Washington DC, Day 1

We've all heard the phrase, "Better late than never".  Well, this series is certainly going to fit that description, with all of these images dating back to March, 2023!  But before I begin, a brief note.  The combination of my medical conditions and the ongoing pandemic has forced our family to make a lot of long-term pivots.  Almost four years later, we are still assessing risks regularly, which looks different even for the people who are still actively trying to avoid Covid.  With the wide range of feelings on this topic, it is often difficult to share details of our lives openly without fear of judgement.  People that we love will say that we are being absurd trying to avoid Covid and that we have to live our lives.  While others will say that traveling is a terrible choice for us because of the high risk.  What I can say is that we love your concern for our well-being.  At my quarterly doctor appointments, I continue to gain insight and guidance from my doctors at Washington University for best practices for myself and my household.  I also spend time learning more about this disease and the impact it can have on people like me, as well as others, and I would encourage everyone to do those same things.  We appreciate your love, support, and respect for our family and our decisions to protect our long-term health.  Now, onto the good stuff.

With our kids having different spring breaks this year, we looked into doing a return trip to DC.  When our son was only 6 months old, we took a 2-day detour to see the cherry blossoms and highlights of DC after a work trip in Pennsylvania.  Of course, two days felt like it was hardly enough to see DC, so we agreed that we would like to return one day.  Our son had repeatedly said that he had no interest in going to DC, so when we realized that the cherry blossoms would be starting at the end of our daughter's spring break, we decided to take the day-long drive on Sunday and spend 5 days there.  This was our first trip without him and it hit Aaron and me harder than we thought it would.  It was a really amazing trip, but it would have been even better to have him there with us.

For day one, we decided to hit the National Mall and try to see as much as we could while walking.  Part of assessing risks for us is doing lots of things outdoors and picking less crowded times, so most days, we traveled off rush hour and saw very few people.  I loved this enormous escalator that we used regularly to take us to the subway (more of that to come).  We made our first stop at the Washington Monument.  It's truly so amazing and really stands as a beacon in the city.  For those unfamiliar with the history, the building of the monument started in 1848 but took a pause from 1854 to 1877 during the Civil War due to funding.  Because of this pause, different marble was used to complete the building and is visible in color change about a 1/4 of the way up.

After this, we headed across the street to the World War II Memorial.  When we first went with Aaron, the memorial wasn't complete, so this was a new experience for us.  My grandpa served in World War II in the Air Force (and flew over 50 combat missions!), so this memorial was a highlight for me.

The Freedom Wall of stars above symbolizes the American lives lost during the war.  Each star represents approximately 100 American service personnel who died or remained missing in the war.  The wall holds 4,048 stars, standing for the 405,399 lives lost.  It is a very solemn place to consider what our freedom cost our countrymen.

When the World War II Memorial location was being chosen, some people were frustrated with it being at the end of the Reflecting Pool, located between the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial.  While I can understand, I found it to be a beautiful location in a city so very rich in monuments and memorials of our country's history.  I loved that I could capture both of them overlooking the new kid in town - see it in the images above. 

The Lincoln Memorial was next in the mall and is such a sight to be held.  If you look closely at the image below on the right, you can catch a glimpse of a person behind the sign, which shows you how massive it is.

Our next stop was the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, with the iconic Three Servicemen statue.  The wall, like many other things in DC, has a slow stream of people always coming and going, but I frequently wanted a clean shot, so I waited.  As we headed towards the Constitution Gardens, I loved how the Washington Monument stood as a tower of our nation's history, overlooking so much of the city.

As I mentioned, the cherry blossoms were just getting ready to hit their height.  In some areas, this meant that there were still many bare trees, but in others, signs of spring were very clear.  Emma loved getting a close look at a momma duck and her flock of ducklings as we explored the Constitution Gardens.  After some time there, we continued on and discovered the District of Columbia War Memorial, commemorating citizens from the District of Columbia who served in World War I.  I was in awe of the enormous and beautiful dome that I had never heard of before.

You can't help but notice the light coming through all the beautiful cherry blossoms, and while posed shots are not my forte', I knew something like this wouldn't happen again, so we took a few shots in the cherry trees.

We moved on to the Korean War Veteran's Memorial, another addition since our first visit almost 20 years ago.  The wall with service members' names is always a sacred space and one that reminds you of how truly high the cost of freedom is.  The "On Patrol" sculptures were also very moving to me.  They felt so real and the backdrop in which they were set was very ominous.

We moved from the National Mall to the Tidal Basin, where the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial is found on the outer edge.  The memorial is so incredible and was impossible for me to get in one shot due to its closeness to the water.  The larger than life feel of the memorial is a beautiful reminder of the amazing lifelong impact this man had on our country.

Once at the Tidal Basin, it was time for some iconic shots.  We headed towards the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, taking in the view of the Washington Monument across the basin.  Once at the Jefferson Memorial, I had a good time finding just the right shot (and timing) for what I was looking to get.

And oh, the cherry blossoms around the Tidal Basin!  They were such an amazing sight.  Being back and being able to take the pictures I couldn't 20 years ago was fantastic.  I loved all the opportunities we had as a family to explore, learn, and take pictures - all on Day One!  Side note: most days, we walked between 20,000 and 25,000 steps - to which my blood sugar could testify as I consumed between 3 & 5 granola bars to stop me from passing out with lows everyday.

Day 1 was so amazing and even allowed us to watch sunset over the Tidal Basin!!  I can't wait to share more of our adventure with you in Day 2!

Until next time,