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Basics:

Washington DC is the capital of the United States. It is not a state in its own right (there are no Senators from the District of Columbia and the Representative has limited voting rights). It is relatively small (61 square miles) and has a resident population of about 550,000 (see below), which swells by an extra 1.5 million daytime commuters from outside the city.

Population:

Washington DC is the capital of the US (population: 550,000) at the center of the Washington DC 'metropolitan area' that encompasses suburban Maryland and Northern Virginia (approximately 5,000,000 residents). If you include Baltimore and the suburbs of that area, the general Washington-Baltimore region is approximately 8,000,000. While the city itself is nearly 70% African American, there are large numbers of El Salvadorans, Bolivians and Vietnamese in the surrounding area. As a southern city the racial divide is all too evident on the Metro with mostly white people arriving from the Northern Virginia, Northern Maryland suburban lines, and mostly black people arriving from the South East of the city. Generally people will say they are 'from Washington, D.C.' or 'from D.C.' when speaking to others outside of the area, and are only specific as to their exact location when speaking to locals from the Washington metropolitan area - 'I'm from Annapolis', I'm from Arlington', 'I'm from Potomac', 'I work in the District', etc.

Climate:

In the days before air conditioning Washington was considered a hardship posting by the British Foreign Office, and Summer remains ferociously hot and humid outdoors, and icy cold in the ubiquitous air-conditioned indoors. Snowfall is relatively limited, with only a few big storms (10cm of snow) per year, which usually melts away in a few days. People in DC are notoriously bad drivers in the snow, so much of the city will close if so much as 3 cm of snow falls.

Industry

The top industries in the Washington DC area (in order) are:

The US Government - The US Government - The US Military (also part of the US Government) - The US Government - The US Government - Lobbying the US Government - Selling to the US Government - Selling to the US Military -

Ok, it's not that bad--it just seems that way. There are several large Universities in the area including George Washington University, Georgetown, George Mason University, American University, Howard, Catholic University of America, UDC, Gallaudet, University of Maryland, Marymount, Strayer, and increasingly DC area campuses of further off institutions such as Virginia Tech, DeVry, Troy, etc. There is a large telecommunications presence in the DC area (Northern Virginia is the home of several major internet and telecommunications carriers) and a massive biotechnology / pharmaceutical industry in Suburban Maryland. But you need to understand the the US government is to Washington as Oxford University is to the town of Oxford--it is the primary employer and concern of most people in the city.

Jobs in the US government usually require US citizenship, and many positions now require 'security clearances' (both inside and outside of government). Working as an expat in the national security / homeland security / US government is extremely rare. Jobs in the academic sector on the other hand are pretty straightforward to obtain, as long as you have a visa authorizing you to work in the US.

Schooling

Some neighbourhoods have excellent free public schools (i.e. state schools), others are not so good, and others are downright awful. Ask around. For a private, British-style education, the British School of Washington http://www.britishschool.org offer a curriculum based on the UK Early Learning Goals, the National Curriculum (England), the International Primary Curriculum and the International Baccalaureate Diploma.

International Community:

With nearly every country having an embassy in Washington, along with the headquarters of the World Bank and IMF, along with branches for all major foreign news agencies, you will find quite a few expats in Washington from all over the world. While there are not as many UK expats as say New York, there is a good number in Washington. Unlike other parts of the US, many residents of the Washington area do travel overseas quite a bit.

Where to watch UK sports:

Washington has a pretty active 'soccer' (don't say football) community. There are several bars and pubs that show the English Premier League on big screen televisions every Saturday and Sunday and Champions League action during the week, for example Summers restaurant http://www.summers-restaurant.com/ in Arlington, VA. Due to the television rights arrangements in the US, on a Saturday you can often see as many as 4 games from the UK (the early match, the 3:00 game, the 5:00 game, and then a replay of a game earlier in the day). Fox Soccer Channel, Setanta Sports, and Goal TV! all have coverage of the UK and European leagues. The ridiculous EU broadcasting laws during the last World Cup meant it was not possible to listen to BBC Radio 5 live commentary on the Internet :-( Rugby is often shown on Setanta, which is in many of the expat pubs (though you may have to goto an Irish pub to see some games). Fox Soccer Channel also airs an hour or two of Sky Sports News so you can keep up with other UK sports (from Darts to Cricket)

Many expats have remarked "I see more UK games on tele here in the US than I ever did in the UK". Still not the same as going to the grounds on a Saturday, but it is something.

