Thank goodness not a lot to write about today as we have a 3:30am wake-up call!

We had a relaxing morning laying around the room and eating breakfast and left to go into the city around one o’clock. We got off the metro at the Capitol South station and made our way to the House offices to pick up Inaugural tickets. The line of people waiting wrapped around multi sides of the block. My roommate being a champ stood inline by herself and waited to pickup her tickets. The rest of us went to H&M. We met later at the Air and Space Museum and went to dinner. Nothing eventful happened and it was a lovely evening with everyone. 

The crowds have officially arrived in D.C. There are lines to get down on the metro platforms and no place to walk on the sidewalks. Tomorrow will be an interesting day as we are planning to go to the metro at 4;30am. Expecting massive crowds we have already decided to walk back from the Mall to our hotel. It is a six mile trek but we are figuring it will be easier than battling the crowds. I am very excited for tomorrow but I am slightly disappointed that I have ball tickets. I feel very lucky that I have the opportunity to attend the event but I will miss spending the last night with everyone.

Today marked the beginning of our Inaugural events!

We got up extra early this morning to get into the city so that we could see the Concert. Upon entering D.C. we found a cute diner across from Ford’s Theater to have breakfast in. The atmosphere in there equaled our excitement for the day’s events. Besides us there was only one other table of civilian patrons. EVERYONE else was a member of the metropolitan police. To say the least we felt very safe but it was also just a neat start to the day.

After breakfast we walked back to the Mall at find a spot to watch the show. We made it though security without issue and quickly joined the crowd walking towards the Lincoln Memorial. We had good timing and ending getting one of the best possible positions on the left side of the monument (right next to the reflection pool). Though we were still pretty far from  everything it was still exciting to be there. We chatted with the people around us and watched the crowds file in. The waiting was difficult for us on account of the weather. Even with all our layers we all froze. My muscles and bones (esp. my feet) quickly became numb with cold. For a while I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to make it until the show. In total we ended up standing and waiting for about five hours.

The show was worth the wait. I was most excited to see (besides Barack Obama) Bruce Springsteen and U2. I was pleasantly surprised that the Boss opened the show and was happy with the flow of performers and speakers. Garth Brook’s performance was very entertaining and he seemed to play the best with the crowd.

Putting the weather aside it was a great day and I can’t wait until Tuesday. Right now I am nursing some nasty wind burn on my cheeks but I am looking forward to my last few days in D.C. Leaving will be bittersweet as I have grown accustom to living here.

Looking forward to tomorrow!

Well the past two days have been pretty eventful.

After returning from a long day at the Smithsonians I (thankfully) decided not to go out to dinner with everyone else. I was looking forward to a quiet night lounging and watching TV. Around 7:30 my roommate thought she heard water running so she hopped out of bed to check the bathroom and found our toilet overflowing. I jumped out of bed to call the front desk while Jen began moving things away from the bathroom door. All of a sudden the water started GUSHING out of the toilet and tub and spilling out into our room. We began throwing our stuff onto beds and chairs to avoid the oncoming sewage and water but unfortunately most of my clothes and shoes became soaked. Within about three minutes water had rushed across the carpet and to our patio doors. The hotel staff came with a shop vac to try to vacuum the water (to no avail) while we worked to salvage our belonging that had not been drenched. The manager was helpful in moving us to a new room- on the 10th floor with a great view of the city and a flat screen/plasma TV. The guys helped bring our stuff to our new room and their blog posts were a welcome distraction. They made us laugh out loud and we really needed our spirits lifted. Our accommodations are definitely an upgrade but it was still a horrible night with a few laughs thrown in compliments of our friends.

Today we threw on what few clean clothes we had and went to the Newseum. I was skeptical of going to the Newseum because I’m pretty burned out on political journalism but I was pleasantly surprised. We had a very good day. We got to see pieces of the Berlin Wall, and the World Trade Towers. There was also a gallery of historical newspapers capturing important headlines from the 1700’s. There was also a cool 4-D movie about the history of news reporting. While the topic was interesting the added simulation elements made it a neat experience. The theater was designed to to place the audience on the battlefield during the revolutionary war, and inside a mental institution (to name just a few places).  The balcony of the Newseum also faces the capitol and Pennsylvania Avenue so we got a great a photo with the Inaugural stage in the back round.

After the Newseum we had a nice, quiet day. A few of us just hung out and visited H&M and walked around D.C. We found an official Inauguration shop and got some pins and stickers. It was exciting and the shop was overrun with people trying to buy pieces of history. It is freezing here and we feel like mother nature is prepping us for Tuesday. On the metro back to the hotel some might claim we saw Ray Liotta but that is untrue. We saw someone who looked similar to the actor but it was defiantly not him. Within about 12 hours it seems like the population of D.C. has tripled. As the Inauguration approaches we have begun seeing the crowds and traffic problems. I am excited for Tuesday but I am nervous about the massive influx of people.

