The day of the Inauguration had finally arrived, and waking up to my alarm at 5:00 AM with a sinus headache was not about to keep me from missing this already historic event.  I donned several layers, including two sweaters and even a bathrobe, and gave my roommates some handwarmers my dad had given me for the big day.  Dee, my roommate from Florida, was especially grateful.  After loading our pockets with metropasses, ID, emergency cash, cell phones, cameras, warmers, and a nutrigrain bar each (we wanted to aviod carrying bags to get through any security checks quicker), Katie and I were out the door by 5:30 with a plan to view the ceremony and parade from the Canadian Embassy.

At that time in the morning the metro was crowded and slow to move through, but not completely unbearable.  The worst part for us was having so many layers of warm clothing on and then being stuck in a warm, crowded car for longer than usual.  Knowing that several stations would be closed for at least part of the day we tried to determine the best route to the Embassy.  Once at ground level again we quickly learned that our efforts would be greatly frusterated not just by crowds but also by entire streets being closed off.  After wandering for a bit we decided the best course would be to follow the crowds, as our attempts to go against the current were increasingly futile. 

Eventually we came to a standstill in a mass of people.  As we learned by asking around and eavesdropping just a little, we had found our way to an entrance which would open for general admittance at 7 AM, so we abandoned our plans for the Embassy and huddled up for what we were anticipating would be about an hour and a half wait.  We later learned that they had moved the time back to 8, and at 8:30 there was some stirring near the front of the crowd and people began filtering backwards.  The powers that be had changed the entrance to a “ticketholders only” entry point, and the majority of us had to find an alternate way in.  Naturally, the street right next to us was closed off, so instead of simply crossing, we had to walk about three blocks in either direction to get across the street.  We soon came to the realization that six blocks would pale in comparison to the multiple miles we would walk that day.

By once again following the crowd, we  found our way to a  tunnel which would let us out on the other side of the mall.  It was part of a four lane highway which had been shut down due to saftey precautions, and I believe it was about a mile long.  This was certainly a surreal experience, as we were surrounded by thousands of people and there were police everywhere on motorcycles and in cars with lights flashing.  It was very reminiscent of a disaster movie like I Am Legend or 28 Days/ Weeks Later where mass evacuation was necessary and people had abandoned thier cars.  It was actually kind of fun, becuase we were all united by our desire to share a positive experience, and shouts of “Yes we can!” echoed through the tunnel and helped motivate us to press on despite the cold and the crowds.

Once we reached the end of the tunnel, we walked the exit ramp and found ourselves on 3rd street, at an entrance that was once again reserved for ticket holders.  We were assured by a volunteer that 7th street would be the end of our quest for an entrance to the national mall, and after what we had just walked, four more blocks seemed like very little.  Of course, 7th street yeilded the similar fruit: we would have to go to 14th street if we did not have tickets.  Finally, after about 4 hours of travel since we had left the hotel, we got onto the National Mall, right in front of the Washington Monument. 

Katie and I then took a few practice pictures of each other and the monument behind us as we tried to pass the time before the ceremony.  We had a fairly good view of a nearby jumbotron, and we could hear everything very clearly as they replayed clips from Sunday’s concert.  Eventually they began live coverage of the dignitaries arriving and taking thier places, and finally it was time for the main event.

The swearing in itself was quite short, but the moment the oath was over and everyone around threw their hands into the air and cheered was deeply moving, as was the speech that followed.  I would have liked to have taped the whole thing, but the cold had drained the battery and I could only capture a few clips of it.  Fortunately, I’m sure the memories of that day will last, because it is extremely rare to be a part of a gathering of that magnitude to celebrate something so important to our country and to history.  It is somthing people will talk about for ages, and I feel so fortunate to have been able to witness it firsthand. 

