Lincoln, Korea, Vietnam Memorials, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier – Washington D.C. & Arlington Virginia
Saturday May 24th, Washington, D.C. (Day Twelve) 
D.C. Coordinator: Steve Moore, aka Headdog.
Locations:
- In and around Washington D.C. and Accokeek, MD
Weather:
- PERFECT (as you’ll see in the pictures below)
Agenda:
Memorials on the Mall, Washington D.C.
- Our trip into DC was interesting, as it always is. The increased number of motorcycles is a given. The cars, on the other hand, were all over the place. Does everyone work on the weekend now?
- The Wall was crowded even at the early hour. Parking wasn’t bad; we were allowed to park on the grassy areas around the Vietnam Memorial. Since we had extra time this year, we wandered around the Lincoln Memorial and Korean Memorial as well and the Wall of Poppies (memorializing the over 600,000 fallen soldiers in the 20th century). Also the sun was shinning so the Reflecting Pond in-between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument was sparkling, with the Capitol Building in the background.
- A brief intro to The Wall history: Maya Lin designed the wall in response to a contest. She even beat out her Yale instructor who gave her a B for her design in class. Maya’s design was initially thought to be too depressing, almost an insult to the veterans who died in Vietnam being dark and submerged in the ground. The controversy was resolved when it was agreed to add a statue of those who survived Vietnam, looking over their shoulders down at the wall of name. Today, the Vietnam Memorial is the most visited memorial world-wide, by far. It is said to have a positive impact on those with PTSD, and brings closure to friends and family members who have loved ones whose names are on the wall.
Accokeek Fire Department, Accokeek, MD
- The ride out of D.C. broke up the pack but we all arrived in Accokeek—in three groups.
- Like the finale at the end of a fireworks show, Accokeek hosting us for lunch was over and above. They went all out and blessed our socks off. Clearly they enjoy us coming to see them, and we do so love to visit Accokeek.
- The visit started with a parade through town, ending at the Accokeek Volunteer Fire Department. And what I learned this year, since it’s a Volunteer Fire Department, the building in back of the first trucks is also used at time for a community center. The fact that it’s all volunteers, tells you something about the people. They’re committed, loyal, unselfish, and hardworking. These are people I always want to know, and get to know better. I’m looking forward to next year.
OTHER NOTES
- I love the US flag. My favorite colors are red, white, and blue against a background of green, blue, and white. Today was the perfect day to capture images of flags. But for the purpose of this blog—and the fact that I had some extra time today—I’ve put together my favorite images of flags, one from each state NVAR has traveled through. (Virgina’s picture is from last’s visit to the National Cemetery since we don’t go there until tomorrow.) I hope you enjoy the varied collection of pictures from a row of Patriot Guards welcoming us to Nevada, to a dog tag flag in front of the Lincoln Memorial.
Thank a veteran today,
Thank You – Libby Worden – Sitrep Admin