Tomorrow we are going to the concert on the mall. I am excited but again nervous about the crowds. We are leaving VERY early so I hope we can get good spots.  Here’s to hoping we get to see some celebrities!

On Thursday, a couple of us were fortunate enough to receive senate gallery tickets, allowing us to watch a session of Congress.  It was a great experience being able to witness Biden and Clinton’s farewell speech.  I really enjoyed listening to Biden as he spoke about his first experience on the senate floor.  His first time to Washington, D.C. was when he was twenty-one visiting a friend at Georgetown.  When visiting the Capitol, he found him self entering the Senate floor.  Today, that would not be possible with the increased security.   Seeing no one on the floor, he took the opportunity to  walk up to  Vice President of the United State’s chair and sat there.  He was immediately apprehended by and unseen security guard.  It is ironic because soon that will be his chair.

        We saw Clinton, Kerry, Liberman, McCain, Biden, Schumer, as well as many others.  We witnessed Burris getting sworn into Obama’s senate seat.  His family was sitting on the other side if the room to be part of this joyous event.  We then met up with the rest of the group and continued to take a tour of the Capitol.  

      Today, we are attending the Museum of American history and hopefully the Museum of Natural History.

Wow so today will be another short post as I am dead tired. We have been on the go without a break since Saturday and it has finally caught up with us. I am even typing this in bed.

Today was pretty good- there was the perfect mix of fun, controversy, and disappointment. C-SPAN broadcasted live again this morning with special guest Dana Perino. Even though I tend to lean more left, I was interested to hear her discussion. The talk went well and the student participants asked good questions. It was a little annoying that the show seem to take only Republican callers. I was hoping that people would take advantage of having such a high profile and intelligent administration but that did not happen. The callers were overly friendly and no one asked any tough questions- with the exception of one. A girl got up and asked about the rhetoric that came from the Bush administration following 9/11/01. She asked whether the repeated use of the words “threat” and “terrorist/terrorism” were used to instill fear in the public in order to get the American public behind certain policies. In her answer Mrs. Perino insulted every student in the room by implying that we were not significantly affected by the terrorist attacks of September 11th. Her words were shocking and my jaw literally hit the ground. 

We also found out after various conversations with our parents that we were seen during this C-SPAN broadcast!!! YAY I was so excited!

The following speakers were just mediocre. I was very excited to see Ted Koppel but his speech was a surprising let down. While he had good anecdotes the question and answer session was excruciatingly boring. We even moved up to the balcony after. It seems every speaker talks about the media and the journalistic aspect of the election. While it is an interesting topic, it is honestly getting old.

We did get to meet some really cool kids from Montana. They sat in front of us and during our breaks we chatted. 

Our afternoon site visit with the Algerian Ambassador. I was very excited about this and I can’t wait to boost that I got to meet an ambassador! Everyone was really nice and the ambassador and his staff were very receptive of us. They allowed us to ask a lot of questions and for the most part the ambassador was open with us. His answers to the questions were a little to PC. We asked some tough questions and he clearly was watching what he said as to not upset U.S./Algerian relations. 

After this a couple of us went to the portrait gallery. It was very cool to see the Lincoln exhibit that has been set up for the Inauguration. We also went to the President’s Gallery to see the past presidential portraits. I made sure to stop at Teddy Roosevelt’s section (as he is my favorite) and see President Bush’s new painting. President Bush’s portrait is AMAZINGLY life like. I liked his very casual positioning, it is different but cool. 

We are winding down for the night in order to prepare for a long day at the Capital.

Tonight I’m in a huge time crunch- I only have an hour with this computer or else Dan will kill me.

The sessions continue to be interesting but it is shocking to me how some of the other participants are so rude. For the last three days students have slept/talked and played with cell phones throughout speakers presentations. It is frustrating and disappointing to see people not take advantage of this unique experience.

Today was really great. C-SPAN broadcasted live and recorded our sessions all morning. The moderators and speakers were very friendly and receptive to our questions. Thankfully the questions were more thoughtful than they had been the last few days (probally because of the cameras). During our first session, the airing of Washington Journal Live, the host Brian Lamb took calls from around the nation and someone from Amherst called in. It was cool to make a local connection while we were here.

