Dominated by street after street of granite federal office buildings, the DC was a place that just couldn't jump-start itself into world-class status. Of course, it offered free, topnotch museums, but everyone lived and breathed politics and the town was sorely lacking a throbbing urban pulse. The absence of a major league baseball team said it all: DC had not yet arrived. Sure, the city still revolves around government, but thankfully for those attending the American Library Association's Annual Conference from June 21 to 27, a lot has also changed. DC (no one calls it "Washington") is actually quite a happening place these days. For one, the Washington Nationals have brought major league baseball back to town. For another, gentrification, coupled with the construction of the Verizon Center and the new Washington Convention Center, has helped transform the east end of downtown and Chinatown into vibrant areas. Hundreds of new condominiums and apartments have followed, along with upscale restaurants, bars, shops, theaters, museums, galleries, and other attractions.