Day 5- Charlie

Today our class woke up in a great hotel in Memphis. This hotel is placed on the full-of-life Beale Street.  After a relaxing morning, we started off at 9 am.  From there we took a short bus ride to the MLK, Jr. reflection park.  This metal sculpture and plaques surrounding it gave information about Martin Luther King, Jr. Here we reflected with a silent time.  Continuing our reflection, we marched in the footsteps of the striking sanitation workers who demanded better working conditions.  After the short walk we arrived at Bishop Charles Mason Temple.  This is where Dr. King delivered his final and most famous speech, "I've Been to the Mountaintop" when he knew his life was in danger.  On the steps of the temple the 8th graders performed part of the speech, each doing a few lines from the end the speech.  After another silent reflection, we came upon the Lorraine Motel.  This motel was kept in identical condition to when MLK, Jr. was killed  over 50 years ago.  Right next to this was the Civil Rights Museum. This was by far the most informative museum that we had gone to.  It lived up to its title and told us just about everything that happened in the movement in incredible fashion.  Each topic has pages of text, physical objects and videos all in the highest quality of work.  At the end of the museum was on of the most powerful parts called "MLK's last hours". There we saw his room just the way it was before he was killed. From the exhibit we could see the balcony on which he was shot.  From here we went across the street to a museum about MLK's assassination.  This part had many important artifacts as well, the most notable being the gun itself.  The most important thing we learned however was that Earl Ray was the arrested killer and that the King family does not believe it was him.  Finally we hopped on a bus to eat a final meal and return home to our wonderful parents.