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I don't know if they're "Hot" - more like "Timeless"

Looks like Legoland.

The houses look great, but I've never understood why entire streets in the U.S.A. fly the flag in front of each house. Crossing the border in to the U.S.A., I've always found it odd (not be offensive). There's patriotism, but isn't that taking it to a whole other level? From what I've seen in my travels, it's something restricted to Americans - am I wrong? Can someone explain?

This seems like a kinda inappropriate topic for a "hot or not" question.

@ jasmine-Canadians don't leave home without their flag pin or patch. Brazilians are usually equally eager to represent, etc...it's hardly exclusive to Americans. Pride of country is a good thing, and we (Americans) live in a pretty great one. I think it's nice.

Only having travelled Europe and North America, I would agree with lab director. While Americans may be more patriotic than some other nationalities, we're hardly alone.

I'm Canadian, and, no, we tend not to display our flag as much, but this looks quite nice. As long as the flags are bright and new. Nothing sadder than a neglected, fadded flag.

lab director --

Canadians rarely fly flags on their homes. They don't leave home without a flag pin or patch in order to avoid being mistaken for Americans (a question of safety, more than anything).

In my travels around the world, I've found the level of patriotism in the US to be unsurpassed; nowhere else comes close. It's an interesting cultural quirk.

I would love to live in a neighborhood like this.

I thought the hot or not question was about coordinating the exterior paint colors with the flag.

Kind of a silly question since white, blue, red, gray, etc. are pretty standard colors for old colonial houses.

Is patriotism hot or not?

@ lab director-Canadians travel out-of-country with their flag pin or patch so that we are not mistaken for American's. In no way do I mean this to be offensive, travel agents and websites actually advise us to do this....

I'm not a particularly demonstrative patriot- but I still find this nice. If the houses were painted red, white and blue to exactly coordinate with the flags... we might be dealing with something in the "not" category.

However, these houses are in muted, soft shades of blue- and the red doors look so welcoming. I think it's lovely, and without the flags I wouldn't see anything political about the colors.

Plus, isn't this in Virginia? It might look out of place in LA, but I think this is charming in this traditional setting.

Around my city, people tend to hang the flags in front of their homes only on major national holidays such as Memorial Day, Flag Day, Independence Day and Veteran's Day. Maybe cities that have more historical significance to the independence of the nation have streets that fly the flag year round but then I think that becomes more of in keeping with their historical significance and the tourism of the place.

Forgot to mention... I do agree with Jenny in DC that the topic is a bit inappropriate, what's wrong with being proud?

Uh, Canadians on the board...yesterday was Memorial Day here in the states. A day dedicated to the men and women that have lost their lives in the line of duty. It's one of the holidays where the flag comes out in force. Geez.

The only folks I have known to fly the stars and stripes every day was a couple that lived a couple doors down from my parents. They were naturalized Americans originally from Germany.

As to the original question, these houses are painted appropriately for their location. I do find them kinda boring, though.

mschatelaine- 'travels around the world'? you're probably too cultured for me to keep up with...so you're completely right, american's are just weird.

I think it looks good. Since when is patriotism "not hot"?

This is also a very old, historic neighborhood. There are often patriotic or historic celebrations in the area, as many of the buildings go back 200 years...sometimes more. I, too, don't think this is really a question of "hot or not" - rather, it's appropriate for a community like this to maintain classic paint colors, and I think it's great that they celebrate Memorial Day with flags.

baileyb - you have to be short. I grew up in Alexandria and had friends in Old Town. People today are much taller than in the colonial era. I'm 5'6" and the doors and ceilings often felt low. The stairs are also incredibly narrow.

But people who live in them love them. Those who don't run screaming.

I'm with Jenny.

This question is not hot.

mschatelaine: Ever been to a soccer game?

Most of the world is unable to distinguish between a Canadian accent and an American accent, so Canadians typically wear the Maple Leaf when they travel so they can be easily identified as Canadian.

The houses look great and it's wonderful the flag is displayed on Memorial Day; or any day for that matter.

Especially in a town with the historical significance of Alexandria.

Additionally.. citizens of a country should be proud of where they live.

To chickiegirl21: the technical term is "Cana-flage"

I love the look but would like it better if they were the original Betsy Ross flags instead.

Americans display the flag because the USA is the only country in the world that actually stands for something… Freedom! (Although, unfortunately, our freedoms have been eroded over the last several decades...our Founding Fathers would be aghast.)

Unsurpassed patriotism, ever been to Germany?

The American flag goes with any color scheme.

Readers here might be interested in knowing that if they fly a house flag that cannot be flown at half-staff (like those pictured), then they can attach a black ribbon streamer to the pole to demonstrate mourning on half-staffing days. On Memorial Day, the flag is flown at half-staff until noon.

Even though I don't particularly like the question, I'll say that kicking it old, old, old school is always hot.

