Day 3 (6/20/23)

 ONCE IN A LIFETIME TRIP💓

Joke of the Day: What is the tallest building in Washington, DC?  The Library of Congress because it has so many stories

6:30am wake-up call, then followed by an amazing breakfast at the Crystal City Sports Pub again. 

Our first stop was at the Air Force Memorial where we got another group photo. They were under construction, so we weren't able to go directly under the three pillars.

The next stop was my absolute favorite place, Mount Vernon. Students had over an hour to tour George Washington's Mount Vernon, then we had a mansion tour of his house. There were so many things to see there, that we could've been there all day. For lunch, The Youth Tour purchased golden tickets, which allowed the students to stuff their bellies on lunch combo items. Off to the gift shop....

The most memorable spot was the Arlington Cemetery. The group of students received a train ride with a tour guide explaining some of the most popular people buried there. We saw JFK's eternal flame, which has stayed on for almost 60 years. We made our way over to the changing of the guards at the tomb of the unknown soldier. The coolest thing of the whole trip was having 4 students (Tristan, Owen, Lizzy, and Veronica) chosen to lay the wreath. It was breathtaking to watch and the wreath said "Iowa Youth Tour."

Our group headed over to the U.S. Marine Corps War Par/Memorial for a group photo. There was the Iwo Jima Marine Corps Memorial where we watched the sunset parade. We had our very own picnic, sitting on blankets and eating food we pre-ordered.

The last stop hit the closest to home, the Pentagon 911 Memorial. Students could listen to an audio tour on their phones, which explained the memorial and what all happened on that day. It was very touching. 

We headed to the hotel for an hour of the snack CO-OP being open then 10:30pm room-check. 

Goodnight DC!