Do NOT try to drive along Duke Street east of Telegraph Road during afternoon rush hour - it's a parking lot. King Street isn't much better.

There isn't any central area where the dealers are clustered together. Just look around in the phone book or Google and you'll find a dealership for pretty much anything you might want - if not in Alexandria itself, then within 10 miles of it.

We live in a suburban area just outside the city limits, and frequently travel into Alexandria for fun activities. Our favorite part is the "Old Town" area, our second favorite is the Del Ray area a few blocks north of that. When we first visited Alexandria, nearly 30 years ago, we were staying near the downtown area and visiting restaurants, and found the number of cobblestone streets (as opposed to asphalt) a bit intriguing, if also a bit tooth-rattling. I think the most memorable street, just because of its name, is "Saint Asaph Street". Our tongues kept tripping over the name (seriously, try saying that 3 times fast), and we kept saying "Saint Aphid" instead. So now, nearly years later, we still talk about Saint Aphid Street.

George Washington Parkway. Well, the part through Old Town Alexandria is no treat - it's just the usual stop and go route, though it connects to all the roads leading to fun stuff, like King Street and Duke Street. But, north and south of Old Town it's pretty scenic along the Potomac River (and except for rush hour, moves well). Plus, it winds up at Mount Vernon, George Washington's home.

DO NOT trust other drivers. This is a city with a lot of people from all over the US and the world. Everyone brings their own driving style, and no two drivers behave the same way. A not insignificant number of them just don't know the rules of the road or how right-of-way works. Also, people will get mad at you for driving the speed limit around here, even in relatively residential areas. 5-10 Mph above the limit is kind of standard. People get very aggressive about merging here - most people will speed up if you signal to merge, and will merge without signaling. That being said, with so much variety there's still plenty of good-to-fair drivers. If you're cautious, know where you're going, and give people lots of room/time to work with you, they almost always will.

There's a ton of options for purchasing cars around here - from dealerships to Craigslist. You'll almost certainly see a car for sale on your daily drive. I'd recommend the Tysons or Seven Corners area for dealerships - there's a lot of them there and a lot of competition. Of course you should check Google Maps Reviews and some other review sites - there's always going to be some scumbag dealers in a place like this.

I genuinely can't say I have a really good memory of driving here. DC and the surrounding area are at the bottom of driving satisfaction surveys for a reason.

I-95. I like hitting the open road and just enjoying the view. I-95 is very pretty.