Katie and I attempted to leave right after the speech, but because of the mass of people who had the same idea, we were still able to see and hear most of the rest of the ceremony.  I personally did not enjoy the poem, and by the time the benediction commenced I was more focused on not being separated from Katie and not being claustrophobic to really listen closely.  We got to a place where there was room enough to open a map, and decided to try and find a particular metrostation.  However, closed off roads and crowds once again frustrated our efforts, and we were more or less forced to try our luck at L’enfant station, where many people had lined up for literally blocks to try and catch a train. 

Making our way to the station and waiting in the massive line took up about two hours, after which we decided to attempt a 45 minute walk to a station further away by way of a closed down highway.  We quickly found oursleves turned around and at the very end of the line we had just left.  Realizing the time and noting that the parade should be over soon, we went to Smithsonian station, which was set to open after the parade ended around 3.  This obviously was not the case, as we found out the parade had begun behind schedule and would not be over until about 6PM.  Not wanting wo wait there for three hours, we backtracked toward the Mall and wound up on a long walk to Arlington, VA to catch the train there, which was only one stop away from our destination, Rosslyn.

We were aided on our search for Arlington by a woman from Buffalo and her group of friends who also did not want to wait in line for hours for an overcrowded train.  By this time I was really feeling my cold taking off, but I also knew that if I stopped to rest it would make it that much harder to continue on.  Nevertheless, after being on my feet for ten hours straight taking a break was quite tempting.  Crossing the bridge yeilded some great pictures of the river and also of the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument together.  Once we finally reached Arlington Station, I took a short breather as Katie and I rode down the escalator sitting down, to the amusement of our walking companions who were a little ways behind us by that time. 

After a very full day with almost nothing to eat or drink, McDonalds was for once a welcome feast, as it was on our way to the hotel from our metro stop.  By the time we made it back up to our room, we had spend nearly 12 full hours out in the cold of D.C. and probably walked well over five miles.  It isn’t a terribly long distance, but after not sitting down for all that time either it is actually very straining.  I will always remember the rediculous travelling that day, but I the memories of what happened during the ceremony and what it meant to so many people and for our country will be so much stronger.  I know that as time goes on it will become even more worth it, and I look forward to seeing how the events of that day will shape our country in the coming years.

I would like to thank the Washington Center for hosting this seminar, they did a great job considering all of the events, speakers, and site visits they had to coordinate for all 750 participants.

And I would like to especially thank Dr. Brickman, who has been our fearless leader throughout the program.  Without her this experience really would not have been possible and I know all of us truely appreciate all the work she put in to give us this oppurtunity.

Sunday was spent unsuccessfully attempting to meet up with my sister Shannon and her group from Homer High School.  After getting some much needed rest and sleeping in a bit, we played a bit of phone tag and decided to meet at one of the many museums near the National Mall.  This led to my first solo excursion in the city, and despite being a bit apprehensive it went fairlywell.  I didn’t know exactly where I was going once I was out of the metro, but eventually found my way to the Museum of Natural History. 

That was when I received news that Shanny’s group had changed plans last minute, and I would be on my own.  Trying to make the best of things, I quickly bought a last minute ticket for the final showing of the day of the 3D Deep Sea movie others in our group had mentioned.  That actually made the whole trip worth it, as it was just as enjoyable and interesting as I had heard.  By the time the movie was over the museum was beginning to close, so I made my way back to the metro (with much more ease this time), and made a mental note of the drastic and sudden jump in population.  Of course that was only a small taste of what was to come on Tuesday.

Monday was even lazier than Sunday, sleeping in again and spending the day making various preparations for the Inauguration.  I visited the hotel’s roof level restaurant, which had quite a view of D.C.  After a nice quiet lunch there I met with Katie back at the room and we compared weather forecasts for the next day and talked about how many layers we thought would be prudent.  After that all that was left to do was relax and try to rest up for tomorrow’s action packed day of freezing temperatures and navigation through thousands of people.