Soccer

The local soccer team is D.C. United http://www.dcunited.com who play at Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in Major League Soccer. A small but fanatical and friendly following organizes itself into three main supporters clubs, La Barra Brava, the Screaming Eagles, and La Norte.

Crystal Palace F.C. USA, is an American soccer team, founded in 2006 http://www.crystalpalaceusa.com They play their home games at the Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland. The club's colors mirror those of their London counterparts – red and blue stripes. They currently play in the United Soccer Leagues Second Division.

UK Elite http://www.ukelite.com provides soccer coaching by qualified British teaching staff at a summer residential soccer camp at Massanutten Military Academy, Woodstock, VA, in the Shenandoah Valley. In January/February 2008 they ran winter "Petite soccer" coaching sessions for 3-5 year olds, in the MD and VA suburbs.

Rugby

Alexandria Rugby, chaired by New Zealand expat Bert "Ram" Todd http://www.alexandriarugby.org runs Union games for youths and adults, and plays in the Mid-Atlantic Rugby Football Union. In 2008 the side travelled to Alexandria's sister city of Dundee, Scotland, to play for a mayor's challenge cup.

Cricket

The local league of the United States Cricket Association is the Washington Metropolitan Cricket Board http://www.wmcb.org.

Theatre

• The British Players http://britishplayers.org, perform at Kensington, MD, town hall. They put on an annual old time music hall show in the summer, and a pantomime in the run up to Christmas.
• The Folger shakespeare theatre http://folger.edu have an open house on St George's Day/Shakespeare's birthday April 23rd, and for Christmas 2007 put on a mystery play.

Food and drink

• There are a number of British themed pubs including two locations for the Elephant and Castle http://www.elephantcastle.com, two locations for Union Jack's http://www.unionjacksballston.com, http://www.unionjacksbethesda.com, the Firkin and Fox http://www.firkinpubs.com at Dulles airport. There are two British style gastropubs that are akin to the Anglesea Arms in Hammersmith and their ilk Commonwealth http://commonwealthgastropub.com and Againn http://www.againndc.com, both are more upscale and significantly pricier. Bear in mind these are all either American or Canadian owned businesses with an American clientele. If you crave a pint of draft English Bitter take the hour long $7 MARC train ride to Baltimore and seek out the Pratt Street Ale House for the genuine article made by British brewer Stephen Jones, he occasionally supplies a cask or two of his Oliver's ales to select DC bars e.g. Birreria Paradiso in Georgetown. Irish bar/restaurants include the Irish Channel http://www.irishchannelpub.com/dc/index.php at 5th and H Street, James Hoban's at Dupont Circle http://www.jameshobansdc.com, Daniel O'Connell's http://www.danieloconnells.com in Alexandria, VA, Ireland's Four Courts http://www.irelandsfourcourts.com in Arlington, VA. Flanagan's Harp and Fiddle http://www.flanagansharpandfiddle.com in Bethesda, MD. If you're able to drive a little out of town, the Hunter's head tavern in Upperfield, VA http://www.huntersheadtavern.com, and the Irish run Blackthorne Inn http://www.blackthorne-inn.com offer good food and good walking in the rolling Virginia Piedmont.
• Breakfast Caffs include the British Pantry/Blighty Cafe, Aldie, VA, http://www.thebritishpantry.us/ on Route 50 serving a cooked breakfast, and afternoon tea (reservations needed) Tel: 703 327 3215. And Extra Perks, 822 N Fairfax St, Alexandria. Phone: 703-706-5886. British owner Phil McCombie offers a breakfast menu from 8am to 11am weekdays and 8am to 12pm on weekends and includes egg and bacon sarnie for $3.35, weetabix and warm milk for $3.55, up to a full breakfast for $9.75 with 2 eggs (not poached), a pork sausage from Del Ray British butcher "Let's meat on the avenue", Applewood smoked bacon rasher, mushroom, fried tomato, toast and baked beans (extra .75). British breakfast tea turns out to be PG tips, usually served in a paper cup but ask and you'll get it in a proper ceramic mug. Lunch menu served until 3pm includes shepherd's pie for $6 and fish and chips for $9. Perks has a liquor license so you can enjoy a champagne cocktail for $6 with your brunch. Order at the counter and you're given one of those table buzzers when your grub is ready so it's worth getting there before 12pm when the lunch crowd arrives and a line forms at the counter.
• British butcher Steve Gatward's shop "Let's meat on the avenue" in Del Ray, Alexandria, VA http://www.letsmeatontheavenue.com
• Meat and vegetable pies, including steak and kidney pie and sausage rolls, are produced locally by New Zealander Bert "Ram" Todd and are sold at several locations around Arlington & Alexandria, VA, and also from his website http://www.kiwikuisine.com/products.asp
• Fish and chip shop "Eamon's: a Dublin chipper" http://www.eamonnsdublinchipper.com is at the corner of King Street and Columbus Street in Alexandria, VA, and is owned by Dublin native chef Cathal Armstrong.
• A directory of tea rooms that can be searched by state http://www.teaguide.net/
• My Organic Market http://www.myorganicmarket.com sells Stilton cheese from the Long Clawson dairy in Leicestershire.
• World Market is a good place to find Cadbury's, McVities, Bisto gravy granules, Bird's custard powder, and other products.
• Wegman's stocks inexpensive Burton's digestive biscuits, and a limited selection of British groceries in the international aisle.
• Harris Teeter stocks McVities, although cheaper digestives can be bought from Wegman's, and a limited selection of British groceries in the international aisle.

