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January 20, 2009
 Crowds filled the entire Mall, with estimates of close to 2 million. We were about a mile from the actual proceedings. (Click photo for larger view - Jewel Samad-AFP/Getty Images) We left our hotel this frigid morning by the light of the crescent moon. 22 degrees at 5:02. Finally the Big Day had arrived and we were jazzed.
When we returned 14 hours later, the temperature had only warmed up to 25. (Just kidding, it actually peaked at 30 out there on the National Mall).
Those of you who watched the Inauguration on TV are probably wondering “What was it like to be there?” There’s a whole lot to tell about and I want to… I set up this whole blog project just so I could! But, honestly, it will probably take at least a day for me to begin formulating my thoughts, feelings, impressions, and questions. So the short answer to your question is “It was AWESOME!!!!”
Like one young man had written on the back of his T-shirt: “We’re freezin’ for a reason!”
He got that right! And I’ve gotta get some sleep. I promise tomorrow I’ll blog more about what happened. In the meantime, here are a few pix from this amazing day in American history:
 Crammed into the Metro with 2000 others. It took us about three hours to get to DC. Normally it takes about 1/2 an hour.
 Three Obamas walk to the National Mall.
 Lots of emotion the moment President Obama took the Oath of Office. Much more about the inauguration later. Suffice it to say that we are SO pleased, proud, relieved, inspired, delighted, and hope-filled because of our new President. The man is a once in a lifetime leader and America and the world needs him desperately.
January 17, 2009
 Popular photo spot in Union Station Washington DC’s Union Station is the main terminal for Amtrak trains and the Metro. Busy place any time of year. But just days before the Inauguration, it’s swarming with tourists. They’re obviously here to be part of this moment in history and I’m guessing that they want to take a piece of it home with them when it’s all over.
The face of Barack Obama is everywhere… and everyone selling seems to be doing major business. People were even lining up to have their picture taken next to a life-size cutout of the President-elect. For the moment, in this place, it seems Obama is way bigger than Elvis, Hannah Montana, and High School Musical combined.
And we’re caught up in it too. (No, I haven’t bought a t-shirt yet… I already did that several months ago.)
 Annie and David in front of Inauguration site, Capitol Building We had our picture taken in front of the West Side of the Capitol where the Official Swearing-In Ceremony and Inaugural Address will take place on Tuesday. We know that we’re not even going to be able to see the building from our place on the National Mall, so we figured we’d get a photo of it before the really big crowds arrived. And we weren’t the only ones delighted to be standing in front of that historic backdrop in 12 degree weather. A couple was getting married!
The another couple who appeared to be married for at least half a century, snapped our picture (after we snapped one of them) They had come from Tennessee. Smile!
 Capitol Building, preparations for the Inauguration. Notice the thousands of chairs in the foreground.
 U.S. Capitol Building The U.S. Capitol is one of the world’s most recognizable buildings. (That’s Capitol with an “o” not to be confused with “What’s the capital of ______?”) But what does it look like inside? Most people haven’t had a peek. Today we did.
Our tour guide Paul knows every cornice, balustrade, and column of the place. And even though other tour groups criss-crossed our path in the hallways and chambers (“It’s Inauguration Weekend. Only happens once every four years, you know!”) he remained calm, friendly and very funny. Way to go, Paul!
 Capitol Building tour guide, Paul Paul also knew lots of great stories… such as: On the underside the world-famous Capitol dome is an incredible painting of George Washington in heaven. Constantino Brumidi, a gifted Italian artist, painted it over a period of 11 months, lying on his back while being suspended 180 feet in the air! He then started painting a mural around the base of the dome. After finishing about one-third of it, he slipped and dangled by his fingertips for 15 minutes until his frantic shouts attracted attention. After he was brought down safely he quit. Two other artists completed the rest of the circular mural. (The second guy was fired for painting his self- portrait on the trunk of a tree. He “lost face” by getting fired, but his face is still up there in the mural.)
 Beneath the dome of the Capitol Building  A portion of the Capitol Building frieze -- can you find the artist's self-portrait in the tree? (click image for a larger version) At the end of the Capitol tour, I took away one big idea about America: Over the centuries, many have stood up in Congress and spoken up for people from every corner of every state in the Union. Today, our elected representatives still work together to find common ground. What they work to achieve daily in the Capitol is just like it says in Latin on the Great Seal of the United States… E pluribus unum: Out of many, one.
 Capitol Building's National Statuary Hall -- one of the Inaugural Balls will be held here on Tuesday, January 20th.  Dome of the Statuary Hall.  Entryway to the the chambers of the Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi.
January 6, 2009
 President-elect Barack Obama For the rest of January, I’ll be writing a special Inauguration blog for middle and high school students. This is the first entry.
On Thursday January 15th I’m heading to Washington, D.C. for the Inauguration of Barack Obama as the 44th President of the United States of America. I know DC is way chillier than what I’m used to, but I’m too excited to worry about cold hands and feet. This will be an amazing adventure that will take me back into America’s historic past and forward into our nation’s future.
Want to come along? No, I don’t have an extra plane ticket (sorry about that) but I do have a virtual seat for you in the front row. Through this blog you can be right beside me from the moment I arrive at Baltimore-Washington International Airport on Jan. 15th until my return to the San Francisco Bay Area. I’ll only be gone for 7 days, but I’ve got tons of stuff planned for my time in Washington. Come along and be part of the experience at:
- The Library of Congress the largest library in the world with over 20 million books. And that’s not counting all the discs, tapes, movies, maps, photographs, posters and drawings! Teachers: check this out.
And that’s just a fraction of what I’ll be blogging about through text, video clips, as well as audio and pix.
Want to be a part of America’s history and our next chapter? You can start right now by thinking about these questions…
- Why should you or any middle school student care about what happens in Washington?
- What does the election of the first African-American president say about us, as Americans?
- If you were going to be inaugurated President of the United States on January 20th, what would be the first thing you’d do to make our country better?
- What could you do to make your school a better place?
What do you think… about any of it? Got something else you want to say about President-elect Obama, the election, the Inauguration, America, democracy, freedom, etc.? Post your comments here. Got a whole lot to say? Be a guest blogger! I’ll publish a few of the best student blogs I receive. Just . Your ideas and opinions matter! Go ahead. Feel free.
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