The Smell Of Power...

With my morning meeting successfully concluded, I stepped out into the sunny streets of Washington DC, where the smell of power reigns supreme... 

I walked a bit to get a view of the residence of the most powerful person in the world today, the White House...

The view of the grand building from Lafayette Square. Since the Italian Prime Minister, Matteo Renzi, is in town and is being hosted by the Obamas for a state dinner tonight, the areas ahead are cordoned off...

Some Russians supposedly campaigning for a "Vote4Peace" at the  Lafayette Square...

The equestrian statue of Andrew Jackson in front of White House - Andrew Jackson was the 7th President of the United States...

InterContinental The Willard Washington D.C. - this hotel has an interesting history - it was the origin of the term "lobbying" and "lobbyist" - the grease that "oils" the cogwheels of politics not only in the United States but all over the world...

Anecdotal history of Washington, D.C. suggests that the term lobbyist was coined by President Ulysses S. Grant during his tenure in office in the 1870s. Grant used to visit the famous Willard Hotel frequently to take a break from stress of work. Despite his best efforts to keep his outings private, individuals standing in the hotel lobby would approach Grant and ask him for special favors or jobs.  President Grant apparently referred to these people as lobbyists. And the term continues today, though it has evolved into becoming a well paying profession in the United States...

I took an Uber cab to save time to get to the memorials and my cab driver, a friendly and talkative middle-aged African American. Realising that this was my first visit to the District, he enthusiastically stories of the places we passed by. The Old Ebbitt Grill is quite an institution that has been here since the 1850s and has been a quick mealtime getaway for the occupants of the White House including the Bushes, Clintons and the Obamas...

The headquarters of the Organisation of American States - a pan-American organisation...

The Red Cross office on the 17th Street NW...

Flags of the United States, District of Columbia and Italy...

This reminds of how flags line up the Rajpath in Delhi, when foreign heads of state come visiting...

The Lockkeeper's House, a historic building at the corner of 17th Street, and Constitution Avenue, Northwest. This historic building has been here since the 1830s and has been preserved...

Glimpses of the Washington Memorial...