Vacation! part 2 - DC

Two of the guys Dad fought in the war with.

Dad in front of the Vietnam War Memorial

Women singing in Korean in front of the Korean War Memorial


Cody, Mike, Dad, Matt, and I after the race. Dad even wore the a shirt to match Matt and I.

Dad, Matt, me, and Mom after running by the Pentagon.

Friday morning, October 3rd, Mom, Dad, Matt, and I left for DC. After checking into the hotel, Matt and I had to pick up our bibs for the race. We walked around the Expo a little and then decided it was time to see the sights. We walked around the Mall – almost all of it!! We took a few pics in front of the Capitol and walked by the Washington Monument and reflecting pond. Unfortunately, we didn’t make it to the White House, it was a little too far away and we didn’t make reservations to go inside. The Vietnam Memorial was very special for us. Dad was a Chinook pilot during that war. He was able to find the names of two guys he worked with. V One died in helicopter while talking on the radio with Dad. Dad said the guy was talking and the radio suddenly went silent. Dad flew over and saw smoke and the wreckage. It was a pretty emotional for me; I can only imagine what my dad was feeling deep inside. But, I guess he’s had many years to work through those emotions. I’m just thankful God blessed my dad and he made it home. I’m glad we went to the Vietnam Memorial, it is beautiful tribute to those who didn’t make it home. The Korean Memorial was unexpectedly emotional, too, even though I don’t think I know anyone who was in that war. As we walked up to the memorial, a group of Korean women were singing a sad Korean song in front of the site and they were surrounded by wreaths of flowers. Their song was haunting and even though most of us watching didn’t understand their words, you could feel their sorrow. The last stop for the day was Lincoln Memorial, which is quite impressive; picture really doesn’t do it justice. Saturday was spent going through various Smithsonians’. Mom, Dad, and I went into the Science and Space Smithsonian for the first half of the day and then to the Natural History Smithsonian the second half. It was overwhelming. Really one needs to spend all day in just one and really take everything in. My favorite parts were space exhibits and the rock, gem, and precious stone exhibit. Matt spent most of that day with his old co-worker, Mike and his son, Cody. After a long day of information overload, we went to a California Pizza Kitchen and loaded up on carbs - yummy!! Matt and I shared a pizza and pasta dishes…talk about carb overload!!! That night we drank a lot of water and went to bed early. Sunday morning, October 5th, we were up bright and early for the race. The Army 10-Miler starts at the Pentagon which was just 2 blocks away from our hotel. So we got there about an hour early and somehow we ended up at the very back! But, me and my bro ran ~11 minute miles so we ended up passing a lot of people. We didn’t break any records, but we finished!! :) I was sooo happy, I was pretty nervous about this run and I was relieved when it was over. I felt really good until the end. I had only trained running 8 miles, so around the 9th mile all my joints started to tighten and tense up. Other than the last mile, it was actually a very enjoyable run. My bro entertained me the whole time. I don’t think he was hurting at all, then again, he’s used to running 9 minute miles. I’m very proud of us for finishing together!! After the run we cleaned up and drove back to Williamsburg, VA. I took it real easy the rest of the day and watched movies.