I feel it in the air that summer's out of reach....
I couldn't go back to SPC without blogging about all of the exciting things I did this summer!
Today was my last day of my internship at the National Library of Medicine. It's been such a great experience. I've been able to learn public speaking skills in giving tours of our exhibition as well as gain important research skills in creating a future traveling exhibition. I've had a lot of fun doing it as well. My internship in Washington, D.C. has been a great balance between research as well as interaction with people from around the country, even around the world.
The Washington Center itself took a great deal of work. We had to write reflections on the presidential speakers we listened to and when we performed service in the D.C. area. At the end of the whole program, we turned in a compilation of all of the papers we had to write throughout the summer. My portfolio ended up being about eighty pages and I'm really proud of myself. Hopefully my professors will be able to give me a reasonable grade once they see all of the work I have done.
Not only have I been able to work in Washington, D.C. in the field of my major (history) but I have also been able to go experience the city itself! I have visited almost all of the Smithsonian museums in the area. The best thing about Washington, D.C. are all of the free things to do every weekend. My roommates and I have been able to see outdoor movie events in Crystal City, VA and on the Mall in front of Capitol Hill on Monday nights. Hundreds of people go to Screen on the Green and watch a free outdoor movie on a cool summer night.
I'm glad to be going home for a while, but then after a few days it's back to SPC! Classes will be starting on August 26th and I'm helping the freshman move in two days before. So hopefully I get the chance to meet some freshman! I'm excited for junior year but I wish I had a real break before starting classes. I plan on relaxing a lot once I go home.
Here are a few pictures from my exciting summer:
Some of my TWC friends and I at a Washington Nationals Game-they lost unfortunately....
After the Fourth of July weekend, my roommate and friend Veronica Graveline, another junior at SPC, visited me! I was so excited since she had never been to Washington, D.C. before because she never had a chance to when she lived in California. I'm glad I got to show her around our nation's capital and show her all of the amazing monuments and museums to see!
I would recommend anyone who visits Washington, D.C. to see all of the monuments at night, especially during the summer, when the monuments are lit and the sun isn't out. They are absolutely beautiful at night! Veronica and I are standing in front of the Lincoln Memorial. It is a very famous monument and it is awe-inspiring to see the statue up close.
Veronica and I infront of the National Native American Museum-they have a great cafeteria there where we ate lunch and had authentic Native American food
Veronica and I walking around Capitol Hill-we found this fountain near there
Some TWC Scholarship Recipients with me. One of the things that made this summer possible was receiving the Diversity Leadership Scholars award which paid for my summer housing
Looks official, doesn't it?
The Exhibition Program and me during our visit to the Newseum. The Newseum is one of my favorite museums there and I talked about it in my previous blog. This time during the visit I had the chance to speak to the directors and the curators of the exhibition and learned about how the entire museum was made. It was great learning about the Newseum from behind-the-scenes.
I got to see the studio where they broadcast news every morning in HD!
My other friend from Jersey City-Annerei and and I at the Air & Space Museum-the most visited museum in the world!
My roommate Ashley and my good friend Jacob from SPC (also a junior this fall) at Crystal City, VA where we watched the James Bond outdoor movie held every Monday
My roommates and I eating Ethiopian food at a renowned restaurant called Dukem on U Street in Washington, D.C.Ethiopian food is a must when visiting D.C. because it's authentic and the best ethnic food to be had in the area.
One of the best experiences I had this summer was traveling to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania with my TWC class. Our final was not a written final, instead we had to give a presentation in front of our class on the Battlefield about our assigned general. Our class, Effective Leadership: Lessons from the Battlefield, is about learning leadership skills from the Battle of Gettysburg which occurred July 1-3, 1863 and applying it to leadership today. The class was a great deal of fun and I loved learning about the Civil War. It was the most educaitonal field trip I had ever been to. I spoke about General George Meade, Commander of the Army of the Potomac and his leadership skills. I feel that I can even give a tour of Gettysburg because I know so much about it now!
My roommate, Sarah and me, had the same class. We were assigned opposite generals-I was General Meade from the Union and she was General Lee from the Confederate side. This picture was taken atop the Castle on Little Round Top-one of my favorite places on the Battlefield
My friend Elise and I having fun at the gift shop
My roommate, Sarah and I, watching Screen on the Green on the Mall in front of Capitol Hill. The movie we wathced that night was The Apartment, a really interesting movie made in 1960 and won five Academy Awards. I definitely recommend it, especially when it's outdoors! There were so many people who came. I saved our spot at 5 PM and the movie started around 8:45 at night, but it was worth it! We were so close to the screen.
My best friend from high school, Gail, and I at Chinatown in Washington, D.C. We ate at this awesome restaurant called Matchbox famous for its gourmet pizzas.
Graduation time! A roommate picture after our Commencement Ceremony at TWC. I'm so proud of all of the work we put in this summer for this program.
Another cute roommate picture
TWC!
My roommate and I walking around Old City, VA during our last week in Washington, D.C. We walked around the beautiful area and found a tasty sushi restaurant! Old City is accessible by the Metro-right outside the Kings Street stop and there's a free trolley that takes people down to the waterfront of the Potomac.
Right now I'm watching the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, China. As much as I have traveled around the world and lived in very diverse cities and areas on the Northeast Coast, I still feel that I am not cultured enough. I would love to travel in the future even more and experience the culture of different countries.
Other than that, go Team USA! I will have no life until the Olympics are over....