Expat events

• The English Speaking Union, Washington DC chapter, http://www.esuwdc.org/ puts on a busy calendar of social events, lectures, etc.
• The British-American Business Council, Washington DC chapter, http://www.babawashington.org/ is a valuable place for networking businessmen.
• The Washington Expat Brit Meetup Group http://brit.meetup.com/35/ is a friendly group of expats, and offers social outings, an annual Christmas Party, and regular pub nights.
• The Northern Ireland Bureau http://www.nibureau.com promotes business and cultural events in the DC area.
• The Saint Andrew’s Society of Washington, D.C. http://www.saintandrewsociety.org organises events including the Alexandria Scottish Christmas Walk http://www.scottishchristmaswalk.com/, and Burn's Night celebrations. The Capital Scot website http://thecapitalscot.com is another good resource for Scottish related events in the area.
• The St. David's Welsh-American Society of Washington, DC gathers on St David's Day at Chevy Chase Presbyterian Church, One Chevy Chase Circle, NW.
• The Greater Washington DC Area Manx Society http://northamericanmanx.org/dc/index.php celebrates the heritage of people from the Isle of Man. They hold an annual Twelfth Night party at epiphany.

Things to do in the area

• Official Tourism website for Washington, D.C. http://www.washington.org
• Spend the day at Mount Vernon, historic home of George Washington http://www.mountvernon.org
• Waterfront fish market http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0207/feature7/index.html. Buy a punnet of steamed shrimp (Prawns) with Old Bay seasoning, and Chesapeake Bay soft shell crabs in season, at this fascinating fish market where you buy from boats moored at the dockside - no seating however so its best to take away.
• Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival http://www.sheepandwool.org. This is a near experience to an English agricultural county fair, with sheepdog displays, wool for sale, and a sheep to shawl competition.
• Upperville colt and horse show http://www.upperville.com. Upperville's is the oldest horse show in the United States.
• Maryland Renaissance Festival http://www.rennfest.com is a fascinatingly bizarre experience for expat Brits - a medieval themed festival with lots of Americans saying "hail fellow, well met" while wearing hose drinking mead and munching on turkey legs.
• Washington Revels http://www.revelsdc.org. If you can't get enough of all things medieval, try this annual Christmas event starring the incredible mime Mark Jaster http://www.markjaster.com
• Virginia holds several annual wine festivals, including the Monticello Wine and Food Festival in April, Vintage Virginia in June, and the Virginia Wine Festival in September.
• Virginia Scottish Games http://www.vascottishgames.org
• The Folkore Society of Greater Washington http://fsgw.org/ organises English Country Dancing events in the area.
• Each Monday evening at 8:00 p.m the Royal Scottish Country Dance Society, of Washington DC http://rscds-greaterdc.org/ has Scottish Country Dancing lessons at St. Alban's School on the grounds of the National Cathedral.
• Washington National Cathedral http://www.nationalcathedral.org/visit/calendar.shtml run by the Episcopal Church USA (Anglicans) offers stunning views of the city from the delightful Bishop's garden - handy for watching the 4th of July fireworks away from the Mall. The clergy staff run annual Shrove Tuesday pancake races. There is a busy musical program, occasionally featuring visiting choirs.