‘New Year’s Eve’
courtesy of ‘erin m’

DC is a city of nerds, and nerds love trivia.  And 2010 was a great year for nerdy trivia here at We Love DC– plenty of busted myths about the District, stories about monuments around town, and plenty of facts about DC neighborhoods. Washington is a pretty cool place with lots of local trivia, so read on for some of our favorite trivia-related features of the year!  And if you’re really a trivia nerd, answer the trivia questions at the end and win a special nerdy prize!

‘a shift to the right…’
courtesy of ‘mofo’

Busting Myths in 2010: The Mythbusting feature has been a pleasure to write, and I’ve learned so much by researching all the things I hear about the District.  Last week I wrote a roundup of some of my favorite DC myths— read it and you’ll learn that everything you think you know about DC is wrong.

Some of my favorite Mythbusting pieces have been the ones that have really surprised me.  Here are a couple of the ones I thought were pretty interesting.

• We love to complain about the weather every year, so I was surprised when I found out that this past year really did have one of the most extreme weather years ever.
• I really liked getting to the bottom of why Metro couldn’t post simple “stand to the right” signs in stations around escalators.
• I’m not really a history buff, but I found the story of DC’s fort system to be really cool.  These little-known forts are definitely worth a visit.

‘View from NPG Tilt-Shift’
courtesy of ‘Mr. T in DC’

Exploring the City: It’s easy to take for granted what you see every day in the city.  But there are so many cool things here that might surprise you.

• Take a second glance at those monuments you pass every day.  The monuments that you see all the time have some secrets, and there are some obscure monuments and memorials out there in the city.
• The most popular Where We Live features focused on Near Southeast and Columbia Pike, and one of my favorites was the one where I got an all-caps e-mail about how awesome the neighborhood was.
• Wondering what makes a cool neighborhood?  I really enjoyed rounding up the common themes of why people loved their neighborhoods.

‘Jason got whooped by the girl from Harvard’
courtesy of ‘dabdiputs’

DC Trivia Quiz! If you love trivia like I do, take a shot at answering the following five questions.  The first person who answers them all correctly in the comments will get this Amtrak poster (which I tried to give away in February, but the winners I picked never claimed their prize).  Now’s your chance to show off your trivia knowledge!

1. What’s the most-read Mythbusting feature on We Love DC?
2. What is Jenn’s favorite street in the city?
3. Which neighborhood had a living mascot for several years?
4. Which President is quoted on the 40-foot monument outside of the city?
5. Which restaurant in the city is notable for using almost half a mile of material for curtains alone?

Shannon grew up in the greater DC area/Maryland suburbs, went to Virginia for college and grad school (go Hoos!), and settled in DC in 2006. She’s an urban planner who loves transit (why yes, that is her dressed as a Metro pylon for Halloween), cities, and all things DC. Email her at Shannon (at) WeLoveDC.com!