After being released from an 18-day quarantine to ensure that they had not picked up any infections or diseases from the Moon, the crew was feted across the United States and around the world as part of a 38-day "Giant Leap" tour. thumb|New York City ticker tape parade, August 13, 1969 The tour began on August 13, when the three astronauts spoke and rode in ticker-tape parades in their honor in New York and Chicago, with an estimated six million attendees. On the same evening an official state dinner was held in Los Angeles to celebrate the flight, attended by members of Congress, 44governors, the Chief Justice of the United States, and ambassadors from 83nations. President Nixon and Vice President Agnew presented each astronaut with a Presidential Medal of Freedom.
After being released from an 18-day quarantine to ensure that they had not picked up any infections or diseases from the Moon the crew was feted across the United States and around the world as part of a 38-day "Giant Leap" tour. thumb|New York City ticker tape parade, August 13, 1969 The tour began on August 13, when the three astronauts spoke and rode in ticker-tape parades in their honor in New York and Chicago, with an estimated six million attendees. On the same evening an official state dinner was held in Los Angeles to celebrate the flight, attended by members of Congress, 44governors, the Chief Justice of the United States, and ambassadors from 83nations. President Nixon and Vice President Agnew presented each astronaut with a Presidential Medal of Freedom.