Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington DC

Another touching monument along The Mall is that of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. During my last visit in May 2016, I enjoyed seeing the monument in front of the row of trees flush with green, a benefit of visiting during the warmer months of the year. This is a good time of year to take photographs of this particular monument. I've always been impressed with the simplicity of this monument, being two walls set at an angle cut into the ground. It is a respectable yet haunting design and leaves you with deep impressions, regardless if you know veterans or victims of this most tragic war. In addition to seeing the list of soldiers killed in battle during the Vietnam War engraved along this monument walls, there is also a statue of three soldiers in combat gear that you can see nearby. This is worth seeing. Also worth taking time to visit is the Vietnam Women's Memorial, which commemorates the 265,000 woman that served during that period. This monument is just a couple minutes walk east. Note: The Vietnam Veterans Memorial can be quite crowded due to its importance as well as it proximity to other famous and popular memorials nearby. If you want unobstructed photographs or more peaceful, quiet visits, it is best to visit very early in the morning, just after daybreak. At this time, you can view prior to the large crowds arriving.

So many names, so many emotions. This is a memorial that pretty much anyone from the Vietnam War era will find very emotional. A very sacred memorial dedicated to so many who gave their lives. Very tough to describe how I feel each time I have been here. A must visit memorial no matter how many times you go to this area, even if only to pay your respects.

For those of us who lived through the horror of this war - and for the friends and family of those who were killed in Southeast Asia - Maya Ying Lin's chevron with the names of those killed and missing has become the most significant memorial for that tragic ‘police action’. Lin's work emblazons the cruel toil on your—and our nation’s—psyche. When casualties are mentioned in the wars of today, this memorial reminds us that each life lost is an individual, with a name, a history, and a family in life-long grief. The best time to visit this memorial is on Veterans’ Day, November 11. On that day, you will witness the surviving veterans touching the names of their lost friends and family, talking to them as though in prayer. As the years have passed, you will find grandchildren visiting with their families—grandchildren named after the victims of of this war. Many people make ‘rubbings’ of the names; a powerful way to take home a ‘marker’ of the ones they lost. Lin’s memorial does not glorify war. Yet it honors those 54,000 lost in a generation of conscription—men and women.

When I went to Washington D.C. for Spring Break we decided to take a tour of this beautiful Memorial. I remember being asked if I wanted to do this and I said yes. We got to the first section of the wall and I immediately broke down crying. It was so emotional looking at this wall because it was beautiful yet haunting. I saw some spirits of the Vietnam War Veterans looking at me and when I reached out to touch the wall they did the same thing and when I kissed it they kissed the wall. The spirits of the Vietnam War Veterans reached out and wiped my tears away and kissed me. I had a great Uncle who was in the Vietnam War and he didn’t like to talk about it but he opened up about it to me. This is a beautiful Memorial that people must see.

More than a wall It was built to honor a soldier who fought in the Vietnam War. It is on the left side of Lincoln Memorial, beside the reflective pool. Names graved on the black marble wall will give you chill, thinking they lost the life for their country. When a visitor looks upon the wall, his or her reflection can be seen simultaneously with the engraved names, which is meant to symbolically bring the past and present together. There is a pathway along the base of the Wall where visitors may walk. There are some 50k+ names on the wall. There is directory kept in a glass box near to entrance with all names. There is a bronze statue named The Three Soldiers near to the wall. One must visit this while visiting Lincoln Memorial.