How do you describe this in a few words? Overwhelming. It was a hot morning and after the walk to this, I was a little cranky, but when you walk in and see the statue of Lincoln that you have seen so many times in pictures, well, it's hard not to be moved.

You need to have the right frame of mind when you are here. Understand that Lincoln is a towering figure to Americans, but to most foreign tourists, this is just another been-there-done that place. People will run in, take a picture, shout at the kids and ran out. Just be ready to put them out of your mind.

The displays in the lower level on Lincoln were very informative, but given that it was a hot, humid day, the air conditioning in the gift show was very welcome. Standing in front of the monument and looking back at the Washington monument was very moving. If it wasn't so darn hot, I could have spent an hour just standing there. But I'm sure I don't have to tell anyone that this is a must-see for everyone.

Setting at the west end of the National Mall, this monument is one awe-inspiring tribute to one of America's greatest Presidents. Deceptive in its size, from afar, it does look large, but as you get closer, you are struck by the size of the seated statue of Lincoln and the inside of the memorial itself. Words from Lincoln himself are set into the walls on either side of the statue from his Second Inaugural Address as well as the Gettysburg Address.

Listen while inside the memorial though and you will hear silence lest the footsteps of those around you. Solemn in its tribute, the memorial begs for silence as its tribute to the man known as Lincoln.

Upon walking out of the memorial, you are once again struck by an incredible view only possible in D.C., yet seen in hundreds of movies. That is the view of the Washington Monument and WWII Memorial to the east looking back toward the U.S. Capitol, all of which reverberates in the Reflecting Pool. So incredible is the view that you might miss the inscribed mention on the floor of the outside of the monument that indicates where M.L. King Jr. gave his "I have a Dream" speech in 1963.

Truly not a site to be missed, the Memorial is also within walking distance of the WWII, Vietnam and Korean War Memorials and Washington Monument.

Savings alert: This stop is free.

The Lincoln Memorial is one of the many monuments that are part of the National Park Service.

This monument pays tribute to the 16th President of the United States, Abraham Lincoln. Construction on this massive marble structure was completed in 1922, complete with a 19ft by 19ft solid marble statue of the President seated. If you recognize it from the back of a $5 bill, and thought it was impressive, then you should see it in person.

Make sure you have comfortable walking shoes. There are a lot of stairs to climb.

From the top of the stairs, you can have a great view across the reflecting pool back towards the Washington Monument and the WWII memorial.

With the plethora of history in Washington, if one a trip, you MUST stop by and say hello to President Lincoln. He, like many of our presidents, have a very important part in our history.

This monument has Lincoln sitting along in a giant chair. Alongside are words from various documents on stone. Up the steps, one can see the names of every state on the roof. The president stares out upon D.C., firmly. His accomplishments have been preserved by this monument, so if you have the time, check it out for yourself.

The Lincoln Memorial is one of those things that you see on TV, but you really can't get a good sense of the monument from still pictures. That may seem strange because it is 'a statue' but being in the Memorial is really more awe-inspiring than I would have imagined.

You climb up the steps to the Memorial, and you look out at the Washington Memorial and the reflecting pool. It is an amazing view. Then you enter the Lincoln Memorial. The statue of Lincoln is of course huge and impressive that way, but just as impressive is how everyone in the Memorial is respecting the silence. There are a few hushed whispers and footfalls, but people are there to do more than be tourists and it shows.

There are two of Lincolns most famous speeches, the Gettysburg address engraved on the walls in the 'side' rooms of the memorial. You will find people there reading them, getting the history from them. Absorbing the Lincolness of it all. This whole experience is marred slightly by the gift shop. There is a gift shop inside the Memorial, which seems a bit odd. However, it is mainly a book store, so that helps a bit I guess.

Mom took the elevator up with the stroller so we wouldn't have to carry it up all those stairs, which turned out to be very useful, as she discovered all the information on the ground floor. We did not realize that there was a museum of sorts downstairs, and probably would not have seen it, if not for the elevator.

The museum included more quotations from Lincoln, history, etc. There is also a supersized Lincoln Memorial penny hanging on the wall. Another useful thing we discovered, is that there are restrooms on the ground floor. It's very useful to know these things when travelling with small children.

This was one of the places that the 8-year-old really wanted to go, and he was not disappointed. He didn't know much about any of the presidents of the US before our trip (we are from Canada after all) but he learned something about Lincoln here. The monument is open to visitors 24 hours a day and there are park rangers there during the day to answer questions. (It's a National Park.)

When we were there, there were some roads under construction and strange things going on, so we ended up driving across a bridge to Arlington National Cemetery by mistake. We looped around and parked on Constitution Avenue and walked a short distance to the monument. On the way back to the car, we discovered we were walking past the Vietnam War Memorial. (Which becomes more impressive the nearer you get.)

Overall, the Memorial is well worth a visit. And it is definitely worth getting off the tourmobile for a while.