My Steps Through US History

The morning came soon enough and we were up and ready to walk our happy little hearts out that day. Breakfast consisted of Starbucks  and fruit from our hotel then we grabbed a cab to head to National Mall. The cabby dropped us off and our adventure began. On the way back the day before we passed a giant statue of Albert Einstein. We made this our first stop that morning because the kid in us wanted to climb on him for pictures. We spent sometime reading his quotes taking pics and looking at our map to figure out our plan of action from there.
The next stop which was my favorite was the Lincoln Memorial. Growing up in grade school history was one of my favorite classes. I remembered always seeing this significant statue at the end of the reflecting pool and have dreamed of walking up the steps to it. It was finally time. Honest Abe was one of my favorite presidents in history and everything that he stood for... "FREEDOM".... The speeches that he gave throughout history were engraved on the walls inside for people to read. It was unbelievable how small I felt next to the statue, but how powerful I felt leaving, his quotes have always inspired me.
Another meaningful place to me was standing in the location of the speech "I HAVE A DREAM" - made by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom August 28, 1963. It gave me chills as I stood there and looked out over the Reflecting Pool and tried to imagine this moment in time, and how it changed our history and future.

Before we left the Memorial we had to take a classic "DC" picture...It was touching the Washington Monument from across the Reflecting pool. At the end of the pool was a the new World War II Memorial. This was so new that veterans from the war were making trips to see this before they passed. It was so surreal to see the men who fought for our country years before remembering those who passed by their sides. It was such a beautiful memorial.
The day before I had called me friend Joey to see is he was able to come visit with us that day. While we waited to meet up with him we ventured around the Tidal Basin enjoying the breeze and beautiful blossoming trees. There were families having picnic lunches, couples laying under the trees reading books, it was peaceful in some places, and everyone was really enjoying the wonderful weather for Easter weekend.

We could see the Jefferson Memorial  but decided not to walk that far since we were going to meet Joey by the Smithsonian. It was manic chaos at National Mall around lunch time....so we headed over to Chinatown. Joey wanted to take us to a great Italian place over there....YES, YES, I know it sounds a bit funny, but it was really unique and delicious. It was called VAPIANO.
The signature Vapiano is a fast casual restaurant with a twist - customers use a "chip card" to personally order their food or drinks from the bar or from the individual fresh pizza, pasta or salad stations, and when you check out they just check you card....How awesome! You could pretty much order anything you wanted in any style...Everything was fresh made to order. I had the best seafood pasta and everyone else enjoyed their own pizzas...We started our afternoon cocktails also over lunch...Which is where my favorite drink Sweet tea vodka was introduced to my sister. After lunch we walked around DC, we saw the FBI building, Fords Theatre, The National Archives building, Spy Museum, and even knocked on the doors to OZ...(OK that's the kid in me again, I pretended it was...)
Our day was coming to a close until we decided to try and catch the last viewing at Arlington National Cemetery. Joey took us across town and we managed to get in just before they closed. If you aren't familiar, With more than 300,000 people buried, Arlington National Cemetery has the second-largest number of people buried of any national cemetery in the United States. Arlington National Cemetery conducts approximately 6,900 burials each year.
The cherry blossom trees were sprinkled so perfectly adding a sparkle of beauty to such a sad place. The Tomb of the Unknowns is one of the more-visited sites at Arlington National Cemetery. It is made from Yule marble quarried in Colorado. It consists of seven pieces, with a total weight of 79 tons. The Tomb was completed and opened to the public April 9, 1932. Three unknown servicemen are buried at the Tomb of the Unknowns:
Unknown Soldier of World War I, interred Nov. 11, 1921. President Harding presided. Unknown Soldier of World War II, interred May 30, 1958. President Eisenhower presided. Unknown Soldier of the Korean Conflict, interred May 30, 1958. President Eisenhower presided, Vice President Nixon acted as next of kin. An Unknown Soldier of the Vietnam Conflict, interred May 28, 1984. President Reagan presided. The remains of the Vietnam Unknown were disinterred May 14, 1998, and were identified as those of Air Force 1st Lt. Michael J. Blassie, whose family has re-interred him near their home in St. Louis, Mo.

It has been determined that the crypt at the Tomb of the Unknowns that contained the remains of the Vietnam Unknown will remain empty.) The Tomb of the Unknowns is guarded by the U.S. Army 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The 3rd U.S. Infantry (The Old Guard) began guarding the Tomb April 6, 1948. We got to see the changing of the guards ceremony, which was breathtaking.

A uniformed relief commander appears on the plaza to announce the Changing of the Guard. Soon the new sentinel leaves the Quarters and unlocks the bolt of his or her M-14 rifle to signal to the relief commander to start the ceremony. The relief commander walks out to the Tomb and salutes, then faces the spectators and asks them to stand and stay silent during the ceremony. Its so quiet that you can hear every step. It is definitely something that everyone must see when you visit DC. The Guards of Honor at the Tomb of the Unknowns are highly motivated and are proud to honor all American service members who are "Known But to God." It was a great way to close the day to our walk through history...It brought me much appreciation to my country and the men who gave their lives for us, because they believed in the fight for freedom.