Today was our first “free” day in D.C., but it was still very full and educational.  Our first stop was to a Starbucksto get out of the cold before finding our way to the Newseum.  I was a little apprehensive as we have been getting a ton of exposure to the history and involvement of the media in society, but I was pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable the museum was. 

The 4-D movie was pretty cool, if a little short.  I liked that they mentioned a woman that had helped pioneer investigative journalism and very subtly included the prejudice she faced.  The most moving display dealt with 9/11 and the coverage of the events that took place that day.  While it obviously conjured up painful memories and feelings, it is a wonderful display that really honors and remembers the victims of the tragedy.  I would really encourage others to see this section of the museum, especially those of younger generations who may not remember or have been around during that crucial time in our nation’s recent history. 

After having lunch together as a group, several of us went to see the Holocaust Museum.  After taking a wrong turn and walking a good extra 15-20 minutes in the blistering cold we finally found it…with a line out the door to get in.  Despite the very sobering experience that is the Holocaust Museum, it was worth the effort to get in.  Part of the museum is dedicated to recent or current genocides around the world, and I think that is a great way to raise awareness.  There is so much to see there, we really could have devoted the entire day to it but we only had a few hours before closing time. 

After the interesting but somewhat depressing day it was time for Katie and I to settle in for the night by ordering some pizza and watching a couple movies.  Tomorrow will be a long day out in the cold, hopefully seeing a great concert that should be a marathon of awesome music.  Not to mention seeing my sister and some close friends that live near D.C.

My day was not exactly as action-packed as everyone else’s.  Waking up at 4:30 with a familiar feeling in my head and stomach, I knew this would not be the beginning of the day I had expected.  Rather than attend the last day of the seminar and visit the National Museum of American History, I was stuck in the hotel room with a migraine. 

I was feeling better by mid-afternoon though, and was interested in hearing all that my roommate Katie had to say about today’s events.  After seeing a couple of her pictures and reading the others’ blogs, I think the American History Museum would definitely be worth a visit during my free time this weekend.

On a different note, my sister Shannon will be arriving tomorrow with a group from her school, Homer Jr. High, to spend some time in D.C. and see the inauguration.  It will be fun to share some of the unique experiences Washington has to offer with her.

Today, while off to a relatively slow start, was a definite success.  Our first speaker this morning was Ross Baker, a Political Science professor at Rutgers.  While very knowledgeable, his discussion was somewhat dry and his answers to questions were a little lengthier than they had to be.  Following baker was Dr. Genovese, who covered many topics and finally deviated from the overdone theme of media coverage and the Obama campaign.  His discussion mainly focused on Congress, but included many aspects of it.  Everything from earmarks to Congress’s relationship to the current and past presidents was  covered.  He even brought up how Obama’s short career in the Senate may have actually helped him, because critics had less decisions to question him on.  He also made an interesting comparison between Bush (43) and Lincoln, saying that they both overstepped they’re Constitutional powers in the same way, but Lincoln submitted his actions for Congress to review and approve of at a later time, whereas Bush claimed his actions were ‘non-reviewable’.

Next, we heard from the Ambassador of Pakistan, who had many insightful comments on a wide range of issues.  Not only did he demonstrate his knowledge and experience, he did so with a candor that made himself approachable and made it easy for students to ask questions.  He even made his presentation and answers humorous (going so far as to reference an advertisement for condoms).  Even with ‘difficult’ or controversial questions he was very diplomatic without coming off as trying to be too politically correct.  The presentation was very balanced and engageing, and all this leads me to believe he has been our best speaker yet.  I would certainly like to hear him lecture on other topics, or go into more depth on those which were touched on today; such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and how Pakistan and the United States handle their relationship, among others.

