First of all, the White House - a symbol of the American nation and the power of the presidency. Statistics show that many Russians have confused the White House to the Capitol - a building which meets the US Congress.Regarding the origin of this name historians disagree. Some argue that the White House was called that way, after a fire during the War of 1812, the United States and England. Then the building is very damaged, and the restoration was repainted white - hence the name. Белый дом
Washington is not only the capital of the United States. It’s also an amazingly beautiful city. Every year millions of people visit Washington in order to see its famous sights. The city was named after the first President of the USA, George Washington. He was the person who found the area to build the capital. Washington spared some land from the states Maryland and Virginia and called the district Columbia. There is also a separate state in the USA, called Washington, but it’s situated in the far west of the country, whereas the capital-city is in the east. So people call the capital Washington D.C. (District of Columbia), not to confuse it with the state. Washington D.C. is divided into 4 districts: north-west, north-east, south-west, south-east. These districts have respectively numbered streets each. For example, First Street, Second Street etc. That way, it’s easy to define where you are. Washington is considered to be one of the most beautiful and unusual cities of the USA. It has no skyscrapers or tall building. There are only nice parks, squares, memorials, famous monuments and buildings which are no taller than 40 meters. The best-known sights in the city are the Washington Memorial, which is a huge stone structure on the Potomac River, and the Lincoln Memorial, which is designed in a shape of Greek temple. The main buildings of the city are the Capitol and the White House. All tourists start their sightseeing tour from these constructions. Moreover, there are some other places of interest in Washington. For example, the Senate Chamber, the Statuary Hall, the Hall of Representatives, The Jefferson Memorial and the Library of Congress which holds millions of books and manuscripts.