What's up with the quadrants?

DC is divided into four quadrants -- northwest, southwest, northeast, southeast. The Mall and East Capitol Street divide north from south. North Capitol St. and South Capitol St. divide east from west.

The Capitol sits in the middle of that.

Check your addresses: There is a D St., for example, in each quadrant. So you need to know -- is it D St. NE or D st. NW?

Most of the common tourist attractions are in NW or nearby SW. NW is the richest quadrant and the whitest.

Capitol Hill is in NE and SE.

Union Station (train station) is in NE.

The waterfront is in SW.

Theaters are scattered aross the city.

The Anacostia River runs through SE and NE.

Just pay attention to what quadrant you are in and what quadrant the address you're going to is in. If you take a cab, make sure you make it clear to the cabbie. Otherwise, they may well assume you're going to NW.