Washington, D.C.

This weekend James and I will be attending the American capital, Washington, D.C. We are very excited! Friday we drive down and it should take us about 9-10 hours if all goes well and we don't get lost! We leave on July 4, so hopefully the traffic won't be too bad!

My question for all those who read my blog is: if you have been to Washington, what MUST we see? What was the best thing you saw and why? Neither James nor I are American, so some of the memorials may not speak to us as strongly as those of you who are.

James is most excited about see the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial by Maya Lin. It should be fascinating. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is possibly the most poignant sight in Washington: two long, black-granite walls in the shape of a V, each inscribed with the names of the men and women who gave their lives, or remain missing, in the longest war in American history. Yale senior Maya Lin's design was chosen in a national competition open to all citizens over 18 years of age. The two walls are angled at 125 degrees to point to the Washington Monument and the Lincoln Memorial. The wall's mirror-like surface reflects surrounding trees, lawns, and monuments. The names are inscribed in chronological order, documenting an epoch in American history as a series of individual sacrifices from the date of the first casualty in 1959. The National Park Service continues to add names over the years, of those Vietnam veterans who die eventually of injuries sustained during the war.