DC Roundup: Busy Monday

Lots and lots of walking today. Started at the Vietnam Memorial then the Lincoln Memorial then the FDR Memorial. These are my 3 favorite monuments in DC, so starting there was natural. After the FDR memorial, I walked around the Tidal Basin, on what I called my own Wilbur Mills Memorial Walk, to the Jefferson Memorial which I had not bothered to go see before. Jefferson is such a contradiction of his own words, that it was a bit odd to read them and a review of his life that details those contradiction.

It was then time to see a memorial new to the mall -- the World War II Memorial. It is very good. It fits into the mall very well and is a fairly simply manages to honor those who died and who served at home and abroad. I like the pillars marking each state with a simple wreath to honor those who served. A banch of gold stars in front of still water honor the over 400,000 Americans who died. Fountains and other moving water symbolizes life and its triumph over the horrors of war. There are some good quotes from Truman and familiar ones from FDR and Eisenhower. No weapons of war appear anywhere only lists of battles in the Pacific and Atlantic theaters. I imagine some miss the meanings of the wreaths on the state pillars, but no one can miss the meaning of the gold stars.

Next, it was time to visit the Holocaust Museum. It was almost overwhelming. Waiting for my turn to begin the trip through the 3 floors of exhibits, I viewed a temporary exhibit on Nazi propoganda and how it worked so well and how Hitler used very modern methods for the time to sell Nazism through appeals to German nationalism. Plus, there was a exhibit using a child's view of the Holocaust. With that start I headed up the elevator. The first floor is the rise of Nazism and most of that was familiar to me so that wasn't too bad. It got harder as the museum used photos of individuals and names of destroyed Jewish communities. Next was the ghettos followed by the "mobile death squads." After one floor and a half floors your heart is heavy. What follows is a walk through a freight car and step into the horrors of concentration camps. Personal items sorted precisely for no clear reason. Tattoos, details on slave labor, wooden beds from Auschwitz, and a detailed model of the death chambers with empty Zyclon B cannisters and a death chamber door across from it. No words can truly capture it. I think the wooden beds had the most impact on me. You see the pictures, but having a sample of them before you is just...horrifyingly sad. Luckily the last floor is on resistance, rescuers and the triumph of those who survived. It doesn't erase the sense of loss you feel at that point, but does keep you from leaving the place wondering if human beings are redeemable.

After all that it was time for a break. I headed for the Smithsonian castle and had a late lunch. It was good to sit and eat and rest from it all. Plus, it was my first time inside the castle and I was curious about it. The best part was the review of what used to be displayed over time in the building. The pictures of the old displays plus some of the items still there. Very cool. Behind the castle is a beautiful botanical garden. It even smelled good.

Next it was a walk down to the American Indian Museum. Didn't spend much time there, but it is a very cool building. It is sandstone and design to reflect the way natural forces shape the landscape. Outside of the building are all sorts of flora that almost separates this building from the rest of the mall. It was simply lovely.

After that quick stop, I called Justin to see if there was time for me to go to Air & Space. I had about an hour and 45 minutes before I need to meet up with him at the Hart Senate Office Building for the train ride back to Arlington. I did a quick tour of my favorite museum in the world. Took pictures of old favorites such as the Wright plane (now a part of its own room full of info on the Wright Brothers), the Spirit of St. Louis, the Apollo command capsule and replicas of the lunar module and Skylab. The contribution of the Russians to space flight is fully included now that the Cold War is over. Lots of great displays and explanations of what they did and did not do well. Below you will find a picture of Apollo-Soyuz, the first docking of American and Russian space vehicles. I must say that there 1960s space suits didn't really look lunar ready. I also got a photo of the first human vehicle traveling beyond the solar system. Voyager, like the Mars rovers, is an example of great human engineering. I do hope some alien brings it back to us some day.

That was tourism for Monday. Feet and legs were very tired, but some muscle relaxant has helped. It was also helpful that Justin took me out for my birthday dinner to a great steak placed called Ray's, here in Arlington. Good food always helps.

Tomorrow I hit some more spots and hope to get my White House or Capitol tour. I am also meeting my old grad school friend Neil for lunch at Washington's old Union Station. He works for the GAO now and loves it.

Finally, I wanted to add two things I've thought of while here. First, this trip marks 25 years to the month of my first trip to DC. My mom and dad drove me to grad school and we spent a few days with Linda and David in Baltimore. One of those days we went to DC. The 1984 Olympic team was in town. Tomorrow will mark the first time I've gotten to full days of tourism here. Second, there are way to many places here named for Ronald Reagan. My current count is 5 if you include National Airport in Virginia. It is simply ridiculous. It only demonstrates the power of Republican money for there to be so many. Now there is an official committee to create his monument. This leads to only one conclusion: Harry S Truman needs a monument in DC. If you want to talk about who contributed the most to winning the Cold War, Harry wins hands down --- NATO, the Marshall Plan, the policy of Containment top his list. No one did more.

Now a few photos:

Franklin and Falla

Eleanor Roosevelt

I think you know this one

Vest worn by NASA Flight Director during Apollo 13 (his wife always made him one for each mission)

Voyager replica