The obelisk that is the Washington Monument is a pretty impressive piece of architecture. It sits in the middle of the National Mall with the reflecting pool and Lincoln Memorial on one side and the Capitol building on the other side. The only thing that was a bummer is when we were there the reflecting pool was drained for the construction of the World War II Memorial. I never understood the reason why people were against the WWII Memorial until I saw the area they want to use. There is an unobstructed view between the Monument and the Lincoln Memorial across the reflecting pool. That said, I think that the WWII Memorial will add to the aesthetics, aside from being long overdue. It was too late in the day to go to the top of it, but next time I want to do that.