Washington, DC - Part 3

Did you miss Part 1 or Part 2?

As we finished with the Smithsonian and walked outdoors, I briefly considered raiding the ice cream vendor in front of me and hiding under a shade tree. DC has hardly any shade for the sidewalks. We almost threw in the towel, but I really wanted to see the National World War II Memorial which was a little walk away. This was definitely worth the trip.


As you get to the memorial, you see this sign etched in stone and near it, the dedication:


This is what the memorial looks like in it's (almost) entirety:


If you look at the small waterfall, you'll see a large archway. Above it, it's inscribed with Pacific. On the opposite side of the memorial, there's the same archway that says Atlantic. They stand for the American victory on land, sea and air. The columns you see lining it bear the names of the 48 states, 7 federal territories and the District of Columbia. It celebrates the unity between these places. I wondered why they were in the order they were in. They weren't alphabetical nor were they in order of the years they joined the United States. I asked a Park Ranger and she said to face the stars you'll see below. Picture them as the hosts of a dinner. The person seated to the right is the guest of honor. That state is the state that joined in the fight first. The guest to the left is the next most honored and by now you're probably getting the picture. You know Jason & I had to represent the home state:


This was below each archway (I have no idea why it turned out sideways here):


Look closely at the picture below:


In the photograph below, there’s a wall that says “Here We Mark The Price of Freedom”. You can’t tell in this picture, but that wall is lined with just over 4,000 stars. Each star represents 100 men and women that gave their lives to the war. Can you believe over 400,000 men and women died in that war? There were also quotes all around the memorial.






This memorial was so beautifully done. I felt proud to be a granddaughter of someone who served! I hope we never forget what these brave men and women did for us.

After paying our tributes, we turned around to get a silly Washington Memorial shot:


You see, the World War II memorial is located right behind the Washington Monument. We wanted to visit the monument, but they were sold out of tickets. They have tours every 30 minutes and was sold out until July 15! But after walking right past it, I'm kind of glad we didn't have to sit in a stuffy elevator. I think you can see it perfectly fine from the ground.

After passing the Washington Monument, we started walking to the Metro. Our feet hurt and I decided that it was Beer:30. Luckily, everyone agreed! We stopped into a Mexican place (I know, I know....we're not in Texas) and got ourselves some Yuengling beer, chips and salsa and nachos. If you're in the DC area, make sure to drink some Yuengling....it's so good! We filled up on snacks then drove a mile (which took over 30 minutes!) to Sequoia in Georgetown and ate a yummy dinner. I had a crabcake salad and it was delish! We sat outside by the water and watched helicopters and boats go by. After dinner, we walked to a little french restaurant. I can't remember the name of it for the life of me, but it was super tiny and really, really good. We had coffee and desert. On the way, we passed some old locks and took a picture by one of the few boats that use it:


After desert, we were stuffed and made our way back to the car. We took the scenic way back home and then stayed up late talking! We had to come back home to San Antonio the next day (Tuesday) so we just took our time at the house and hung out on the back porch. Typical Texas stuff! It was such a wonderful trip and we can't wait to visit again! Thanks again Deb & Jason!