In 1983, the Slave Memorial was dedicated at Mount Vernon, at the spot where both free and enslaved people had been buried in unmarked graves. Just as there is at George Washington’s tomb, a daily wreath-laying presentation commemorates those who are buried nearby.
The Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association had placed a marker in 1929 to recognize those buried in the unidentified graves nearby, but it lay forgotten for many years. Its rediscovery in 1982 led to the creation of the modern memorial.
I am glad we had the opportunity to stop and pay our respects here.
Something that was important to us, and especially to Bunny, when we visited Mount Vernon, was paying our respects at George Washington’s final resting place:
It is a much simpler crypt than Lincoln’s Tomb, which we visited in 2015.
We also saw the original burial vault, in which Washington was temporarily interred. Because the original vault was showing wear, he left instructions for a new family burial plot, which wasn’t completed until 1831, 32 years after his death. The original burial location is the one Marquis de Lafayette visited and at which he spent some time of mourning and reflection.
Despite the fact the Washington wished to be buried at Mount Vernon, Congress attempted to have him buried in a crypt underneath the then-new Capitol building. His wife even gave her consent (I will assume she was grief-stricken and not thinking straight), but fortunately, the project in D.C. was never completed, and Washington’s final wishes were honored.
One of the most anticipated events of our vacation was a visit to the home of America’s first First Family, Mount Vernon!
It’s a huge place, with lots of things to see. You start out at the Visitors’ Center, where stained glass depicting major events from George Washington’s life immediately caught my eye:
You can also find a lot of quotes from Washington himself:
And there’s a dollhouse-style replica of the house…as it turns out, this was the only chance we had to see the Lafayette Bedroom, because the actual room was under renovation.
After we left the Visitors’ Center, we took a winding path that finally allowed us a glimpse of the house…it’s quite impressive!
We were a little early for our tour, so we admired some of the landscaping and formal gardens. Washington worked on the grounds himself, and was involved in planning the landscaping, as well.
We also took a look at the slave quarters. I appreciate the honest look at the history of the estate.
On the way to the tour, we admired the outside of the house. I especially liked the covered walkways connecting the different parts of the mansion.
We passed through the first building, which was the Servants’ Hall…not much is actually known about what this space looked like at the time of the Washingtons, and its plain decor reflects that fact.
The home was built in parts, so the first room of the main building (the “New Room” as Washington called it) wasn’t original to the home, but it was a gorgeous addition!
I love all the little details in old homes, like the color and pattern of the carpets and the artwork on display:
The closet under the stairs amused me!
They encouraged us to use the railing on the staircase…the actual, original railing that George Washington himself used!
We also saw the actual key to the Bastille, which was sent to George Washington by Marquis de Lafayette:
I am often astounded by the use of color when I visited historic homes. No matter how often I see how bright things really were (this green is the original color of the room), I always imagine historic locations to be dim and washed-out for some reason. Also, the ceiling is original…isn’t it beautiful?!?
There are several beautiful bedrooms in the home. Pictured here are the good guest bedrooms…I assume the previously-mentioned Lafayette bedroom is lovely, as well.
We saw the place where George Washington spent his last moments on earth. Following his death, Martha moved to an upstairs bedroom because she couldn’t bear to stay in the room where he died.
I really enjoyed seeing Washington’s personal office!
Of particular interest were the fan chair, and the desk with his eyeglasses:
The kitchen was in part of the house complex, and not simply an outbuilding, but it was, as was common at the time, in a separate building from the living spaces.
After we toured the inside of the house, we continued to walk the grounds. We looked into a few outbuildings:
And we came across the ice house:
And the beautiful Potomac views:
We even got to see a musical demonstration, which was really cool!
There is also a museum on the grounds. Here’s just a small look at some of the things we saw, including the original weathervane that graced the roof of the house (there is a replica on top today):
It’s amazing how you can see the layers of history!
We could have spent so much more time at Mount Vernon, because there’s just so much to see there, but I think we got a good overview with the time we had!
When we got home from our vacation, we were all missing Disney World. So I started thinking about what I could do to try to capture some of that Disney magic here at home, and I came up with the idea of Mickey waffles, a fan favorite at Disney that we didn’t actually get to try while we were there!
There were a couple of options when it came to Mickey Mouse waffle makers. Many of them make very similar-looking waffles, but there were differences when it came to price, waffle size, and the number of them you can make at a time. In the end I went with cheap (of course), as well as larger waffles, with the only downside being that I can only make one at a time. They cook pretty fast, though (2-3 minutes each), so in the end, that’s not really a big deal.
Aren’t they the cutest?!?
So far, I’ve only made classic buttermilk waffles, but I’ve served them a few different ways, including with fried egg ears, and a decadent chocolate syrup and whipped cream variety:
We’ve really enjoyed making waffles at home for the last few years (I guess you could call it a pandemic hobby), and it’s even more fun to have a way to hold onto a little piece of our vacation at home!
As you’re probably aware, there are many, many memorials scattered throughout Washington D.C. Memorials to individuals, to the different branches of the military, and to the wars fought by the US, and most of those are at the National Mall, not too far from the biggest memorial of all, the Washington Monument. They are all well-designed and moving, but the WWII Memorial was my favorite.
It’s in a great location between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, so there are great views in both directions.