Finally, Steve Bell gave a quick and rather light presentation on the media coverage and bias shown during the presidential campaign (again).  But this lecture came complete with soundbites and video clips, and was decidedly more comedic than at other times.  The most outstanding part would have to be the huge contrast between the “interviews” of Mccain and Obama on the talk show “The View”.  Looking at the two clips right after one another made the disparity between how the two were treated quite comical, if you find humor in that sort of thing.  And no well-rounded discussion of media coverage of the campaign can leave out Sarah Palin and Tina Fey, which we concluded our morning seminar with today. 

Today’s site visit was quick and to the point, and consisted a guided tour of the Capitol (the Capitol building, to be more specific).  It was like going through airport security-literally-to get into the building, but the police officer guarding the entrance was very pleasant to talk to while we waited to get out of the freezing cold weather to have our bags scanned and go through the metal detector.  It really was a beautiful sight inside, which was not all that surprising considering how impressive it is from without.  However I’m afraid all the pictures I took of the statues and paintings and architecture do not do the building justice.  It really must be seen in person, and is certainly worth seeing again. 

This evening we had the added pleasure of attending a performance by Mark Russel, the musical political satirist.  He was a wonderful performer and put on a  great show.  It was great to share a few laughs with the large group of people we are continuing to spend time with and getting to know through the Washington Center.  I would see Mark Russel perform again without a doubt.  Informed, educated humor.  Awesome

Today left yesterday’s frustration and disappointment far behind, with one exception.  During the second taping of the Washington Journal the guest was Dana Perino, the press secretary for the Bush administration.  The show went fairly well, but as another student mentioned, none of the callers seemed to have a good question today, but instead praised the Bush administration endlessly without asking anything.  That would have been perfectly acceptable if it were not for the fact that there were no callers whatsoever to represent the ‘other side’.  It made the show seem unbalanced.  However this pales in comparison to my biggest qualm with today; when a student asked Perino’s thoughts on the belief that the Bush administration repeatedly used words such as ‘threat’ and ‘terror’ to scare the American public right after 9/11 , Perino succeeded in insulting what seemed like the entire audience.  She implied that we did not remember what it was like after the terrorist attacks. 

I remember exactly where I was when I first heard of the attacks, and how I went home that day and watched the news coverage for days with my family.  I know I was deeply affected by the events of that day, and I have yet to meet someone of my generation who does not feel the same way.  Perino’s comment seemed not only uninformed but also defensive in such a way that she seemed to want to simply put the girl down.  The result was having nearly the entire audience nearly boo her on live television out of shock and probable outrage.

The day got progressively better however, as we next heard from Ted Koppel.  He was very informative and had some insightful comments.  He was very gracious in answering questions thoroughly.  It was certainly and honour to have such a distinguished guest speak to our group.  He seemed genuinely pleased to do it, which means a lot and went a long way in making his presentation even easier to think about and take to heart.  Next we heard from Pulitzer Prize winner Clarence Page, who talked about things ranging from changing race relations to the Obama transition to Chicago politics.  His presentation was extremely entertaining as well as informative, which is a great strategy.  His anecdote about the long transition from being called ‘colored’ to ‘a person of color’ was an innovative way to express the changing relationship and role minorities have in our country.  It was refreshing to hear a presentation which did not have a strong focus on the media or national politics.  I have held a certain inexplicable fascination for Chicago for quite some time, and so the discussion about that city’s political quirks was particularly interesting for me.

By far the highlight of the day (and so far the trip) was meeting with the Algerian ambassador Abdallah Baali at the Algerian Embassy.  We all sat at a conference table and enjoyed an atmosphere that was both formal and relaxed.  there seemed to be a mutual interest in both parties, and Ambassador Baali encouraged our questions from the very beginning.  I learned a lot about the role an ambassador plays, as well as the balancing act Algeria must play as an Arab and African nation and as an ally to the United States in the war on terror.  I must admit I knew very little about Algeria itself, not to mention its relationship with the United States, but I think that just means I learned even more.  This was certainly a wonderful experience and I am very grateful to have had the opportunity.  Ambassador Baali was very approachable, something which was almost surprising, as I was not only excited but also a bit nervous to talk with him.  I would say our meeting with him on its own made this the most enjoyable and informative day so far.  It makes me look forward to tomorrow even more, when we will be hearing from the Ambassador of Pakistan and visiting the Capitol.