When I travel I envy the long history so evident in public buildings and homes. On those few occasions when I see it here in the U.S., and it's not a major holiday as in these houses painted in our colors (whether they fly the flag that day or not), I really do love it. I think of every family member who emigrated to the U.S., of what they went through to get here, and I remember their descriptions of how they felt when they arrived. Priceless.

SunnyBlue, thanks for the info.

Considering how historic Alexandria is, I'm not surprised that the flag is flown. Is this Prince Street?

Its seems from my experience when traveling the East Coast it feels more patriotic than the West. Places like up state NY, Boston, Connecticut, Rhode Island you feel like Paul Revere could pop out any minute.

That row of houses could not be a better color scheme for the flag pretty but not hot.

As an American, when I travel, I usually wear something patriotic so I won't be mistaken for a Canadian. (Please, I'm just kidding.)
On a more serious note, I would hope a citizen of any country would be proud of his/her nation. Native-born or naturalized. If you're not proud of where you live, then . . . well, that would be sad.

I love historic houses. The hot or not question is a bit odd when you consider the restrictions put on historic houses. It's not like they could stucco the front or make major drastic changes. There are limits to what the owners are allowed to do. I think the whole thing here looks great. Wonderful colors. It's a colonial area close to DC with lots of inhabitants who work in government. What could be more appropriate than to fly flags?

charming.

Not to beat a dead horse on this, but being American and having lived in the US, Canada, Mexico & Spain, I can say these four countries fly the flag as much as the other. I for one thought other countries flew their flags more, but I realized I just noticed it more because it wasn't the flag I was used to seeing. Red, white, and blue on houses is always classic.

My Chicago bungalow has a planter in the front with a 1 foot flag. My neighbors have beutiful 5 ft. ones hanging and they look beutiful as ever. If I had a nice space to put a 5 ft. on I would. Love for your flag and country is wonderful!

I think this looks like a neighborhood that is proud and nothing less. I would feel honored to live in such a place.

I agree w/ Aiekan.

Either way, this is a historic area with beautiful historic homes. I'm not one to hang a flag on my home but if I lived here, I totally would for the patriotic holidays. I love the colors and the homes!!!

These homes are lovely.

I put my flag out on flag holidays out of respect. I'm proud to be an American and on days like Memorial Day and the 4th of July, it's a small gesture to acknowledge the sacrifices of others.

Always have a flag out, light it at night. Have you ever been to Texas? Gigantic State flags everywhere. But American flags on colonial homes are my favorite.

I travel outside the country with an American flag pin as not to be confused with Canadians. ;)

I wear an American flag when I travel. I wouldn't want to be confused with a hockey player. ;)

Yeah, I don't think flags for Memorial Day is a "hot or not topic". Just my opinion...

That's what makes Old Town Alexandria Old Town. (That, and the Board of Architectural Review!)
When looking to buy, I checked out a few Old Town rowhouses (beyond Old Town, I've gotta call them townhouses), but they were tiny, in every dimension, as a previous poster said.
But it's a fun place to be!

In my part of Canada, you see the Quebec flag flying from nearly every balcony in some neighborhoods. And it's NOT about being mistaken for an American.

"Americans display the flag because the USA is the only country in the world that actually stands for something"

What an obnoxious comment.

RE -- "Unsurpassed patriotism, ever been to Germany?"

-Just this past Sunday as a matter of fact. Didn't notice any German flags flying on homes anywhere - there were some at the border crossing, and a few stickers on the odd car.

RE -- "mschatelaine: Ever been to a soccer game?"

- At soccer matches, fans display their team's colours -- it's part of the game. Games between local teams are no different than games with visiting teams or national matches. Besides, this is about flying flags on homes (yes, which is done during big tournaments like the Euro Cup).

RE -- "In my part of Canada, you see the Quebec flag flying from nearly every balcony in some neighborhoods. "

-Actually, it was as a direct response to the Quebec referendum in 1995 and the prominence of the Fleur de Lys on homes, businesses, and government buildings that the federal government started making a point of flying the the flag on federal buildings -- until then, many Government of Canada buildings had no Canadian flag. There was a massive flag hand out to encourage Canadians to fly them. They may bring them out on July 1st (Canada Day), and during the Olympics, but that is pretty much it.

But seriously folks, when you drive through New England, you have got to admit that there are a lot of American flags flown on homes (and businesses too) every day, not just on Memorial Day. It is an interesting cultural phenomenon (doubt that the people on the west coast are any less patriotic) -- like people have observed, it tends to be more prevalent in historic cores.

Someone made the comment:

"Considering how historic Alexandria is, I'm not surprised that the flag is flown."

Well, I am a little curious as to why that is so -- there aren't many Canadian flags flown on homes in historic centres, or French flags in their historic centres, or Italian, etc., etc. Is it a tradition from the war of Independance days, or something else? I think it is an interesting phenomenon to explore.

