Baltimore and DC: Day 7
Today was Monument Day! We got up relatively early and went on a walk of the memorials that are scattered throughout the city in Washington. We began with the WWII memorial, which is on the opposite side of the Washington Monument as the Mall. It's only a few years old and is a beautiful tribute to the 409, 399 soldiers who lost their lives in that brutal war. It's stunning and huge, reflective of the immensity of the war and the way it affected our great nation. In a half circle around a fountain is stone pillar for each state and territory in the United States to represent the brave sacrifice that everyone made. A mural of golden stars is directly in front of the fountain beneath the Lincoln Memorial in the distance, where each star represents 100 men that died. Its a moving monument, an inspirational testament to the entire cause...I can hardly wrap my mind around the numbers of people involved. Our casualty list is very long, but only a fraction of what other countries suffered. Russia lost around 25 million people in the war. America was truly blessed and I sincerely pray that we may never know the impact of a loss that significant, especially one on our own soil.
Around the sidewalk of the reflecting pool lies the memorial to the signers of the Declaration and it's so unique! Etched into the ground is the preamble and on a wall is each ones signature in gold. I had never seen it before and it invokes a great feeling of pride, seeing yet another place in memory of those incredible men.
The Vietnam Wall was our next stop, a solemn place of reflection on the most controversial war we've ever fought in one of the most controversial times in our nation's history. It's beautiful. It's impressive. It's truly sad. Davis said the last time he was there, veterans were leaving mementos for their falllen comrades. I couldn't imagine their thoughts and feelings, especially after reading the book We Were Soldiers Once...and Young which is a firsthand account of the initial battle that began our involvement in that jungle. In fact, I saw some names of men that died in it on the wall, making it more real for sure. One of the most moving parts were the statues of three soldiers looking on the wall from a distance, as if overseeing their friends, making sure no disgrace comes to them.
On around the way we came to a much less somber sight...THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL! It's always a fine sight to see that man sitting up their in great marble glory, representing the freedom our nation has struggled over for over two centuries. It was not only surrounded by American tourists but also swarms of Asians. I did not quite understand their fascination until I was talking to Davis about it. He brought up an excellent point - Lincoln is a universal symbol of Freedom for all countries, especially the ones that have suffered from much oppression. Lincoln was known before America was known and many people still see it that way. I love the view from his perch as well. It's incredible and even more so with a clear blue sky in the background and a few wispy, white clouds floating along. The "I Have a dream" speech was given there as well and what a more appropriate place for that to happen? The symbolism...extraordinary.
Speaking of Mr. King, our next stop was his memorial. However, along the way we also paid our respects to the Korean War, observing the soldiers looking on an unseeable sight, making swift glances at their comrades in arms as they moved slowly through the icy snow (represented by long metal strips and some sort of low lying shrubs) that was the biggest obstacle and most devastating aspect of the war in Korea.
The MLKJ memorial is my other favorite, behind the Pentagon, as it is just truly symbolic of his entire campaign. "Out of the Mountain of Despair, a stone of hope" is inscribed on a half finished marble statue that looks toward a distant horizon and "better day." The struggle for civil rights is not over, so his statue remains incomplete. However, I'm not certain that racial unrest will ever be solved in this country, a large part because of our past and another because politically, race is made an issue about nearly everything.
He concluded our memorial walk, and we took off back to the hotel to grab our luggage and head to Union Station to catch the train to Baltimore. After a quick lunch at Johnny Rockets, we boarded the train and had the quickest ride ever. It was much shorter than I remembered and I'm pretty sure we jumped some tracks to get there faster...ha, no not really.
We explored a small portion of the inner harbor in the evening including the Baltimore Oreole stadium and then split up for dinner at various locations. I went to Bubba Gumps with some friends before heading back to the hotel for the night. It was a nice, relaxing end to the evening for certain.
Today was definitely a beautiful day, filled with blue skies and sunshine and I couldn't have been in a better city to enjoy or appreciate it. Beautiful weather may not seem like much to alo t of Americans, and I most certainly take it for granted more often than not but being in the company of the great American dead, and seeing our country's tributes to all of them, helped bring to perspective the fact that I have the freedom to enjoy a beautiful summer day, with no worries or concerns greater than those of my own creation.
Around the sidewalk of the reflecting pool lies the memorial to the signers of the Declaration and it's so unique! Etched into the ground is the preamble and on a wall is each ones signature in gold. I had never seen it before and it invokes a great feeling of pride, seeing yet another place in memory of those incredible men.
The Vietnam Wall was our next stop, a solemn place of reflection on the most controversial war we've ever fought in one of the most controversial times in our nation's history. It's beautiful. It's impressive. It's truly sad. Davis said the last time he was there, veterans were leaving mementos for their falllen comrades. I couldn't imagine their thoughts and feelings, especially after reading the book We Were Soldiers Once...and Young which is a firsthand account of the initial battle that began our involvement in that jungle. In fact, I saw some names of men that died in it on the wall, making it more real for sure. One of the most moving parts were the statues of three soldiers looking on the wall from a distance, as if overseeing their friends, making sure no disgrace comes to them.
On around the way we came to a much less somber sight...THE LINCOLN MEMORIAL! It's always a fine sight to see that man sitting up their in great marble glory, representing the freedom our nation has struggled over for over two centuries. It was not only surrounded by American tourists but also swarms of Asians. I did not quite understand their fascination until I was talking to Davis about it. He brought up an excellent point - Lincoln is a universal symbol of Freedom for all countries, especially the ones that have suffered from much oppression. Lincoln was known before America was known and many people still see it that way. I love the view from his perch as well. It's incredible and even more so with a clear blue sky in the background and a few wispy, white clouds floating along. The "I Have a dream" speech was given there as well and what a more appropriate place for that to happen? The symbolism...extraordinary.
Speaking of Mr. King, our next stop was his memorial. However, along the way we also paid our respects to the Korean War, observing the soldiers looking on an unseeable sight, making swift glances at their comrades in arms as they moved slowly through the icy snow (represented by long metal strips and some sort of low lying shrubs) that was the biggest obstacle and most devastating aspect of the war in Korea.
The MLKJ memorial is my other favorite, behind the Pentagon, as it is just truly symbolic of his entire campaign. "Out of the Mountain of Despair, a stone of hope" is inscribed on a half finished marble statue that looks toward a distant horizon and "better day." The struggle for civil rights is not over, so his statue remains incomplete. However, I'm not certain that racial unrest will ever be solved in this country, a large part because of our past and another because politically, race is made an issue about nearly everything.
He concluded our memorial walk, and we took off back to the hotel to grab our luggage and head to Union Station to catch the train to Baltimore. After a quick lunch at Johnny Rockets, we boarded the train and had the quickest ride ever. It was much shorter than I remembered and I'm pretty sure we jumped some tracks to get there faster...ha, no not really.
We explored a small portion of the inner harbor in the evening including the Baltimore Oreole stadium and then split up for dinner at various locations. I went to Bubba Gumps with some friends before heading back to the hotel for the night. It was a nice, relaxing end to the evening for certain.
Today was definitely a beautiful day, filled with blue skies and sunshine and I couldn't have been in a better city to enjoy or appreciate it. Beautiful weather may not seem like much to alo t of Americans, and I most certainly take it for granted more often than not but being in the company of the great American dead, and seeing our country's tributes to all of them, helped bring to perspective the fact that I have the freedom to enjoy a beautiful summer day, with no worries or concerns greater than those of my own creation.
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