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A graduate's guide to Washington, D.C.

May 14, 2018

Advice from alumni on how to survive in the Capital City.

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Cherry Blossoms in Washington, D.C.

After earning their degrees in America’s heartland, Buckeyes migrate to the U.S. capital. Here, they find the blossoms pink, the museums free and the politics avoidable (to an extent).

More than 2,000 alumni call the metro area home. From grads to students here’s your guide to everything D.C. 

National Cherry Blossom Festival

Buckeyes say nothing tops spring in our nation’s capital.

“People just kind of descend on the city. It’s pretty fascinating to see,” said Jenn Rubenstein ’04, vice president of the Washington, D.C. Alumni Club. “Everyone’s just walking around looking up with these smiles on their faces. It really is pretty incredible.”

This year’s National Cherry Blossom Festival is March 20 through April 15, but weather will have the final say in how grand a show the trees put on — and when.

Museums on Museums

Washingtonians consider the city’s multitude of museums a treasure.

The hottest ticket in town is the National Museum of African American History and Culture. Like the city’s other 16 Smithsonian Institution museums, it’s free, but its timed passes are hard to come by. Anyone with a military ID can get in without a wait, and others can secure passes through the museum’s website.

The National Air and Space Museum on the mall is one of the most iconic, but Rubenstein also recommends checking out its second location, the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center, near Dulles Airport.

“There’s just a museum for everything,” said Pam Tapscott-Lassiter ’80, the president of the university’s Black Alumni Society.

Dining in the International City

“Name a kind of food, and I can name a restaurant,” real estate developer Howard Biel ’71 MA, ’76 PhD said.

From Koreatown to the 14th Street corridor, our alumni recommended a few of their favorite places to grab a bite or sip:

  • II Canale – An unbelievably great pizza place whose secret is protected by the Italian government.
  • Dukem – This classic Ethiopian restaurant on U street has great food and also features live traditional music.
  • St. Arnold’s – Stop by this Belgian restaurant for a great selection of beers, mussels and fries.
  • Bourbon Coffee – Get your morning pick-me-up from this Rwandan coffee shop on L Street NW.
  • Juan Valdez Coffee – A Colombian coffee shop on F Street NW.
  • Dabney – If you’re looking for something on the higher end, this restaurant serves up locally sources ingredients around a big wood-burning oven.
  • Teddy & the Bully Bar – Nothing could be more American than this Teddy Roosevelt-themed sit-down restaurant near Dupont Circle.

Life on Capitol Hill

Living in Washington, D.C. is not all blossoms and museums, but it’s not all politics either.

You would be surprised by the many people who aren’t involved in the political climate, Brown said.

Alternately, Rubenstein has friends from across the country who scramble to get to Washington for “once-in-a-lifetime” events such as marches and announcements of major U.S. Supreme Court decisions.

Meanwhile, she can just stop by on her way to work.

And you never know who you’ll meet along the way. “One time, I almost physically ran into John McCain when I was rounding a corner near Capitol Hill,” Katy Hogan ’11, ’13 MPA said. Another time, she dined in the same new noodle restaurant as then-first lady Michelle Obama.

Learn more about how Ohio State alumni are finding success in D.C. story in the latest edition of Ohio State Alumni Magazine.