The Insider's D.C.: Andrew Evans

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SURE, YOU THOUGHT you really knew Washington when you figured out the precise cost of a taxi ride through three zones (in the pre-meter days), and a night out in Adams Morgan became incomplete without a jumbo slice of pizza.

But how well do you really know our fair capital city?

Travel writer and District resident Andrew Evans thinks we could all use a little refresher about the many cultural, social and historical delights Washington has to offer, from top-notch pupusas to vibrant local music to intriguing and forgotten memorials. Evans, 32, who has lived in D.C. on and off since childhood and has called the city his home for the past five years, says there are two Washingtons — the one in which residents live and work, and the one that caters to tourists.

"I've been doing a survey this last month of all of my friends who live in D.C.," Evans says, "and I've been asking: How many of them have been to the top of the Washington Monument? Most of them have never been, or if they have they were kids on a field trip."

Of course, you don't need to ride an elevator up 555 feet (and 5/8 inch) to get a better appreciation for D.C. You could just take some advice from Evans. He gave a sold-out Smithsonian Resident Associates talk about "The Insider's Washington, D.C." on July 15 at the Freer Gallery of Art.

"I'm not going to pretend to be an expert at all," he says. "It's more about approaching D.C. with a curiosity of digging deeper and looking for things that a lot of people who live here don't know. I just have a lot of passion for this city. The longer I live here, the more I love it."

Before his talk, we asked Evans to spill the beans on some of the best and the worst of D.C.

He delivered.

» Most likely to impress visitors about D.C.:
I think what I hear the most from my foreign friends who come and visit is how beautiful Washington is. It's a really green city. We have so many trees and parks.

» Most headache-inducing Smithsonian museum:
It's probably the Hirshhorn [Museum and Sculpture Garden]. Because you're going 'round and 'round and it's all modern art, some of which is good and interesting and some of which is headache-inducing.

I would have answered the National Museum of American History before it was closed, because it was impossible to see everything at once and it wasn't well organized. I'm glad they're redoing that.

» Place where you're most likely to run into an 8th grade class trip:
The National Museum of Natural History is where you're most likely to run into a class field trip, but I actually love it.

» Non-free museum worth paying for:
The Phillips Collection [1600 21st St. NW; 800-551-SEAT] would be my No. 1 pick, followed by The Kreeger Museum [2401 Foxhall Rd. NW; 202-337-3050]. I love the Phillips. Every time I go there, I'm amazed at the collection they have. The Kreeger [shown above] is one of the first collections of modern art in America, and the building itself is pretty unique to Washington.

» Monument or memorial worth a long trek to see up close:
The one that I think is definitely worth the walk that's a long way off is the Titanic Memorial [4th and P streets SW]. It's fantastic. It was designed by Gertrude Whitney, who founded the Whitney Museum in New York City, and it was made to honor the men of the Titanic who gave up their seats on lifeboats for women and children. It's really unique and most people don't know that it exists here in Washington.

» Monument or memorial not worth a long trek to see up close:
The Jefferson Memorial, because if you're walking from the Mall it's a fairly long walk. Plus, I think the Jefferson Memorial is more beautiful from afar.

» Most likely to disappoint tourists about Washington:
We don't have enough drinking fountains, that's my one complaint. People will sell you bottled water everywhere, but they're charging an outrageous amount. On the National Mall, half of the public fountains that are there don't work. We need more public water fountains.

» Your favorite season in D.C.:
That's really hard. I love that we have four perfect seasons that each last three months. Everyone's going to say spring, but I would say fall if I had to say one. Because all the tourists leave! [laughs] We have a beautiful Indian summer here. October in Washington is gorgeous: it's still warm in the daytime and the trees change colors.

» Suburb outside D.C. most worth visiting:
Takoma Park. Takoma Park is the kind of town that every American wishes they lived in. Everyone who lives in Takoma Park is so nice, it's so green, and yet its not pokey or provincial at all. There are some great restaurants up there, there's a great farmers' market — it's a very entertaining place to live. At night, it's quiet and you can see fireflies, and yet you can still get great Middle Eastern food if you want.

