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Presidents Day at Mount Vernon

Today I was able to spend President's Day at Mount Vernon. Mount Vernon was George Washington's home for much of his life and it now focuses on his accomplishments and legacy. It was also free today, which made it even more enjoyable. The mansion and houses were a lot of fun to see, but they also have a museum that had a lot of artifacts from George and Martha Washington's life. It's easy to see why the Washington's loved Mount Vernon; the view of the Potomac is amazing.

Members of the United States Army 3rd Infantry Regiment (the same group that guards the Tomb of the Unknowns) made up the Fife and Drum Corps that showed a demonstration in both combat and music of the 18th century. It also inspired me to buy a fife in the gift shop to try and achieve my goal of being able to join a Civil War/Revolutionary War reenacting group someday.

It was a fantastic way to enjoy President's Day, learning more and enjoying the legacy of General Washington.

The White House, Afghan Orchestras and Napoleon

The past two weeks have been a huge whirlwind of adventures.
I guess I never mentioned why I am here in Washington. I am an intern at the Library of Congress. I am working in a division that helps with the care of the books and I'm also working with some Portuguese materials which is exciting. I am enjoying the atmosphere and everyone I have met has been very helpful and friendly. Working in such a historic building with books and items that are living history makes every day exciting and very rewarding.

Last weekend I went on a tour of the White House. It was an amazing tour and to be able to see priceless works of art like the picture of George Washington that Dolly Madison saved during the British invasion of Washington in 1814 was wonderful. We also entered the room where Abraham Lincoln and John F. Kennedy were laid in state after their assassinations. During the tour you can only see the East Wing and the two floors of the main house, but it was still so amazing to see what we could.

This past week I was able to go to one of the most sought after events in DC. A group from Afghanistan called the 'Afghan Youth Orchestra' is visiting the United States. They are all from the ages of 12-20 and many of them are orphans. They study at the Afghan National Music Institute where they also receive the equivalent of a high school education. The school has both boys and girls which was exciting to see them both perform. The school was opened in 2001, shortly after the US coalition drove the Taliban from Kabul. The music was absolutely amazing and beautiful. They played a combination of traditional Western instruments (violin, piano, clarinet) but also combined it with traditional Afghan instruments like the rubab, sitar sarod. The two combined was one of the best musical experiences I have ever heard. They ended with a version of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" that combined the music with the Afghan instruments. There were a lot of Afghan Americans who were there and they would wave Afghan flags during the applause after each number. 

Here is a video that has them performing

http://www.aljazeera.com/news/americas/2013/02/20132913315944254.html

Yesterday I went to the National Gallery of Art. It was very nice, but best of all I was able to see a painting by my favorite painter: Jacques-Louis David. He is a French Neo-classical artist who is most famous for his painting "Oath of the Horatii" and his paintings of Napoleon. I saw this painting 

Napoleon in his study

This DC experience has been this constant feeling of seeing things that I have heard and learned so much about, but to see them in person really drives home the importance of art, history, music and our shared culture as children of God.

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. 

Inauguration Weekend

This weekend has been very eventful with thousands of people already streaming into Washington D.C. for tomorrow's festivities. Both the Metro and all the museums were very crowded and they are estimating over a million people on the National Mall tomorrow for the inauguration. Yesterday I went to the National History Museum for some musical presentations. "President Lincoln's Own" is a reenactment group that dresses and plays music that the Marine Band would have played while President Lincoln was president. They played in the hall in front of the 'Star-Spangled Banner' and the music and costumes were fantastic. One of the best parts was when they played The Star-Spangled Banner within hearing distance of the flag that inspired the song.

Later that night a group of us went to the Kennedy Center to hear a quartet of a violinist, violist,cellist and a bassoonist. They play for the National Symphony and Orchestra and they were fantastic. 

   This morning a group of us decided to go to Arlington National Cemetery before church so we headed out and enjoyed a nice walk around the Lee House. We missed the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier because someone else decided to visit Arlington as well. President Obama was also in Arlington and we had to wait while the presidential motorcade passed by. 

When we got to church we were quite surprised to see Elder L. Tom Perry sitting on the stand. Apparently both he and President Uchtdorf are in town representing the Church at the inauguration. He gave a wonderful talk. He talked about the growth of the missionaries. He talked about the need of up to six of the Apostles to assign mission calls, rather than the usual two, on Fridays. He also talked about the large number of missionaries that will enter the mission field that may have to be trained by Elders and Sisters that have little time in their field themselves. To help them he counseled that all members study the first three lessons from Preach My Gospel to be able to help when the missionaries go out to teach.  

It was a great weekend. Tomorrow afternoon we are heading out to our Professor's house for a BBQ, so that will be a fun way to celebrate the inauguration. 

First Week and the International Museum

There aren't any pictures this week, because I've been in places where I can't take pictures. This was the first full week of my internship and it was quite the week. It was a lot of new information and there have been times when I've been completely confused, but it ended really well. I learned a lot and I was able to complete a major project before I take a four day weekend. The whole town is ablaze with the excitement of the inauguration on Monday. The whole capital is getting ready with hotels, food and souvenirs.
But it's been a good week. I've been able to see a lot and today we went to the International Spy Museum. It was fantastic! It combined a lot of great artifacts, interactive exhibits and movies. There were a lot of KGB and CIA artifacts and some great items from World War II. There was also a great temporary exhibit on James Bond villains that was full of props from the movies. Monday is Inauguration Day    

Ford's Theater and Lessons of the Week

This week was a great opportunity for me as I don't start my internship til Monday. I was able to visit many of the museums and monuments around Washington D.C. Friday was our first class and it was nice to be able to be back with many of the other students who I didn't see with the craziness of the first week. After class a few of us decided to visit Ford's Theater and the National Portrait Gallery.
   Visiting Ford's Theater doesn't just show you the theater, it also allows you to visit the Petersen House and Ford's Center for Education and Leadership. President Abraham Lincoln was shot in Ford's Theater on April 14, 1865 and was carried over to the Petersen House across the street where died the following morning on April 15. The museum in the basement of Ford's Theater had many amazing artifacts related to both Lincoln and John Wilkes Booth, his assassin. 
Here are some pictures.

Presidential Box where Lincoln attended several plays and where he was shot. The picture of George Washington is the original that was displayed the night that Lincoln was killed.

Bed in the Petersen House where Lincoln died.

Ford's Theater (from the Petersen House steps).

Petersen House

Afterwards we went tot the National Portrait Gallery where they had a great exhibit on the American Civil War. The majority of the paintings were done during the war. Winslow Homer had some amazing landscapes of everyday army life on both sides. I really enjoyed it because of the feeling that many of the painters had been able to portray the war through landscapes, rather than by showing the battle. Natural elements like dark clouds and lighting contrasted against mountains or sunrises gave the feeling of conflict. It was wonderful. 

I've been in D.C. a week now and I have a few things I've learned.

1. Always carry your water bottle so you don't have buy the $2.50 water bottles at the Smithsonian

2. Always check the signs before getting on the train. (Not my mistake, someone else's)

3. Better dress up if there is any chance you'll be out later, because it gets cold quickly

4. Find a pocket for your Metro pass to fit in, so you don't have to take it out every time you get on the   Metro
5. If you ever need directions, ask with an English accent, everyone will treat you nicely.