Today was certainly interesting, which is a mamby-pamby way for me to say it was the worst so far.  However, if this is the worst day of the entire program I would consider it an huge success.  Also, not all parts were negative.

C-SPAN kicked off our morning session with their taping of the Washington Journal from the auditorium.  We were included in the program as their studio audience, and were able to both answer and ask questions.  The program includes taking questions from callers, though it seemed not all of the callers actually had thought out questions.  Some were simply long winded and a bit unorganized, while at least one was borderline offensive.  (She expressed her utter surprise in seeing a black man elected president before a woman, and also voiced her belief that all the wars in the world could be ended if we had a woman president, all while claiming “not to be a major feminist or anything”).  The students did a pretty good job of asking decent questions, and answered a few themselves both individually and as a whole group.  On the other hand, some students were clearly using their phones to text while the program was being filmed (something brought to my attention after talking to someone who saw it on TV).  This was blatantly disrespectful.  However, between the lively and informed host and guests and the interesting callers, the program was pretty entertaining and even funny, depending on your sense of humor.  It all depends on what you choose to take from the experience; even if others didn’t appreciate the unique opportunity presented, I enjoyed it.

C-SPAN then shot another show, Q&A, featuring a couple who aided with the Obama campaign in Iowa.  This show ran a bit smoother, and I was really interested in hearing the stories of how they first became involved in politics and how they later came to play roles in the campaign.  Though hesitant or unable to answer all questions (some were a little sensitive) the guests at least made an effort to give some kind of answer for all questions.  Some of the students further surprised me by actually settling in for a nap, which prompted my fellow Bonnies to joke about “accidentally” stubbing their foot on the back of ones seat to jar him awake (…I’ll confess, it was only half-joking).  But other than that I’d say the questions even improved.  The host of Q&A, the founder and CEO of C-SPAN himself, asked individual students direct questions, which I think further engaged the group, because I know at least I was thinking about how I would answer those questions myself.

Our daily site visit took us to the headquarters of the New Democratic Network.  Listening to the president and founder, Simon Rosenburg, I quickly got the impression that this was an ultra-liberal lobbyist group, though I believe at one point he described himself as “center-left”.  I would have asked what scale he was using to determine this, but I think that would have been about as rude as his near-constant watch checking.  He clearly wanted to make sure we knew he had better things to do, all while regurgitating information which has been around since Obama’s election.  The only unique thing about his speech about how Obama campaigned well and that the political climate is changing was how he described Republicans as “not racist, but taking advantage of racial inequalities”.  It was quite disappointing, especially when it is clear that party politics should be put aside in order to overcome the huge obstacles our country is facing right now.

After a short break at a nearby cafe where our little group of Bona students reflected on the day thus far, we made our way to the Chamber of commerce to hear Bob Scheiffer speak.  He was certainly the light at the end of the tunnel, and gave an engaging and thoughtful speech, as well as answered questions with a positive and informative way.  I can certainly see why he is so respected in his field and by the people.  Unfortunately, he was not shown all the respect he deserved by some of the other students, once again, and had to ask them personally to quite down in the back of the room not once but twice.  I really enjoyed his talk, and I felt bad that others did not have the decency to pay attention to this very famous and accomplished gentleman, let alone settle down enough so those who wanted to hear could.

So, today had its ups and downs.  I enjoyed most of the presentations and am looking forward to another very full day tomorrow.  Hopefully the second round with C-SPAN goes better.  I also hope that the speakers are too focused on those students who are utilizing and appreciating the program to notice those who aren’t.  It gets a little frustrating being embarrassed on behalf of people who don’t know well enough to be embarrassed for themselves.

