More Photos and Videos of Washington, D.C.

I took so many pictures and videos from my return to Washington, D.C. the past two years (I lived in L.A. for nine years and now live in NYC) that it has taken multiple blog posts to even begin to document what I have experienced. I have decided to post the rest of my videos and photos on this blog post. I hope you enjoy some sights and sounds of my hometown.

Click here for a Flickr collection featuring different photo sets.

Memorial Day Weekend 2012: Maryland and Pennsylvania

This past Memorial Day weekend I drove from Washington, D.C. to Frederick, Maryland, stayed a couple of days near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, then drove to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania before boarding a train bound for New York City.

Frederick, Maryland is a quaint, historic town in north-central Maryland. The downtown is walkable and compact with an old Europe flavor. We strolled along Carroll Creek Linear Park, which was renovated in 2006 and features pedestrian bridges, water fountains, housing and restaurants along the creek.

D.C.'s Uline Arena: Where the Beatles Played Their First U.S. Concert

There is a run-down parking garage in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Commuters park their cars in the morning and leave in the evening without pausing to take a look around. People walk by without a glance. Train passengers look out the window and think nothing of it. But how many of these people know the magical history of this special place?

Before it was a parking garage, the Uline Arena was constructed in 1939 by Miguel L. "Uncle Mike" Uline for his professional ice hockey team Washington Lions. It was built along the tracks leading to Union Station in an area now known as NoMa (North of Massachusetts). The indoor arena opened in 1941 as the home arena of the Lions and hosted other events. Uline was also the home arena of the Red Auerbach-coached Washington Capitols of the Basketball Association of America.

NoMa

Before moving to New York City, I worked for a month in the fastest-growing neighborhood in the nation's capital. NoMa (North of Massachusetts) is like a rapidly rising city-within-a-city. There are gleaming new office buildings under construction, stylish residential units, hotels, restaurants and grocery stores popping up seemingly out of nowhere. It is amazing to see the progress being made.

NoMa is located north of Union Station and Capitol Hill along First Street NE between Massachusetts and New York Avenues. There are several historical buildings in the area such as the Woodward & Lothrop Service Warehouse, which is on the National Register of Historic Places. The building was constructed in the Streamline Moderne style, a type of Art Deco design that emerged in the 1930s. The building features an iconic water tower on the roof with the words "One NoMa Station" that has become the unofficial symbol of the NoMa neighborhood since it is visible from many vantage points across the city.

Photos: Two Years in Washington, D.C.

I now am living in New York City, but after living in Los Angeles for nine years, I returned to my hometown of Washington, D.C. for two years and enjoyed rediscovering the region I grew up in. Some areas of the nation's capital have changed dramatically, others have stayed the same.

In my humble opinion, here are some of the best photos I took from the years 2010 to 2012 while in Washington, D.C. I hope you enjoy them.