Today was full of walking around to see all the different memorials and monuments in Washington. We started our day heading to the Jefferson Memorial. There were some prominent quotes from the Declaration of Independence on the walls; including the famous words used in the lyrics of Hamilton. Some of us were most familiar with Thomas Jefferson.
At the FDR memorial we saw that Roosevelt was the only president in history to be elected for four terms. The rocks were lined with many quotes, photos, and featured many waterfalls.
At the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial there was a great sculpture of him carved into a piece of stone. He is cut out from the center of the mountain, but was off centred.
The Lincoln Memorial had several things written on the walls and it was very big and a lot of information to be able to interpret all at once. But we saw how he looks toward the Capitol building to keep an eye on democracy. This is also where Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his historic “I have a dream” speech during the March on Freedom and we got to stand where he stood.
At the Vietnam War memorial, it was sad to see so many names of people who had sacrificed their lives for freedom. There were several veterans present and they were emotional watching people from around the world respecting and honouring the memorial. There was also a side Memorial connect to the Vietnam memorial showing the female war efforts during the Vietnam war.
At the Korean War memorial there was shallow water and people sorted by the different years and high numbers of people.
When we visited the Einstein statue, we learned that it’s the only monument you’re allowed to touch and climb on. We did what many visitors do and we climbed up to touch his nose because he “knows” everything. We took lots of pictures and memories were solidified like the brass of the statue.
WWII was on land, water, and air with things in many directions. There was a lot of symbolism with a compass and connections between the United States and their other colonies, and Washington. We ended at the Washington Monument where we felt very small standing at the bottom of the massive tower.
The evening portion of the day took us to the Kennedy Center where we saw the play Sheer Madness. It was a murder mystery comedy, and in the middle Mr. Gelman was interrogated about having several phones. They had included a huge audience interaction component. They had a lot to say and poked fun at people for a joke… or was it?
We re-boarded the bus to head to the cheesecake factory for dinner. We shared riveting conversations with each other, a loud ambiance, and lots of slices of cheesecake. It was delectable if we do say so. Nachos had several calories to consider. Following dinner, we went to The Whitehouse and we were able to go right-up to the property’s fence. The building was lit-up like a shimmering star in a galaxy full of darkness (other than the police cars).
