The tour information booklet said we would visit the 9/11 Memorial.  I thought it would be a stop, and we would be able to get off the bus and walk to the Memorial.  Wrong.  As the bus traveled down the street, the tour guide pointed and said, “There’s the 9/11 Memorial.  It is no longer called Ground Zero.  The Memorials have been built, a museum will open soon, and the World Trade Center complex is being rebuilt.  Some buildings are completed while others buildings are being built.”  I turned my head to look, but saw nothing.  Talk about disappointed.  Visiting the memorial was high on my “Things to do in New York City” list.

Fortunately, we were stranded in New York City for three days.  Dallas was iced, over and flights were cancelled.  We knew the 9/11 Memorial was one landmark we wanted to take the opportunity to see.  For your information:  The passes are free, but you have to get the passes online.  I was able to pull up the 9/11 Memorial website on my iPad and get passes.  I showed the guard the passes from my iPad, and we were able to get in the long line to get into the memorial.  To enter, we had to go through airport type security, but they say = when the Memorial Plaza is completed, there will be open access

As we walked along the sidewalk, we could see the rebuilding that is taking place in the Plaza.  The original World Trade Center site was built on sixteen acres.  The 9/11 Memorial Plaza is constructed on 8 acres from the original site.

The 9/11 Memorial consists of two pools set in the footprint of the Twin Towers that were destroyed.  Yes, the pools are on the site of the original Twin Towers.  Each pool is about an acre in size.  Seeing the memorial is very moving.  Around the perimeter of each pool, thirty-foot waterfalls – the largest in North America – flow into reflecting pools and then disappear into a void.  The Memorial honors 2,983 men, women, and children who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993.

Bronze panels surround the pools with the inscribed names of the victims. The brochure mentions that the oldest casualty was 85 years old and the youngest was two years old.  There were 400 first responders that lost their lives that day.

The plaza is also designed to be a place to commemorate the survivors.  When completed, over 400 swamp white oak trees will fill  the area as a way of showing hope and rebirth.

There was a white rose left as a remembrance on one of the panels.  So touching.

The 9/11 Memorial Museum is scheduled to open in the spring of 2014.

Inside the gift shop there was a TV screen showing survivors and their stories.  It is hard to believe it has been 12 years since the attacks.  It is still fresh in my memory.

Going to the 9/11 Memorial was a good thing.  I look forward to going back and visiting the museum.

Blessings to you and yours,