There are bas-relief sculptures on either side to represent the Atlantic and Pacific Theaters:
The center of the Memorial is a pool with fountains.
There are meaningful quotes scattered throughout:
Freedom Wall has 4,048 gold stars, and each of those represents 100 American WWII personnel who died in the war or are still listed as missing. It is staggering to see the stars and know what they represent.
We noticed a lot of people sitting with their feet in the pool, and at first I thought that was a little strange and maybe even disrespectful, but then we came across a sign inviting people to sit (not stand or wade) with their feet in the water, as a reminder of the way American soldiers celebrated the end of WWII in the fountains of Europe.
Once I understood the meaning of the fountain, and why people were soaking their feet, I also took part, and it was a moving experience to do so, especially with the view of the Washington Monument in front of me. It felt like being part of something bigger, more important.
There are both Atlantic and Pacific sides of the Memorial, to represent the two Theaters in the war:
There are also 56 columns surrounding the Memorial, one for each state and territory at the time of WWII (if you’re doing the math, Alaska and Hawaii were territories at that point, as were the Philippines). The empty space in the middle of the column represents the losses suffered during the war, and each column is adorned with two wreaths…one of wheat to represent agriculture on the home front, and one of oak to represent the strength of the country.
Even though I didn’t lose any family members in WWII, it was an incredibly moving place to visit.
Do you have a favorite memorial in D.C. or elsewhere?
Originally, the Library of Congress wasn’t on my list of places to visit while we were in Washington D.C., but the moment we walked past it, I knew I would have to see the inside!
It really is like a cathedral for books. The architecture is impressive, and the artwork in the building is absolutely stunning. I thought the Central Library in St. Louis was a big deal (and it is), but this is just so much more!
The big attraction, though, is the overlook above the Reading Room. I’ve seen it in pictures and movies, but that is nothing like seeing it in person. And the glimpse through to even a small section of the shelves that house the books is overwhelming!
It’s such an amazing facility!
I’m really glad that we added this to our vacation “to-do” list at the last minute!
We only ate one meal out in Washington D.C. (the first time I had eaten in a restaurant since before the beginning of the pandemic!), and Ryan found a really cool local place for us to try…Ben’s Chili Bowl:
Before I get to the food, let’s start outdoors. In 2004, D.C. had a public art project, “PandaMania” and one of the remaining statues is located at Ben’s. Seeing it brought back fond memories of our STL250 cake hunting experience!
Ben’s is over 60 years old, and inside, it looks exactly like you would expect a restaurant of its age to…an old-school diner, which I loved!
Virginia Ali and her husband Ben started the restaurant together in 1958, the same year they got married. The big picture over the diner counter is like seeing a family photo in someone’s house!
I tried the Original Chili Half-Smoke (I wasn’t brave enough to try the spicy variety!). Normally, I can kind of take or leave hot dogs…usually they’re just ok. But the half-smoke at Ben’s was really good. There was a definite snap when I bit into it, and the flavor was fantastic. Chili, mustard, and onions are also the perfect hot dog topping…almost good as a Chicago-style dog!
The art on the building is so cool (and yes, President Obama has eaten there)…it really establishes the character of the place, and visually summarizes what Ben’s website says: “Our Black community is front and center in this story and Ben’s is a perfect case study – a study in our quest of freedom and its ongoing re-definition. Ben’s Chili Bowl is proudly Black-owned, and a historic landmark in Washington, DC’s culture.”
I love finding cool local places to visit when we travel!
We only took one guided tour during our time in Washington D.C., and it was significant…the US Capitol building!
The compass set in the walkway outside is pretty cool:
We got to see the room that originally housed the Supreme Court:
Every place you walk through in the building is imposing and beautiful:
A highlight of a Capitol tour is visiting the Rotunda…it’s such an immense space, and you realize how many other tours are going on at the same times as yours!
The central painting…well, it basically shows George Washington ascending to godhood wearing a Snuggie!
No, really!
Every state gets to donate two statues to the Capitol collection. Many of them (including one of the contributions from Illinois, Frances Willard), are located in Statuary Hall. Not all of them are displayed there, though, because they ran into problems with the floor not being able to support the weight of the collected statues not just once, but twice. So there are also statues scattered throughout the building…I’m showing a mix of locations here. One of the most moving pieces in Statuary Hall is of Chief Standing Bear, especially when you hear the story of how Chief Standing Bear, who was detained at Fort Omaha when he tried to return his son’s remains to their ancestral lands for burial, tried to sue, only to be denied because he was not considered a person under the current law. He challenged that decision and made a beautiful speech, in which he said: “My hand is not the color of yours, but if I pierce it, I shall feel pain. If you pierce your hand, you also feel pain. The blood that will flow from mine will be the same color as yours. The same God made us both. I am a man.” The judge rightly determined that he was indeed a person, and Chief Standing Bear went on to bury his son among their people, and he was eventually buried there as well.
Statuary Hall is a pretty cool place. even if you’re not focused on the statues!
The original model of the Statue of Freedom (the bronze statue that sits atop the Capitol dome) is on display in Emancipation Hall at the Visitor Center:
You can’t ignore the mistakes of the past, and I was happy to see this acknowledgment:
I had toured the US Capitol when I visited D.C. as a child something like 35 years ago, and my memories were vague and different. It was very exciting to go back as an adult and see different things and really understand what I was looking at!
