Did I mention I love our GPS?
Thanks to Kelly and Tiia watching the kids, the four of us got to hop in Logan's truck and head into the city to do some sightseeing. We found a nice parking spot that would enable us to take in pretty much all of the monuments that we wanted to and all we had to do is walk around the tidal basin from one to another.
I thought our first stop was going to be the Jefferson Memorial but we happened upon the George Mason Memorial park. What an amazing man and patriot. You learn something new every day.
The boys chillin' with George.
The Jefferson Memorial at sunset
The lighting made for some really pretty pictures.
The Washington Monument is encased in scaffolding for repairs and, personally, I think it looks pretty cool like that.
City sunset.
The Floral Library
My camera adjusted to the fading light and displayed this lovely garden. The pink hue over the sky and water make it look as though the cherry blossoms are in bloom again. Had I had time and light, this would have been one of my stops. Ninety-two flower beds with numbers pertaining to the different type of flowers and plants making up this beautiful place.
World War II Memorial
I was so impressed with this monument when I visited here in January, years ago. It is much more majestic when the fountains are flowing.
Hayden took my picture next to the Michigan pillar. I think the Washington one was clear across the courtyard. Harlan and Cam were wandering over on the Pacific Rim.
Vietnam Veterans Memorial
I've told a lot of people that Harlan was wanting to find the name of his sister-in-laws brother on the Memorial Wall. With as dark as it was, it was hard to see the names between the few spotlights that lit the path more than the wall. We knew that the names were not alphabetical and really didn't know how to find the one name we were looking for among the 58,272 names engraved. As we walked along I stopped and lamented that I had no clue as to how we would find his name. As I gestured toward the wall I saw his name, Stephen W. Kurtti.
As we headed over toward the Lincoln Memorial we saw a book on display that we could have looked up the location of Steve's name. We walked over and the book happened to be open to the exact page we needed :) But we really didn't need it at all, since we already found him and had a picture to prove it.
The Lincoln Memorial
Being there at night was a whole new experience. The lights of the city actually reflect off of the clouds making for this great sky effect between the pillars in front of Abe.
I'm glad we got there when we did. The next few days it was closed due to a vandal pouring green paint on Abe's foot and pedistal. We did face time with Cherise and the kids while were were there. She got to see the place virtually. Technology is mind boggling!
Korean War Memorial
This is one monument that photos, especially night ones, don't do justice to. It is my favorite. The faces etched on the wall and all of the reflections there impact my heart. American soldiers are so young.
The newest memorial
Washington D.C. now has a very nice monument and tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. It is not far from the Lincoln Memorial on the bank of the tidal basin.
We listened to a group of teenagers from a church youth group sing. It was touching in that they were all white. Sometimes we are given the impression that Dr King's message was just for people of color. But he stood and marched for freedom for all of God's people.
Walking along the tidal basin
to the FDR Memorial
The FDR Memorial was the final stop on our tour. It is huge! But then again, a lot happened during his twelve years as president. It has lots and lots of fountains, too, which were so pretty all illuminated.
Back at the truck
I decided to come full circle on this post and include the last picture I took of the boys before we drove back to L&L's. We used our handy GPS to get out of the city and found a drive through place to buy drinks and a bite to eat. Burgers and soda at 11:30 at night is so not us! At least it's not Har and me :) But hey, that's what vacations are all about. Getting away from the routine.
No comments:
Post a Comment