» Best movie set in D.C.:
I just saw this one, "Breach," which I really liked. I also like "Shattered Glass."

» Worst movie set in D.C.:
"True Lies," with Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jamie Lee Curtis. It's really cheesy and it portrays D.C. as ... [a place where] everyone's a spy.

» Place where you're most likely to forget you're in a city:
Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens [1550 Anacostia Ave. NE; 202-426-6905]. It's like being in a tropical forest. You don't feel like you're in a city at all. It feels like you're in Cambodia or Africa.

» Best D.C. sports team:
Caps hockey.

» Best way to meet other Washingtonians:
Embassy functions and embassy parties. There are receptions all the time at embassies all over. They always have such a random group of people in them. I've made totally random friends there that I'm still in touch with. I'd say about half of the embassy parties are open to the public.

» Biggest cliche about D.C.:
I think the biggest cliche is the crime, because, at least for outsiders, that's the first thing they think of, still, even though it's outdated. They think Washington's such a dangerous place. I'm not saying its not, and I'm not saying that the crime's not real, but I think it's not something that affects the day-to-day lives of the majority of the city.

» Ideal people-watching spot:
Besides one corner in Chinatown [the corner of 7th and H streets NW], I like the exit of the Friendship Heights Metro station — the northern one on Western Avenue. It's right on the border between D.C. and Maryland. And the Capitol steps.

» Place where you're most likely to run into a politician other than Capitol Hill:
At the gym. I always laugh about this because there's the saying that D.C. is Hollywood for ugly people, but I think it's true; my friends who live in L.A. are always saying how such and such an actor works out at their gym. My friend called me the other day because he was working out at Washington Sports Club and [Barack] Obama was next to him. A lot of politicians work out at local gyms.

» Most interesting ethnic neighborhood:
I'd say Mount Pleasant. If you walk down this one street, it's like you've left the U.S. It's like being in Central America. You've got Guatemalan bakeries, Salvadoran nightclubs and the best pupusas in Washington.

» Restaurants and bars with the most bang for your buck:
Mr. Chen's Organic Chinese Cuisine [2604 Connecticut Ave. NW; 202-797-9668] in Woodley Park. It might cost a little more than your average Chinese food, but it's always two meals [from one order]. I'm a big eater.

Sushi Taro [1503 17th St. NW; 202-462-8999] for their lunch specials. There's also a great Korean place called Mandu [1805 18th St. NW; 202-588-1540]. They do a fantastic brunch for $11 that's great for vegetarians.

For bars, Lil' Pub [655 Pennsylvania Ave. SE; 202-543-5526]. It's a total dive. I'm not a big drinker, but my friends who are tell me it's the cheapest place to get drunk in Washington.

And for strong drinks, I'd say the Fireplace [2161 P St. NW; 202-293-1293].

» Best activity for locals who are trying to avoid tourists:
I don't think it's that hard to avoid them because they stay in such concentrated areas. I always tell people the best thing locals can do is give tourists directions because most of the tourists that come to Washington think they're going to get mugged. You see them huddled on a corner with their maps and they're afraid to ask people for help. I've made a point of always asking them where they're trying to go and telling them because then they know where they're going and they don't crowd the top of elevators.

» D.C.'s best-kept secret:
I'd say our music scene. I'm really defensive of Washington because people are always comparing it to New York. But we actually have a really vibrant music scene here, everything from hip-hop, to rap, to go-go, to really good punk bands, jazz and everything in-between. Washington is a very musical city. And a lot of it's done by locals, for locals.

» Your favorite thing about D.C., in general:
I like the people. I know that sounds cheesy, but it's a demographic that doesn't exist anywhere else in America. It's very international ... and it's a really exciting blend of people.

Photo credits: Washington Monument by Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images; Andrews Evans courtesy Andrew Evans; National Museum of Natural History by Katherine Frey/The Washington Post; The Kreeger Museum by Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post; Jefferson Memorial by Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images; Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens by Michael Lutzky/The Washington Post; Chinatown by Katherine Frey/The Washington Post; Mount Pleasant by Alfredo Duarte Pereira/The Washington Post