The. National Mall

After Mount Vernon we headed over to the National Mall.  

I always marvel at the size of the Washington Monument.

I love the look of it in the reflecting pool.  

One of my favorite monuments is the one dedicated to those who served in WWII.

I have so many feelings that tend to overwhelm me as I walk through that space and read the quotes.

On this day there were some men there from Honor flights.  Most of them were Vietnam war veterans but there were a few Korean and WWII vets.  I can't imagine what they witnessed. 

The Korean War memorial depicts what those men wore and I marvel at how technology has advanced.

There are some changes being made to this memorial.  All of the veterans who served in this war are having their names inscribed in alphabetical order by the branch of the military they served in.  That means my uncle Ike's name will be there.  

The Lincoln memorial isn't as impressive as the Washington memorial until you step inside.

Then it comes to life.  Reading the inscribed walls and seeing the monstrous statue is aw inspiring. 

We put on a lot of miles walking the mall.  I didn't recall that the planes flew right over the top of Lincoln.  They probably don't but is surely looks like they do.

We walked the Vietnam wall and it was interesting to see all the things that family members leave near their loved one's name.  Flowers, pictures, letters, a baseball cap.  I looked down at a photo near this man's name and saw that he was part of an athletic team from Shawano!  

Even though I was a kid at the time this war was happening, this name brought it right into my back yard.  

I looked a little closer and found another name that looks like it came off of the Menominee reservation. 

How grateful I am for all of those who served in the many wars that our country has been involved in.  I'm grateful for their service and sacrifice.  

Mount Vernon

We had a grand time at Mount Vernon which is George Washington's home.

It certainly is grand!

This entry room apparently was little used.  I think the ceiling is so ornate but the color is not to my liking.

I don't really know what this room was used for other than some entertaining.

I love the way the curtains frame the windows.

And this fireplace!  It really is beautiful.

While in the welcome center I was able to see all the layers on the walls.  Jared Willyerd would love this.

This piano was used by Washington's niece.  It is original and very old so keep your hands off!

Shoes and a dress worn by Martha.

The gardens and orchards were so neat and orderly.  

The way these trees were trimmed and held up by planks is amazing.  I can only imagine how many people/slaves were needed to keep this place running.

This round barn has a floor that lets the grain fall through the slits.

Then all the grain could be collected on the bottom level.

The interior of a slave cabin.

The weather vane that stood on top of the mansion.

This gal was peeling the faux stone off of the wood.  

I can only imagine how long this process was going to take. 

This close-up shows how the wood was covered with a sand-like substance to make the place look like it was built of stone. 

Another sitting room.

There were quite a number of bedrooms.  

Most of them were on the upper levels.

This cut-out shows the floor plan of the house.

I liked these stained glass murals in the welcome center. 

The view from the front of the house.  I can understand why he loved this place. 

Another bedroom.

His actual dentures.

This is the bed and room where Washington passed from this life.  He had an illness that today would've been treated easily.  Basically he suffocated.

The tomb of George Washington.

The tomb is inside this little brick building.

The kitchen.

An office.

This was a space that I found to be very sacred.

Too bad there were so many youth that didn't feel the same way about it as I did.

This view of slavery and Washington's treatment of his slaves gave me a bit of a different view from what I saw when I watched Roots.  Not all slave owners were cruel.

Still, there was no way for him to run his plantation without slaves. 

This was a slave bunk house.

There are separate ones for males and females.

A chicken coop outside of a slave cabin.

The inside of a slave cabin.

The fancy wheels for the Washingtons.

We had a great time.  It was quite warm so anytime we were in the shade we were happy.  I learned a lot about George and Martha.