D.C -Part 2!

Here I sit down in the lounge area of the hotel. This is our last night here in Lexington. Needless to say that does not mean that we'll be going back to the house. Still no power there. However, we're actually going back to Richmond to a hotel there. Frankly I'm in two minds about that. The last hotel we were in there, the power went out. I'm just concerned it will again because the lines are still so iffy and now there is talk that the water might not be fit to drink unless you boil it. I'm of the opinion that if it ain't broken, leave it. In other words, I'd stay where we are because it's working. But its not my choice to make, so I won't. It won't be terrible I am sure. I dunno, maybe I'm just full of doom right now.

But back to D.C, the point of posting this.

Monday in Washing was a very different experience than Sunday. The biggest difference was that it suddenly felt like the population had tripled over night. Which I am sure it did, there were a lot of people heading into town. Knowing how cold it was and how much trouble I was all ready having with my knees and knowing that Tuesday was going to be taxing on both accounts, I opted to stay back in the hotel room and leave around lunchtime to head into D.C. We were staying out in Baltimore, if that helps any.

So I rested up, and braved to cold to see what was going on in the city. I got off the metro at Eastern Markets which was a lovely area of little market stalls and quaint little shops. One was a haven of Children's toys and books. While I was looking through a box of artwork (I actually purchased something) I ran across the others who had picked up the tickets for the ceremony and had started to walk out of town.

We parted again and I found some squirrels in a park to make friends with over morning tea. I didn't stay long because staying still was mighty cold. I walked through Capitol Hill admiring all the cool apartments and listening to some drunk guy bitch about the directions someone had given him. I had to admit I laughed at him. The area around the Capitol Building was swarming with people, the biggest collection of Shakespeare work was closed and I was at a loss. I decided to walk up to Union Station and catch the metro out to Chinatown to have some lunch and spend some time sitting and being warm and resting up. Well, the walk to Union Station exposed me to more people that I've ever seen at the MCG. People in line for tickets. The roads around Union Station were blocked off and crammed with people. I also found another squirrel who was mighty friendly, some bastard kid chased it away. I figured it wasn't a good idea to give him a piece of my mind.

It took some time to get through the crowds and down onto the metro platform. My hopes were that there would be less people out at Chinatown because everyone was further downtown. I was pretty wrong. However, I was hoping for good food and I found some at a place called Wok N Roll which I'd recommend and it was a pretty good price too. So I killed some time in there before walking back downtown after getting somewhat lost and turned around because the metro station I wanted was closed off, and then there were streets closed off and I got yelled at by a police woman because in the process of looking at my map, I stepped off the gutter and onto a road that was blocked off and she got all mad at me!

Walking a little further found me in a novelty Obama shop with all sorts of hats and caps and posters and cartoons and bookmarks. My overprices purchase was a little tin of mints called 'Mints for Obama -Mint you can Believe In' which was perfect in its crazy way. A little on from there I came to the International Spy Museum, but it was an hour and a half wait to go in, so instead I wandered around the gift store and gawked at all the very cool items I wanted to buy but didn't have the money for.

Not long after that the crowds were starting to get to me and it was very hard to find somewhere that didn't have people in it. Despite the small size of London and the crowds it could pull for Live 8 and the World Cup, there were always little holes in the wall to vanish into a find a quiet corner. That was not at all possible in D.C, not that I could find! I went to the Barnes and Nobles I'd gone to the day before in the hope the little Starbucks area would be quiet again. I was wrong. There were even people sitting in book isles and along walls just to be sitting! So that's exactly what I did, found a gap along the wall, and sat with my coffee, cookie and my book just to try and chill before facing the crowds on the Metro. Two days around lots of people was starting to take its toll and I knew the Tuesday would be worse.

Recharged, I decided it was getting dark and I didn't feel up to meeting the others and other people for dinner, so I went back out to the hotel, stopping for dinner on the way home. Kalan and Megan came home without Calvin some time later. He then came home close to midnight. He should have just stayed awake as far as I was concerned.

Picture this. Tuesday, January 20th 2009, Inauguration Day. Its cold, dark and 4am. Yep, we were up, dressed and heading out to the metro station for an event that was due to start after 11am. They were saying be there by 9am the latest. As terrible as the hour was and as cold as the temperature was, I'm glad we left when we did! As we were out towards the end of the Metro line, the station wasn't as packed as it could have been. But as we got closer in, people started to pile on. I think we got off the Metro at like 4:45am and hit gridlock at the bottom of the escalators. And on the street. And on the curb. That lovely curb which we stood on in the darkness for about two hours. At one point I lost my hat, I think it was when I was calling people. Thankfully because of the crowd, we'd moved maybe three centimetres in the whole time. At least it was a good way to get warm. And laugh, which happened every time the yelling guy opened his mouth and well, yelled.

