitical epicentre.

The next morning, sitting atop a double-decker tour bus, I felt peeved. “I am not a tourist”, I wanted to moan sanctimoniously. The view, perhaps expectedly, placated me. As we passed the Washington Monument, the White House and the F.B.I.’s headquarters, I looked on with some marvel. Neither CNN nor popular culture had done them adequate justice. Ron Wright, our 69-year-old guide, quacked when he saw ducks, and grew more excited when he saw a convoy. “Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the President of the United States,” he said, pointing to a passing motorcade. Sadly, Ron was quick to puncture the momentousness of the occasion: “There was no ambulance at the back. That wasn’t him.”

Suddenly, Ron looked up from his handkerchief and said into his mike, “The thing about Washington City is that it is a made-up place.” The Washingtonian, it turned out, was too proud to be pejorative. He was simply stating fact. It was only on July 16, 1790, that the Resident Act approved its creation. Unlike other great cities of the world, Washington was something of an afterthought. Later that afternoon, Supriya and I decided to visit the U.S. Capitol. We wanted an inside view. Tom Fontana, director of communications at the Capitol’s Visitor Center, met us outside. “The senators left at 2.30 a.m. Be prepared to see very bleary-eyed folk,” he said, moving quickly through the Center’s lobby.