After a few meetings in Florida last week, Kongo hopped a plane to Washington for a session with Government customers on Friday.  He wasn’t quite sure when the business would be concluded so he’d booked a late afternoon flight out of National Airport back to San Diego via SLC.  The monkey was happy happy when the gathering wrapped up at noon.  Kongo finds himself with a few hours on his hands and the day was gorgeous so he headed to the National Mall before coming back over the Potomac bridges to the airport.  Above, the Korean War Memorial is backdropped by some beautiful fall foliage.

 

The monkey had not visited the FDR Memorial before so it was a treat to wander through this very cool outdoor exhibit that chronicles the major milestones in President Roosevelt’s long tenure in office.  Below, a life-size set of statues depicting men in a bread line highlights the severe economic times that occurred in this country during the Great Depression.

The Martin Luther King Memorial is always inspiring.  Yesterday there weren’t that many visitors.

The image above was taken at the World War II Memorial where American eagles hold a suspended wreath in the Baldacchino sculpture inside the Pacific column memorializing the battles in the Pacific theater of war.  The National War Memorial is located on the mall between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington monument at the east end of the reflecting pool.

The Washington Monument rises above the Tidal Basin and fall colors.  In the spring this is a beautiful setting for the cherry blossoms.

The little known District of Columbia monument to those who served in World War II is a favorite of Kongo’s.  The classic sculpture and clean lines are a joy.

Visitors are reflected in the granite of the Vietnam War Memorial.  This simple but overwhelming monument greatly affects those of us who served in uniform during that time.  Kongo can never visit this place without getting a little teary eyed as he views the row upon row of the names of that young generation who died in Vietnam and the great turmoil our involvement there caused our nation.  Those who have visited here know that there is a dip in the earth that visitors descend as they view the names.  The feeling that Kongo always gets when walking down the slope is a feeling of weight.  It gradually lifts when you depart but it always affects the monkey while he’s there.

So, there’s kind of a funny story associated with this trip.  As Kongo was flying out of Jacksonville, he spies good friend Rick who is also on his way to DC on the same flight.  They’re actually sitting next to each other.  Rick is also a retired navy captain and we served with each other in our former careers.  Anyway, as we were chatting an active duty captain in uniform ended up between us as we were boarding the plane and Rick tells her that she is in good hands between two retired navy captains.  She turns to look at both of us and said, “Well, you guys turned out kind of scruffy, didn’t you?”  (Both Rick and Kongo have recently started sporting beards).

Huh?  Scruffy?  So much for that sage, suave, sophisticated look the monkey was hoping for.

Travel safe.  Have fun.  Scruffy is okay for a monkey.