By Rachel Clarke BBC News Online in Washington

The best protection against the elements in Washington the day after Hurricane Isabel was a pair of sunglasses.

Blue skies returned as stiff breezes kept the flags flying

There was still quite a strong breeze, but it was blowing fluffy white clouds across a vivid blue sky, not the dark menace of the previous evening.

Washington escaped the worst wind and rain from the storm, but many communities around the capital were suffering from power cuts and either too much water with flooding, or not enough water resulting in low pressure for the showers.

There was cleaning up to be done, with leaves and branches blown all over the streets even in the heart of the city.

Many trees were down, including one in the front garden of the White House, though workers said there was no damage to the building itself.

Stops and starts

Subway trains resumed at about 0800 and buses are back on emergency routes but the government, schools and many businesses remain closed for another day, giving many people a four-day weekend while leaving the city with a strange atmosphere.

There were people out and about, but the intensity of an ordinary work day was absent.

Trees at the White House were among those battered by Isabel

There were families taking a stroll and most people were in casual clothes, but it was not a relaxed weekend.

It was almost as if life had stopped and then started again, even though the city did not suffer as other areas did.

Newspaper vending machines were empty or still had yesterday's editions warning of Isabel's approach.

People approached shops and offices cautiously, not sure if they were open.

Storm stories

For those who did go in to work or who ventured outside, the main topic of conversation was of course the effects of the hurricane.

Everyone had their storm story to tell and wanted to compare good or bad fortune with others.

Debris littered many city streets and parks

There was the boom from a tree collapse that sounded like an explosion, the circuitous routes of drivers trying to find a way to work not closed by debris and the tale of a security guard whose greatest annoyance from the power cut was that she could not manage to finish the tub of rich ice cream in her freezer before it spoiled.

The power outages - which residents have been warned could take a minimum of a week to fix - seemed to be the widest-spread problem in the capital area.

But they were also generating and improving some relationships.

While shops gave away perishable supplies, friends and neighbours were working out who needed what.

"There will be a lot of dinner parties at the houses with power," said one man.

Back on the streets, the white vans of the US Postal Service were making their usual deliveries and living up to their unofficial motto, to which maybe "wind" should be added:

"Neither snow, nor rain, nor heat, nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds."