Washington DC is one of my favorite cities - always was. I first went there with my parents when I was a kid. I remember my first impression of the Lincoln Memorial - how much I felt the presence of the courage and ideals of Lincoln.

Growing up in New York, I was really surprized what a southern town Washington DC was. This was in the late 50's and there were still restaurants in DC where you only saw white faces. My mother and dad whispered to us that this was a segregated restaurant. I couldn't fathom the concept.

As I got older my favorite sites shifted. Then it was the Smithsonian Institution and the National Gallery of Art where I loved to spend my time.

As a college student, in the late '60s it was the Washington Monument - not in an of itself but because it was the scene of so many important events like the March on Washington.

Then when I became a Scientologist, Washington took on a new meaning for me, because that is where L. Ron Hubbard had his headquarters for many years and where he was executive director of the Founding Church of Scientology.