Inauguration Day

I previously didn't release that I received a ticket to the inauguration, because I wanted to surprise everyone. There were some extra tickets from the great state of Montana so one of the other interns brought a few for those who were interested.

Official Invitation

Because of the large number of people traveling to the Inauguration and because of the large lines for security we left home a little after five o'clock. We traveled on the Metro much faster than we thought that we would and so we waited until seven o'clock for the security gates to open. In order to avoid the cold I used two layers of thermals, wool socks and various gloves, beanies and scarves. I was ultimately successful in this venture.

Capital Building at six o'clock in the morning while waiting in the security line

I was in the Green-West Sector and I was fairly close to the stand. It was amazing to see hundreds of thousands of people lining up behind us. We had a lot of time to stand and stand...did I mention standing? My knees were aching by the end of the day, but it was worth it.

While I agreed with some of the speeches and disagreed with others, I enjoyed the opening remarks of Senator Charles E. Schumer. He talked about the miracle of the transition of power from president to president without coup, military action and large scale revolts. For all of our disagreements, both real and imagined, the American experiment continues. And I was glad to be able to watch and be a part of it.