A family trip celebrates national history

One of my cousins got married earlier this month and our family took a trip to Washington D.C. for the wedding.  It was the first time our two girls had ever been to there, so while we were at our nation’s capital we wanted to take a tour of the city. We were fortunate to get a grand tour by my uncle who has lived in D.C. for more than 40 years and is a retired engineer who was the project manager helping design some of the buildings we were looking at. The tour was by car, but we did have a chance to walk and see up close some of the well known tourist spots.

Our youngest daughter, Graci, was learning about ancient Greek civilization in school, so she was fascinated by all the columns in the buildings. She was taking photos left and right of all the columns in the buildings.

It was exciting to see the Washington Monument had just re-opened, it had been under construction for cracks and repairs for the past three year. We were able to drive by it. It also was the backdrop to my cousin’s outdoor wedding. It was just spectacular.

Our drive also included the National Mall, which is a national park in downtown Washington D.C. We did get out at the capital to take some pictures and look at the beautifully designed building. We also saw one of the newer monuments, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. Our girls knew about Martin Luther King Jr. and his “I Have a Dream” speech. We told them that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered that speech on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial which we also visited.

We went inside the Lincoln Memorial and looked at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. We took a photo on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial overlooking the reflecting pool. This must be a famous place to take a photo.

When I got home my sister gave me a photo of my family taking a photo there 35 years ago in the same spot.

The history in this city is incredible. 

We also took the girls to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and it was breathtaking. 

Since family members of ours had fought in this war, it was a great opportunity to share some of their experiences with our girls. My husband’s father was in this war and we told them how some of his friends were killed and didn’t make it home. This memorial is for those who lost their lives fighting for our country. It had a huge impact on all of us.

We also toured the Korean War Veterans Memorial. While we were leaving a tour bus came of men who had served in World War II. Most were being pushed in wheel chairs. We stopped to thank them for their service.

It was truly a memorable day and weekend for our family as we celebrated a marriage and the history of our country.

A special thank you to my uncle Rick for his wonderful tour around Washington D.C.