Our Washington, D.C. Trip

 Oh boy!  I haven't posted anything for a year and it looks like the format has changed, so no telling what this blog will look like.  We just thought this might be a good way to share our trip with you.  I'm beginning at the end of the trip, so by the time I have each day posted it should be in order from first to last, if that makes sense.  On our last day (Sunday) we went to church in a ward that meets by the temple (wow! more about that later), then we rode the metro into D.C. and spent the rest of the day walking around the monuments.  This is Dennis in front of the White House.

 The monuments were all much more crowded than on our previous visit to Washington and it didn't have quite the reverent feeling we experienced the first time, but it was still great.  We live in a fabulous country and came away more convinced than ever that God had a BIG hand in establishing our Constitution and form of government so that the Gospel could be restored here.  The Lincoln Memorial seemed much bigger than I remembered it.

 Outside the Lincoln Memorial--very crowded on a Mother's Day.

 The Korean War Memorial--part of it anyway.  I found it very moving...maybe the depiction of the many young life-like looking young soldiers made it so.

 The new Martin Luther King Memorial.  The stones were very symbolic as you can read from the inscription on the monument.

 "Out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope"

 The Roosevelt Memorial was also new to us, as was the WWII Memorial.  Roosevelt's was interesting--just kind of blended in with the landscape with lots of inscribed stone and fountains and that went on for a long ways, depicted events from each of his three terms in office.  You might remember the controversy about whether or not to show FDR in a wheelchair.  I think it's fitting and inspiring that they chose to.

 The bread lines of the Great Depression.

 Dennis, with FDR, and his FDR's famous dog, Fala.

 One of the many lovely water features of the monument.

 We walked around the tidal basin this time to get a close up of the Jefferson Memorial.  It's also very large and impressive.  We especially enjoyed reading the four Jefferson quotes inscribed on the walls, since we had just visited Monticello and learned a lot about Jefferson.  I took a Jefferson biography along to read and found this quote that I loved.  Jefferson was in France and urged Monroe to come and visit, but this is what he said:  "The pleasure of the trip will be less that you expect but the utility greater.  It will make you adore your own country, it's soil, it's climate, it's equality, liberty, laws, people & manners.  My God! how little do my country men know what precious blessings they are in possession of, and which no other people on earth enjoy.  I confess I had no idea of it myself..."

 Thomas Jefferson, bigger than life, in so many ways.

 The Jefferson Memorial from across the Basin.

 Dennis, standing inside the WWII Memorial with the Washington Monument in the background.  This memorial is about right in the middle of the mall, between Washington and Lincoln, but it is built so that it doesn't obstruct the view.  We took lots of pictures, mostly for Grandpa Johnson's sake.  He really wanted to get back to see this memorial, but his health declined before he had a chance.

 There's a pillar and a wreath for every state and territory.

 We took a picture of the Marine side for Grandpa's benefit.

The Washington Monument, a towering landmark for the city.