The District of Columbia has so much to see and do, however, one overlooked angle is to combine the traditional tour of government buildings and historic monuments with a cultural twist. Our nation’s capital has been home to foreign embassies for centuries and, as a cosmopolitan city, there are also may ex-pats living in and about the city. This creates opportunities to learn about international cultures while visiting America’s center of government.
One nation’s culture in particular has established a foothold in DC, and that is our longtime ally France. The Alliance Française is the largest and oldest network of French language and cultural centers in the world, and it has a prominent chapter in Washington DC. Founded in 1905, the Alliance Française serves as the leading center for French language, French culture and francophone resources in the nation’s capital. In addition to the Alliance Française, DC is also home to the Phillips Collection, a museum featuring modern paintings by French artists like Renoir, Courbet, Matisse, Monet, Georges Braque and Pierre Bonnard, among others.
