Embassy Row, a section of Massachusetts Avenue in the northwest of Washington, D.C., is the hub for diplomacy in the nation’s capital. As its name might suggest, Embassy Row is lined with embassies from all over the world.

Down the Row, one might see:

The Naval Observatory

An observatory dedicated to providing accurate data for the Department of Defense, the Naval Observatory is a large plot of land surrounded by fence several feet high, fortified in a manner that one might think that it exists to deter car bombs. Through this fence you can see the winding paths and thick forests that conceals the residency of the Vice President of the United States. One would not want to get too close; the entrances are guarded by men at arms and the entire complex is watched by cameras.

The British Embassy

A little bit of London dropped into the capital of its rebellious child, the embassy of the United Kingdom could very well be a country manor in the Home Counties. A large brick estate surrounded by a fence, pillars to said fence are topped off by the English Lion and Scottish Unicorn. If one is attentive, one will notice the red telephone booth within the grounds. Outside, there is a statue of Churchill, waving to whoever is there. This building is unrepentantly, unashamedly British, perhaps snidely mocking a city named for a man who rebelled against their Empire.

The Islamic Center

Towering over the immediate area is the pearl minaret of the Islamic Center of Washington, the District’s first Mosque. Perhaps out of Andalusia, this structure looks perhaps the most foreign of all the buildings on this street. However, it is anything but foreign; this has been here since the fifties and is a lynchpin of the Muslim community in the District. After 9/11, it was here where George W. Bush assured the nation that American Muslims were as peaceable as the rest of us.

The Statues

This street is in many ways an exposition of the world’s great figures; the embassy staffs maintain several sculptures of their own nations’ great people. You can find Gandhi and Ataturk and Masaryk, as well as in a small enclosure Khalil Gibran. Perhaps most striking is Churchill on one hand and Mandela on the other, seemingly waving to one another.

The Larz Anderson House

This house is the national headquarters of the Society of the Cincinnati, the descendents of those who fought in the Revolution. Like many buildings along this street, it is quite stately, with flags adorning its front entrance. One can only imagine the secrets and history in that building.

The Modern Embassies

Not all embassies here are 19th century houses. Some, like those of Brazil and Finland, are very modern, as is part of the British embassy. They serve as a modern counterpoint to the centuries-old city.