We had a great first day in DC. Jon's internal clock went off around 5am (Eastern time) and he took off on a walk. He said he had some of the monuments all to himself as the sun came up. Once he got back the girls and I were ready to get going for the day. It was a bit warmer and the sun was out which helped make the day more fun. We started our day by grabbing a cab to the Arlington National Cemetery. We caught a tour bus that takes you around the cemetery. By total luck we stopped at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier a few minutes before noon, which is the changing of the Guard. What an amazing 15 minutes. It is a very somber experience. They presented a wreath from a local high school and played Taps on the bugle, pretty sure there was not a dry eye in the crowd. We finished our tour and headed to the Lincoln Memorial and the Vietnam War Wall. A lady that works at the girls school had told them that her dad's name was on the wall and we looked it up. It was about 2pm, the girls really wanted to go to the National Zoo so we hoped another cab and off to the Zoo we went. It was your typical Zoo with the exception of the Panda's. Very cool to see! By the time we got back to the hotel we were all done for! We had a quiet night at the hotel watching movies...
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| North Side of the White House, 5am |
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| World War II Memorial and the Washington Monument |
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| Lincoln Memorial at Sunrise |
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| Washington Monument and Reflection Pool with the Capitol in the background |
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| Vietnam War Memorial Wall |
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| Arlington National Cemetery |
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| Tomb of the Unknown Soldier |
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| Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier |
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| Markers for JFK and his brothers with the Eternal Flame at Arlington |
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| Smithsonian National Zoo |