For the record, I think the patriotic house colours are great -- love the red roofs and unusual dark blue trim.

I live in Alexandria, so perhaps I'm a bit biased (probably within a mile of where this pic was taken). Old Town Alexandria is a historic town by definition. George Washington's house is about seven miles away, and some of the restaurants and bars were frequented by the founding fathers. This look is totally appropriate for Old Town, and to be honest, it really irks me when people renovate their townhomes to make them look more modern. I think this is a great look, and it's one of ther reasons why I love living where I do.

I live in Florida and have always found that Hispanic cultures (at least the ones here, as a whole) far surpass Americans (as a whole) in display of patriotism - for sure. But in reference to the post, I think it's nice. :)

mschatelaine: Yes, I think the reason you see so many flags flown in historic colonial-era neighborhoods in the U.S. is due to the particular history of the neighborhoods. There are parts of Old City Philadelphia that look just like the street pictured in this post. I particularly like it when I see Betsy Ross-style flags on the lovely old houses.

But again, it irks me when non-Americans seem to 'accuse' Americans of being super-patriotic. Is displaying the flag on one's home or person so incredibly strange and exotic to non-Americans that it must be remarked upon? It's just a common thing here. That's it.

If I had the money to live anywhere I wanted, it would be in one of these amazing Old Town colonial homes. It is the coolest, most historical, and really fun place to live. Too bad they are super expensive to buy.

Wow, I didn't mean for my comment/question to be so controversial or offensive! What I meant is a) I think the houses look really great with the flags, and because the exterior paint matches, and b) I was curious why particular streets or neighbourhoods have flags outside each home (not individual houses, but entire streets and neighbourhoods). I think mschatelaine understood what I was asking (thanks!) I assumed it was because the area may have some historical significance, or perhaps the families there have ties to the military. I just wanted someone to shed some light because it really does change the overall look of home exteriors. I haven't seen anything similar anywhere else in the world where I've travelled. Again, I'm asking about ENTIRE STREETS AND NEIGHBOURHOODS, not soccer games or schools or government buildings.

Jenny - I didn't think it was an inappropriate question since the AT post is specifically about the overall look of the houses with the flags.
Labdirector - I was wondering about flags in front of homes, not those travelers use to identify themselves internationally.
Ilima - Yes I know it was Memorial Day, but I was wondering about homes in neighbourhoods that fly them year-round.
Call Doctor Bison - Your comment is really offensive, especially given the number of non-American fans of this site.

I really did not want to enter in to a political debate or 'my country is better than yours' argument. Also, I didn't think it was inappropriate to comment given previous comments such as the ones following the post about the Douglas Coupland Canada House a couple of weeks ago.

I thought only old people still did this.

I think Americans do use flags as decorative elements more often than some other countries, but aren't unique in this and imbuing it with some assumptions about the naivte, militaristic world view, or jingoistic patriotism isn't really accurate. On Memorial Day it's not really all that different of a statement than wearing a poppy pin on Remembrance Day, but people will often have a flag pole or mount and fly one through the rest of the year - I think it's just seen as a cheery, unpretentious and undivisive symbol or color combo and as also kind of similar to folk art, which also uses it a good bit. The US isn't really unique in this - the Danes use flags as decorations all the time, even stringing them on the Christmas tree (I confess, I own a couple skeins of Danish flags from when my family lived there - they're cute as can be). I asked a friend once what was up with that and he said, "oh, they're just cheery, fluttery, vikingesque bits of our landscape". And I think that's really just it - Americans flying the flag on Memorial Day are (and admirably so, in my opinion) doing so in memory of the real and large scale sacrifices made by fellow citizens on behalf of the nation and the prominent American role in developing the idea of nation as a consciously and willingly constructed polity. But a lot of the time it's also just part of an attractive, accessible visual arts tradition, rather than Americans as the new Prussians.

If these houses are old they haven't been cherished. Did they really have those naff shutters on them 200 years ago?

Did houses have shutters 200 years ago? Of course, that's why shutters are a common element of "colonial" architecture.

The shutters on these houses are actually functional--they can (or could at one time) be closed to protect the windows and the interiors during storms or to enable both privacy and open windows on hot nights.

The house colors look great and the flag colors always look good to me. GOD Bless America!

Sorry Shawn, I should have said Mediterranean 'louvred' style shutters. I think they would have been plain old plank shutters.

Wow. While people mourned, Rachael wondered about "hot or not!" The OP's post should have been deleted or edited to include a sincere apology. Way to go, Rachael.

BTW a sincere apology doesn't begin with "I didn't mean any harm, by golly-gee." How about... "I'm sorry for being insensitive to the fallen and their loved ones." The end.

Nationalism frightens me. I would not want to live on that block.

Nationalism is not the same thing as simple patriotism.