Until recently—-like, say, late afternoon on Saturday—-I had a distinct picture of Mount Vernon Square in my mind. The neighborhood conjured up images of empty and/or depreciating condos, parking lots, a porn shop with peep show booths, and one Cary Silverman, former Ward 2 city councilmember candidate, on a megaphone protesting with his fellow citizens to shut down the aforementioned porn shop. That’s a lot! Ask me about Burleith or Hillcrest, and you’ll be met with silence. Still, there’s more to Mount Vernon Square than I originally grasped.

Behold M Street, Northwest, between 4th and 5th Streets. It is a gem of a block, with some gorgeous buildings, and no porn shops, past or present, to my knowledge. I got a little camera-happy on my stroll. Pictures after the jump.