I think almost every place that I’ve travelled to has some sort of gigantic penis monument; it must have been a trend in the mid-1800s. Washington is no exception and whilst there I did a tour of the Washington Memorial.
The memorial is pretty impressive. Work began on the monument in the 1850s but due to lack of funding and politics work stopped on the obelisk and it stood partially complete for nearly two decades. The monument was finally completed in 1884.
Originally to get to the top you had to take a gas-powered elevator that was slow and clunky — or you could climb the gazillion stairs that go to the top. Luckily we got to travel in a fast glass elevator.
Once at the top there are some pretty spectacular views of Washington. If you are feeling energetic you can always take the stairs down. It is a 40-minute hike and along the way, you get to see specially carved stones that each state and some cities/municipalities contributed.
If you decide to take the elevator down you don’t completely miss out on the stone show; it slows down at points so you can see some stones through the glass doors.