Today went quite smoothly, even with the added chaos of morning rush hour.  During our morning seminar we listened to three very different sets of speakers after opening comments by Michael Genovese.  The opening comments were very insightful and interesting, and dealt with all the issues that face Obama as he takes up the presidency.  I think the following quotation sums up Dr. Genovese’s short speech nicely: “How do you clean the Aegean Stables left behind by the Bush administration?”  It was also interesting to hear him bring up FDR and relate his presidency to today when I had been thinking of that just yesterday.

Special Agent O’Connor was especially interesting.  He seemed very down to earth, even while describing how he had traveled literally all over the world when assigned to the Clintons.  The main focus of the speech was how the Secret Service prepares for an event such as a presidential inauguration and also the role of the service in the bigger picture.  I was surprised at how closely many different agencies work together for this event and that the Secret service does not take over all or most of the aspects of it because they want to control security.  Because he is part of the Secret Service, we can’t talk about all that was said, but it was certainly one of the highlights of the trip thus far.

Unfortunately, Marc Pachter was another story.  His lecture dealt with presidential portraits through history, and consisted of an almost all-inclusive play by play of each other the 43 presidents so far.  While it was informative in an anecdotal sort of way, the message of the lecture could have been delivered in much less time.  Presidents are depicted in different ways depending on who is commissioning or painting the portrait because they would like to present the president in a certain light. 

The presentation of Cal Thomas and Bob Beckel was certainly a breath of fresh air on a couple of levels.  Cal and Bob are on near-opposite ends of the political spectrum, yet are able to and enjoy talking through issues and discover common ground regarding those issues.  This can potentially lead to solutions to problems that liberals and conservatives can both be relatively satisfied with, which is something the government needs to look into more given the trying times our country is going through.

Finally, our site visit today consited of going to the NORML headquarters, which of course stands for the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.  In other words, the lobby group which wishes to decriminalize and eventually legalize the responsible use of marijuana by adults.  They make some very interesting and logical arguments, including the viable medicinal uses of the drug and the commercial uses of the non-psychoactive hemp plant.  Not only that, the prison and judiciary system–and therefore the taxpayers–are burdened by the massive amounts of people who are arrested and sent to jail for possession alone.  Needless to say, it was a very interesting meeting.  One can only wonder what kind of conversations tomorrow will bring that can top that.

After a fairly straightforward check-in day yesterday, we were off to a running start on the first official day of program activities here in Washington D.C.  It all started with an early morning alarm which led to the beginning of a busy and informative day.  The Washington Center orientation began around 8:30 and lead right into our first day of lectures, which, despite being four straight hours, were quite interesting.  The other main event of the day was a tour of the many monuments of our nation’s capitol. 

To be honest, I wasn’t quite sure exact;y what the main topics would be for this program other than the inauguration, but I now know that we will be focusing not just on the transition made necessary by the inauguration of a president radically different from the previous one, but also how the campaigns which were run last year shaped and were shaped by the media.  Among the main speakers were Steve Bell of Ball State University and who is serving as our Faculty Adviser, Dana Bash, Senior Congressional Correspondent for CNN and chief correspondent for CNN following John McCain on the campaign trail, and Michael Genovese of Loyola Marymount University who is our Scholar in Residence.

It is quickly becoming cliche to say that the inauguration of Barrack Obama is a historical event, but I was particularly struck with how it fits into and reflects our country’s history.  Walking through the Franklin Roosevelt Monument today, I was amazed at how relevant the quotations carved into its stone were to the new presidency and to the current state of our nation:

“We must scrupulously guard the civil rights and civil liberties of all citizens, whatever their background. We must remember than any oppression, any injustice, and hatred, is a wedge designed to attack our civilization” -FDR

“No country, however rich, can afford the waste of its human resources.  Demorilization caused by vast unemployment is our greatest extravagance.  Morally, it is the greatest menace to our social order” -FDR