Arlington Cemetery

An hour before I was due to fly out of Washington my flight was cancelled and I had to figure out what to do with the next five hours.
I decided to go to Arlington National Cemetery.
It was 100 degrees.
The Cemetery was first established as a Civil War graveyard in the grounds of Arlington House in Virginia.
Its since grown to over 650 acres.Its the final resting place of military casualties as well as the great and good from American history.
The day I was there 28 were laid to rest.
It felt rather sad to see the end result of the quagmires in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Intense and calm at the same time.
Blazing heat, somber precision marches, smiling Marines and quiet tourists watching silently as they clicked pictures with their mobile phones.
The shimmering light was relentless.
The grass was turning brown.
The Marines were knife crease perfect and didn't seem to break sweat.
I watched and clicked away.
I'm glad I went.

Regardless of what vantage point you have, the headstones stretch away in formation.

Its remarkable.

The scale of the place is striking as are the empty spaces patiently waiting to be filled.

That's it for today.

Stay well everyone.

T