When I asked my little boy what he wanted to do in Washington DC, he said he wanted to visit a Civil War Battlefield. There are quite a few within driving distance including Manassas and Antietam, but the most popular is probably Gettysburg. Gettysburg is about 75 miles north of DC. I was really glad I brought the GPS – our route took us through Virginia, DC, Maryland, and Pennsylvania.
I had no idea what to expect, since we don’t really have a lot of Civil War history in Iowa. I was surprised at the number of monuments, statues, and preserved sites. There was a beautiful new visitor’s center and theater. We purchased an audio tour with a CD and guide book. You put the CD in your car and take off on a designated driving route. The CD itself was over 2 hours long, plus time to stop for pictures. We spent about 4 hours in the park.
On the way back to the city, we stopped at the Iwo Jima Memorial. It was stunning at night.
Gettysburg
Gettysburg battlefield
Iwo Jima Memorial
Major battlefield in Gettysburg
Gettysburg Monument