Teddy Roosevelt Island

Roosevelt Island is one of the few things that has escaped our attention while living in the area. It's a swampy strip of land that separates the Arlington side of the Potomac River from the Georgetown side. Jen had insisted, for years, that we visit the island. She had imagined a beautiful little park-like island full of trees, flowers, benches, and wildlife. Turns out, it actually is just a dinky, soggy little piece of land. 

That being said, what we failed to realize is that it had one of the more unique monuments in D.C. It also doesn't hurt that it is one of the least crowded and most out-of-the-way tourist sites. In fact, it was almost like an eerie post-apocalyptic world when we were there. We were quite literally the only people walking about this enormous granite plaza which was surrounded by a moat, bridges, and fountains (none of which were turned on because it is so early in the year.) The abandoned plaza, dry fountains, and dead leaves all contributed to this really cool, barren monument.

At it's center you find a gigantic bronze statue of Teddy Roosevelt. The granite plaza is surrounded by huge slabs of granite with various maxims engraved upon them. The manhood one was of course our favorite. I mean, the guy kept pet badgers, lions, and badgers in the white house. If anyone deserves the 'manhood' title any more than T. Roosevelt did, I'd be afraid to meet the guy.