W A S H I N G T O N   D . C .   -   D A Y   # 2

Wednesday, October 27, 2004

Erected in 1964, the Boy Scout Memorial is the only memorial in Washington that commemorates an active and living institution. All funds for its construction were raised solely by the Boy Scouts. The bronze statue consists of a man (who looks kinda creepy in my opinion) representing physical, mental and moral strength, loyalty, courage, honor... you know, guy stuff I guess. The woman is supposed to represent love in God, faith, justice, freedom, democracy... where do they get this stuff? The Boy Scout represents the hopes and dreams of all past, present, and future scouts worldwide. There's a small pool in front of the memorial, honoring all the boys who have joined the Boy Scouts of America.

On the other side of the memorial's pool I see a homeless man relaxing and enjoying a cigarette.

My next stop is The White House, home of President George W. Bush. On the way, I walk along the perimeter of a landmark called the Ellipse, which is also known as President's Park. They even have a visitors center for it. The Ellipse is located just south of The White House and is quite large. I suppose they use it for ceremonies and the like. Hey! That's strange, there's a huge evergreen tree nearby, standing all alone and isolated. I wonder what it could be?

Ever hear of the National Christmas Tree? Located in President's Park, the tradition of the National Christmas Tree started way back in 1923 during the Calvin Coolidge Administration. From its beginnings up until 1973, the tree has always been a cut tree. On October 20, 1978, a live Colorado blue spruce was trucked in from York, PA and planted, thus permanently changing the holiday tradition to use a live evergreen tree.