Tonight we went to the Chamber of Commerce Dinner at the Hall of Flags. It was a let down. The food was just decent and our guest of honor, Bob Schieffer had to ask the crowd to stop talking. It was mortifying.

We also saw our second Dr. Carter look alike. There seems to be a plethora of Dr. Carter clones in D.C.

Right now everyone is just hanging out in our room and preparing for our visit to the Algerian Administer.

Hopefully I will be able to post photos and a video tomorrow.

I write this now as we are lounging and watching a movie.

Today was a good day. Our morning began with a lecture by Dr. Michael Genovese of Loyola Marymount. I was very impressed by his analysis of presidential power. He pointed out that even though a president is sworn every four years each one holds a distinctive amount of power. Despite these variations they are each expected to begin making immediate policy changes. Some Presidents have been more successful than others at making these changes because of elements entirely out of their control. The economic/international climate plays a huge part in making presidential power “elastic.” I was intrigued by his idea that Obama has been dealt “three aces” in this regard (the current climate gives him significant power and authority) and his idea that “the question is not will Obama have power, but will he be wise” and take advantage of his unique position.

Following Dr. Genovese we had a discussion with special agent David J. O’Connor. He was not just interesting but also very candid with us. I have had the opportunity to hear lectures from FBI and Secret Service agents before, but Mr. O’Connor’s speech was far different from my past experiences. He was open and honest and answered all rel event questions. He also did a brief historic overview of the Se cert Service which was especially captivating. He explained that the Secret Service was formed in 1865 and was signed into being by Abraham Lincoln. Ironically this occured on the day Lincoln was assassinated. Mr. O’Connor continued to explain that it was originally formed not to protect the president but to stop counterfitters. The Secret Service was not a part of presidential security until the shooting of JFK.  He also told us of his role in the security aspects of the Inauguration and how agencies like the FBI and D.C. police are working together to prepare for next week.

We ended our morning session with a FANTASTIC presentation by Cal Thomas and Bob Beckel. Representing opposing political parties, Thomas and Beckel gave a balance and funny discussion of health care, taxes, and other issues.  I am excited to read their column in Monday’s USA Today.

In the afternoon we had the opportunity to visit NORML. This is a nonprofit, public adversity group that “fights for the interests of the millions of Americans who smoke marijuana.” I was excited that we got such an interesting group to visit. The Executive Director, Keith Stroup spoke with us for well over an hour and answered all our questions. The experience of visiting the office and having a private meeting with someone so intelligent and passionate was very cool.

After our site with NORML we had our first time off in Washington. A few of us went and walked around the city and visited China Town.  We had dinner at the unique, authentic Spanish restaurant La Tasca.

Since then we’ve just been hanging around and resting (thankfully). Special thanks to Mrs. Volkosh for the cookies!!! They were delicious!

And sorry it took so long for me to write this Dan.

Don’t forget to watch CSPAN at 9am tomorrow- Look for us!

Yesterday was a long, tiring, travel day and we were more than happy to get to bed last night, (notice the PJ’s I have on in the photo). Unfortunately we forgot to turn on the heat be before we went to bed and none of us slept because of the frigid temps.

We began our early today by catching the metro at 7:15 as to to be at the University of The District of Columbia Auditorium by 8:15. After sitting though the typical welcome messages and student life reminders we met our faculty director- Steve Bell. Aside from his academic credentials and professional resume Mr. Bell continued to impress me with his  ability to address and engage such a large/diverse crowd. His introduction presentation has left me anticipating to hear his upcoming lectures.

At the end of today’s speakers we had the opportunity to take a bus tour through all monuments around Washington. Though I have been to D.C. numerous times, I always enjoy visiting the monuments and memorials. We spent the most time around the Vietnam/Lincoln memorials. As a senior in high school my government teacher looked up his cousin who went missing during the Vietnam War.  I took the opportunity to do the same this trip. I have always been moved by the Wall but this was my first time actually looking for an engraved name. That experience was unique for me, and I was especially moved to see flowers someone had left for a solider who died in Vietnam on January 13th 1968.

It was also exciting to see the city setting up for the Inaugural events. The stage for the Inaugural concert (with Aretha Franklin) is already being set-up on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. Watching the preperations for next Tuesday is adding to my excitement for the swearing in.

Traveling to each memorial was tiring but walking to FDR’s we got a special treat. As we were traveling to the site sirens began filling the air. We turned to see what was going on and the Presidental motorcade drove by. It was exciting to see the White House helicopters and presidential limo (flags and all) go by.

I am most excited to hear from David O’Connor tomorrow. He is a special agent in the secret service and is supposed to be a fanastic speaker.

Here’s to hoping we don’t freeze in our sleep tonight-