Walking Tour #5 - Meridian Hill/Columbia Heights

As you may know, my husband has been putting together walking tours for us, to help us explore this city that we have lived in for 40+ years and perhaps see a few things we have missed and of course to help pass the time.  They have been very well received by his audience of one, me, as I only have to show up.  He has planned the route, done the architectural and historical research and as we walk he entertains me with facts and little-known stories.

We have driven past Meridian Hill Park many times but have never been in it.  For many years it had a terrible reputation as a place for drug dealing and use, but now the entire area is gentrified and today it was filled with exercisers, people walking their dogs, and sunbathers.  Interestingly it has three prominent statues:  Dante, Joan of Arc, and James Buchanan, who was until recently known as our worst president.  Now he is the 2nd worst.

We saw many embassies, churches, the childhood home of Katherine Graham, and the oldest house in DC which is located in Kalorama.  That designation probably needs an asterisk because the house was built in the late 1700's in Danvers, Massachusetts and was taken apart, board by board, nail by nail and shipped to D.C. in the early 1900's where it was rebuilt in the very upscale neighborhood of Kalorama, also known as the neighborhood where the Obamas and Ivanka and Jared Kuschner live. 

The Obamas live on a dead-end that is closed off by the secret service except for the residents.  It wasn't hard to recognize the "Javanka" house as there were secret service cars parked right outside.  We had a good laugh as we drove by and noted that every house surrounding them and throughout the neighborhood had a large number of Biden/Harris signs.