911 Memorial

We went with the homeschool group to the 911 Memorial yesterday.  It's beautiful.  The fact that it was raining made it all so quiet and contemplative and sad.  There are 2 large, square waterfall pools that sink into the ground bordered on all 4 sides with the names of everyone who died that day.  These pools are in the exact place where the towers stood.  All the trees in the memorial were grown near all 3 attack sites in NYC, VA, & PA.  Family and friends placed bouquets of flowers on their loved ones' names.  A few blocks away is the 911 Memorial Preview Site.  It's kind of a gift shop with a lot of memorabilia and photos.

Going to the site hit me harder than I thought it would.  In the early 90s I worked as a temp for several months in one of the towers.  I ate lunch in the Winter Garden and loved walking around the area.  I think a lot of non-NY'ers thought of the World Trade Center as just a huge monument for tourists.  But it was so much more than that.  Such a tremendously sad loss for our country.  There are new buildings in construction now, including the Freedom Tower and a memorial museum.  I'm glad it's taking a long time to create.  It has to be right.

Trinity Church - 300 years old!  It's around the corner from the memorial

One of the new buildings

The South Pool

W at the South Pool and one of the new buildings

Another view of the South Pool

In the 911 Preview Site