Just after 7am we were herded into a second cattle yard, walking under a silver gate waving tickets in the air. Once more we stood for some time, maybe an hour or two, like sardines in a tin. You can only go so long without getting cold and bored and sore from standing. I know I shouldn't complain, and really I am not because it was awesome to be there in the pre-dawn darkness with all those people, but oh my god the standing for so long killed me!

Just before 8:30 we were shipped through into phase two and washed along with the crowd to the security gates. You had to unzip the outer layer of clothes, be pat down and had your bag (if you had one) looked through. Then the run was on. People were rushing to get the best possible vantage point they could. Frankly as long as you could see a screen, you'd be seeing more than you would just looking at the Capitol! We had a good spot though, right along the edge of the reflecting pond in front of the Capitol Building, thus at least 80% of The Mall was behind us. Brilliant spots actually. And again we were crammed in like sardines for at least another two hours. Or that was the plan. It was pretty incredible really, people were climbing trees to see better. Cramming as far forward as they could. Pushing and shoving . . .

I broke away from the back to walk to the back of the section we were in which was still kind of open. My knees were really aching and I need to walk a bit to get the blood flowing around my body. Here was my first mistake. By moving away from the mass, I allowed the wind to get to me and I just started to get colder and colder. I am SO glad I found my hat because I dread to think about how I'd be feeling without it. Walking around there were people with blankets and cool shirts and dancing, lots of dancing. One group was even singing. There were a few trees dotted around and people were leaning up against them. I figured it would be a good idea to get off my feet and huddle close into myself to get warm. In fact, this was probably mistake number two.

The sun had started to come up by the time we were let into our section, we were totally preying it would warm things up. As I sat down against the tree, the morning sun felt kind of nice on my face. I snuggled into myself and was watching people walk by and talk and laugh and complain about the cold and talk about how long they had been standing there. Next thing I know, someone was poking me and I opened my eyes to more daylight and a woman telling me my lips had gone purple. I don't know a lot about cold climates and how the body copes, but I knew purple lips were not a good sign.

From then on things were down hill. I just could not get warm. I'd watched earlier as the crowds has pushed down one of the barriers and surged forwards. I knew trying to find the others was going to be a tough thing to do. So I walked to keep warm, determined to see Obama up on the screen and I did. I stayed just long enough to see the important part and then I ran. I had to get warm because I did not feel great and was now shivering more than I should have. Trying to get out of the Mall area was a huge feat. There were literally thousands of people around, still trying to get in. I've never seen so many people in my life. It was quite claustrophobic to be honest.

It took lots of walking and three Metro Stations to find one that was taking outgoing passengers. Everyone wanted out and up, not down and away! People. Everywhere. One security guy yelled at a woman for walking on a flowerbed that had clearly been trampled on by a hundred people before her. Children cried. Adults laughed. People pushed and cursed and cheered.

By the time I got out to the hotel, everything was cold and numb and sore. I walked like a cowboy, just a lot slower. When I got to the room (heater blasting away) I thought a hot shower would get me warm. However, room service had come and taken the towels and I guess took a break for the ceremony and not come back! Changing into warm clothes (those not out in the air) I huddled down in a bed to get warm. My guess is that I fell asleep again and when I woke some two hours later, there were towels sitting on the other bed. Room Service had been and gone and you know how loudly some of them knock!! I was still a little chill and on closer examination of my arms and legs, redder than I probably should have been. And dry skin to the max!!

But, I survived and witnessed a huge day in history. Which I am very grateful for. It was incredible to see it all, the ceremony, the crowds the city, the nation. It was amazing.

The trip out of D.C was pretty uneventful. Not as much traffic as I expected. Maryland and West Virginia were blanketed in snow. A very cool thing was on the way there we crossed a lake with flowing water. On the way home, it was frozen over! The biggest event was getting a flat tyre half way across West Virginia and then finding a one horse town with a garage to get a tyre. All a part of the experience really. I got to play in the snow too because in all honesty, having too many people trying to change a tyre is more trouble than it should be. I was happy to play in the snow.

Now we sit and wait and see what happens. I think America is in for a period of great change. We're yet to see if it'll be good or bad, but change is definitely coming and I think it's needed.