Watch Dogs: Stars & Stripes and Washington, DC
I decided to visit Washington, DC last month because I first got to know the city through the Stars & Stripes novel.
Unlike my Chicago trip blog, this one mainly focuses on the real-life locations and landmarks that are mentioned or appear in the novel.
I'll be talking about several scenes from the novel and including a few snippets for reference. If you haven't read the novel yet, or you'd rather avoid spoilers, you may want to skip this blog 👀
I don't live in the US, so when I first read the novel I had almost no idea about Washington, DC, its monuments, or even much of American history. After doing some research beforehand and finally visiting the actual locations, it was incredibly exciting!
Chapter 4
Proud Patty's or Proud Patriots, a patriotic bar
The place where Aiden infiltrates to get information about missing Wetware. This is a fictional bar, as it doesn't exist in real life. No picture for it.
Dupont Circle
The famous traffic circle with its fountain, benches, and lots of greenery.
After the bar fight, this is where the car chase ends. Gin leads Aiden and Jordi to the circle, the car crashes, and she escapes. 🚗💥
This place is so peaceful. It's hard to imagine two dangerous guys tearing through here in a reckless car chase.
Chapter 5
A small diner out of the way down by Rock Creek Park
I tried narrowing down which diner this might have been by looking for places that serve both pancakes and waffles. 🥞🧇
The closest match I found was The Diner, located south of Rock Creek Park. They serve buttermilk pancakes and French toast, but no waffles. It's probably another fictional location.
Chapter 9
The Old Mammot Grill (The Old Ebbitt Grill)
This is where Aiden meets Leech after the chaos at the church. Aiden pours a whiskey behind the bar for Leech. 🥃
I think it's most likely a parody of the Old Ebbitt Grill. In real life, there isn't another saloon in DC that's older than the Old Ebbitt Grill. Also, the founding date mentioned in the novel (1673) would be impossible, since Washington, DC didn't even exist yet.
Chapters 21–23 Capitol Building infiltration
A lot happens during these chapters, so here's a map showing Aiden's route from the beginning to the end of the mission.
Union Station
Aiden arrives by train because of the traffic lockdown.By the way, the DC Metro is clean, easy to navigate, and very convenient. It's not as cheap as New York's subway, but I really enjoyed using it.
Russell Senate Office Building
Basically an office building for US senators. The infiltration starts here. Since Aiden can't enter the Capitol directly, he sneaks into the Russell Senate Office Building first, then takes the underground subway that connects to the Capitol.
Capitol Building
Here's where our vigilante finally confronts all the villains and cleans up the mess.
Looking at photos online, I knew the Capitol was huge. Visiting it in person was a completely different experience. It's enormous and honestly pretty intimidating!
Now I understand why Jordi refused to go inside. Aiden really ran through that entire building alone.
Inside the Capitol. A couple of places mentioned in the novel.
Statuary Hall
Nothing major happens here. Aiden simply walks through it on his way to the House Chamber.
Visitors are allowed inside as part of a guided tour. The hall is filled with statues donated by individual states to honor notable historical figures.
House Chamber
This is where the President gives the speech, and where everything starts to fall apart. I wasn’t able to go inside so I don’t have any photos. You can take a look at the official government website instead.
After escaping the Capitol, Aiden rides his motorcycle past the National Gallery of Art, then heads down past the Washington Monument before finally reaching the Lincoln Memorial.
Washington Monument
Lincoln Memorial
Yes, this is the location featured on the novel's cover.🤩🤩🤩
It's also where the final battle takes place against our last boss, Abraham. Not Abraham Lincoln.😂
After visiting the memorial, I couldn't stop wondering how Jordi managed to get a sniper shot from there. There aren't any tall buildings or obvious high vantage points nearby. Unless he somehow climbed onto one of the small cafés or gift shops, I'm not sure where he was hiding.
Others
I found a display in a bookstore featuring "Fiction Set in DC." I secretly hoped Stars & Stripes would be there.🤣
Washington, DC is a beautiful city. The architecture is incredible, there are so many trees and parks, and the sidewalks are very walkable. Even the random houses are gorgeous.💕
I hope this blog helps you visualize what these locations look like in real life and makes reading Stars & Stripes even more enjoyable.
Thanks for reading! 🧇🥞