The National Mall, Washington D.C.

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The National Mall is the large, grassy, open area between the Capitol Building and the Lincoln Memorial. This area include many of Washington DC's most famous attractions including the Jefferson Memorial, the Washington Monument, the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, many of the largest Smithsonian Institution museums, the US Capitol building, the Ulysses S. Grant Memorial and the United States Botanic Garden. New additions to the Mall that are under development include the National Museum of African American History and Culture as well as the Martin L. King Monument.

The idea for the national mall was proposed in L'Enfant's original plan for the city, but it underwent many changes before reaching its current design. Leading up to the 1900s the mall housed the city's main train station, and later it had barracks for soldiers defending the city. In 1901 the Mall underwent its largest changes with tons of fill used to extend the mall to the Lincoln Memorial and to created the Tidal Basin.

The mall is the site of numerous famous events in American history such as Martin L. King's "I have a dream" speech and Presidential inaugurations. Every day you will see thousands of joggers, and people playing baseball, rugby, soccer, and kickball on fields around the edges of the mall.

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The Signers of the Declaration of Independence Monument sits on the Mall, but it seems to be seldom visited because it is off the main path between the World War II Monument and the big monuments around the Lincoln Memorial. This monument, created in 1984, honors the 56 men from the Thirteen Colonies who signed the Declaration of Independence. The signature of each man is reproduced on granite blocks on a small island in the middle of Constitution Gardens.

Constitution Gardens were also created in 1976 to commemorate the 200 year anniversary of the American Revolution. This area was formed by fill from dredging the Potomac, and after World War I it housed temporary Navy barracks. Finally in 1971 the barracks were removed and the park created. Constitution Gardens were named in 1986 on the 200th anniversary of the ratification of the Constitution.

A walk down the National Mall is all in a day's work, and worth the effort. You can explore the World War II Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Capitol building, and a dozen other monuments/statues/memorials/fancy buildings of some kind at your own leisurely pace. Don't bother booking a tour. Just take time to walk, stop, and smell the roses. Comfortable shoes are a MUST, and don't forget to bring your camera and plenty of water.

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In the heart of D.C. connecting the Capital building, Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial is a green open-are National Park and recreational strip called "The National Mall". It was originally conceived by Peter Charles L'Enfant during the construction of Washington D.C. in 1791. Because of its size and width, open expanse - its often the site for many protests and rallies. Most popular rallies in the area were the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedoms, a massive rally for African-American civil rights, at which Martin Luther King Jr gave his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. In 1969 it was home to the largest officially recorded rally known as the Vietnam War Moratorium. In 2004 the Nation of Islam leader Min Louis Farrakhan was the Million Man March. In 2007 tens of thousands of Iraq War protesters converged here as well. This green strip also serves as a popular spot for picnics, walks, jogs, and kite flying. Each year several events are held here including 4th of July celebrations. In July and August there are annual Screen on the Green movie festivals. Rating: 5 stars out of 5. Visited 2007 and 2008.

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The Mall is a bit like Disneyland, in the sense, that there is no way to fully experience it all in just one day. Part of the original design for the federal city, the massive open space park stretches from the US Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial and around the Tidal Basin to the Jefferson Memorial. It is also where you will find the museums of the Smithsonian, the Vietnam Memorial, the Reflecting Pool and the famous Washington Monument. It was intended to be a place to remember American heroes, to celebrate freedom and to be a forum to exercise freedom in the form of protests and rallies.

The National Mall is usually the center of every visitor's trip to Washington DC. This tree-lined area of parkland stretches two and a half miles from the Potomac River to the United States Capitol on Capitol Hill and is adjoined by the White House. At one end of the National Mall, known as West Potomac Park, the Lincoln Memorial faces the Reflecting Pool with a good view of Arlington Memorial Bridge, Constitution Gardens, the Tindal Basin and the Washington Monument. Further towards Capitol Hill are a number of museums and galleries, among which are many of the Smithsonian Institution's museums, including the National Museum of Natural History, the National Air and Space Museum, National Museum of the American Indian, and the Smithsonian Institution building. Numerous festivals and concerts take place on the lawn throughout the year. A gravel path encircles the Mall and is a great place for a sightseeing run or walk. You just might run into a Senator. Certainly any visit to Washington DC should start here on the Mall.

The Monuments are MOST BEAUTIFUL and LEAST CROWDED in the middle of the night. They are lit up, bright white against the pitch black sky and are so much more striking and awe-inspiring. You can visit the monuments at all hours, they don't close to public viewing. Your chances of driving and getting a parking space on The Mall are also much better in the evening/early morning. The Lincoln Memorial is just amazing. Climb up and look out over the reflecting pool at the Washington Monument. It will take your breath away. The Vietnam & Korean War memorials are my favorites. Beautiful but eerie, they really give you a different perspective at night time. The World War II is another memorial to see at night. One of the most overlooked memorials is the Albert Einstein Memorial... you can crawl up into his lap & take a picture. It is a ton of fun to go with friends, and is also very romantic! (I don't recommend going alone, though.)

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To Washington, the high point of the year is 4th of July--Independence Day. And the place to be is on the National Mall. This year, the festivities were almost rained out; as fate would have it, the weather happened to improve just in time for the fireworks.

And what a show it was! I was lucky enough to get a good position overlooking the Washington Monument. The crowd was enormous. Everyone seemed to enjoy it.

The streets around the Mall were blocked off. Some people sat down right in the middle of 14th St--not a good idea. The police had to come through just to keep it clear. Please stay on the grass.

Another tip--take the Metro, because there's nowhere to park. When the show's over, be prepared to stand in line to get back on the Metro. It may take a while just to reach the entrance. Anyway, it's worth seeing this at least once.

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The National Mall is one of America’s most interesting parks; the bulk of it lies between the Lincoln Memorial and Capitol Hill, lined by Constitution Ave. and a handful of Smithsonian Museums. Besides visiting the major monuments, memorials, and museums, you can just stroll down along the mall and people-watch; around here, you can meet congressmen, activists, and protestors.

South of the DC War Memorial and north of the Tidal Basin, you'll find a small plaque dedicated to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr, leader of the American Civil Rights Movement during the 1950s and 1960s. The plaque was placed there in 2000; in 2006 (this year, soon to be last year), there was a ceremonial groundbreaking for the new Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, which will occupy a much larger space on the north side of the Tidal Basin. The memorial will honor a man who brought change with nonviolence, and lost his life to improve the lives of others. However, it will probably take a few more years before actual work on the memorial is started, and even longer until it is finally finished. When it is completed, the memorial will lie on the straight line between the Lincoln and Jefferson Memorials, symbolizing the work by those three men to provide freedom for all.

Okay, this is actually closer to the White House than the National Mall, but whatever. The Statue of Alexander Hamilton in DC is in front of the US Treasury, near the White House. You can't walk to the base of the statue, since it is behing a fenced, off-limits area in the Treasury, but you can see it and photograph it from outside. Hamilton is the man whose face is on the US ten dollar bill; he was the first Secretary of the Treasury of the United States. He was also a prominent Federalist who was one of the authors of the Federalist Papers (in other words, the Anti-George Mason). Quite an interesting person, quite an interesting statue.