PHOTOS: MARTIN LUTHER KING JR MEMORIAL

It was an almost-perfect day - in spite of a downpour earlier in the day - to pay my first visit to this fitting memorial to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Clicking on each picture gives you a full size version. Enjoy!

Mount Rushmore-esque, isn't it?
(more after the jump)

This kid was moon-walking across this quote.

Broad view. The "Stone of Hope" (with Dr. King's statue) is on the left, and the "Mountain of Despair" behind it. I look forward to seeing this at sunset and at night... and, of course, when the Cherry Blossoms return next Spring.

Profile of Dr. King, with the Washington Monument in the background.

This was fun. I watched as the man in green urged a few of his family members to pose at the base of the "Stone of Hope." It started with about four of his kids, perhaps. But, before he could take the picture, other family members were drawn in, one by one from different parts of the memorial, until it grew to what you see. Actually, the guy in red is still running in to pose.

"We shall overcome." The memorial is masterfully designed, with a broad "arc of the moral universe" quite literally embracing the three granite pieces in the center entrance.

This is the other section of the arc, again with the Washington Monument in the background.

Landing airplane.

Love this angle.

By the way, parking is not too tricky around there; but be prepared to walk, as there are not many non-handicapped parking spots near the actual memorial at this time. You'll have to park along the Potomac River (on Ohio Drive, SW), which can mean anywhere from a 800 to 2,000-foot walk. It does, however, appear as though the National Park Service will be adding additional parking areas across the street from the memorial (next to the Memorial Book Store), and over by the Korean War Memorial, which will help.

Two rather subtle waterfalls grace both ends of the entrance.

And here is the entrance. Visitors walk through the "Mountain of Despair." In the center of this photo, you can see the Jefferson Memorial across the Tidal Basin. Dr. King is on the "Stone of Hope" in the center, facing the basin.

"Let us not wallow in the valley of despair."

Finally, here is the virtual tour of the memorial.