The first few times I visited the Spanish Steps of DC were by chance. We never intended to go there, just stumbled upon it, and it always felt like stumbling into a quiet slice of somewhere else. The Steps are modeled after the Spanish Steps in Rome, but much smaller, and in a tree covered neighborhood.

From the top looking down, the Steps remind me of steps in Montmartre, like in Brassai's photo. Just a short walk from busy Dupont Circle, it's never crowded there. We liked this place so much, we ended up getting married there - somehow squeezing more than 80 people in to a spot which was most likely not designed for that number. Beyond wedding ceremonies, it's a lovely place to walk through, picnic, sit and read, or just to breath in the quiet for a moment before heading back into the rush of the city.