Tomorrow

I only have a few days left in DC. After turning in my portfolio, I am making my last moves in this city. There are a few things I would like to check out in the next few days. I am going to the Air and Space Museum located in Dulles. That’s the one that has the “Blackbird” from the transformers movie as well as one of the space shuttles.

I will probably be going to the Kennedy Center for one last free show. A walk through the National Mall is a must to say goodbye to the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument. And finally a last walk through the Mt. Vernon trail, right in the edge of the Potomac on a sunny day will remind me of the beautiful sight.

I have kept the contact information of many of the other TWC interns. Like me, they cannot believe how fast the time has gone. But also like me they understand how rich this experience has been and that, like everything in life, it is coming to an end.

I will miss the everyday walks to the office. I have done some of the most exciting work of my life here. A lot of pressure, a lot of deadlines and projects, but the work was great. I am very proud of what we accomplished here every day at the office, as well as the personal and professional relationships we started and I am sure will continue to foster throughout the years.

And as a blogger, I am really excited about having written for some of the students interested in the program. My friends both from school and in Washington told me how much they liked my posts.

I will be writing one last post before I leave Washington. In the meantime, for those who are coming in the spring, get ready because a big year is coming up and this city will need its interns one more time.

Time to say goodbye at the office.

In the next week, TWC students will be saying goodbye to their respective offices. At Chwat & Co., we have a tradition of writing a memo to the next interns about our experiences as well as what we should expect from the city, the Political Leadership Program and our work in the office.

I remember the first week when we had to read the memos written by former interns. Some of them were very detailed, some of them not. But what all of them had in common was that they told us how the type of experience we would have in Washington, D.C. would depend on where each of us wanted to take this internship. If you want to be just a tourist, that would be ok, but I would recommend you go beyond that.

Beyond the museums and monuments, this is city that is as diverse as America itself. From Adams Morgan to Georgetown, Old Town Alexandria to Columbia Heights; each part of the city and its surrounding area has its own character. For example, my experience of Washington’s music, cuisine, arts and entertainment has showed me a microcosm of America and of the world. And in a city where some of the most powerful people in government and business reside, you will find people who work on issues that are big and small. So for those who will come after me, enjoy it.

Portfolio ready

Here is a picture of the cover from my portfolio!

Working on the portfolio

The Washington Center requires students to assemble a portfolio that shows the work they have accomplished during their time in Washington, DC. The portfolio is a combination of the programming assignments, your own assessments about the internship and the classes you took, as well as the civic engagement activities you participated in throughout the past months.

Two portfolios will be turned in to The Washington Center; they both have to be spiral bound copies. One will be sent to your school and the other will remain in The Washington Center’s archives. If you like, you can make a copy for your personal use.

During the semester, I saved all my documents. In the past week, I have been working on my portfolio. Looking over it gives me an interesting perspective on the different personal, professional academic and civic engagement goals I set out to achieve at the beginning of the semester.

I found it important to review all the goals I had set out to do, whether they were accomplished or not, because this has been an opportunity to learn not only from what you have done right but also from some of your mistakes. I’ll keep you posted on my portfolio and take a few pictures for you guys to get an idea of how it would look like.

Oh, the weather outside is frightful...

...but we still went out and enjoyed that day--the day when it finally snowed in DC. As someone who lives in Florida I only get to see snow…cones. I was not the only one, some of the students from the Mexican and Puerto Rican internship programs were also for the first time experiencing it.

And after talking with my friend Joel from PR during the week about the possibility of seeing some snow on the first Saturday of December, we both knew (although we never actually agreed) that the first one to see snow on that morning was going to call the other one. I woke up around 10ish and while it was cold and a little rainy it was not snowing, went back to my bed when…I got his called to go upstairs and experience the light snow that it had just started.

Needless to say, we enjoyed our first day of snow, took pictures and even threw snow balls at each other. They hurt! And of course we had to go to the National Mall for more snow and pictures, right guys!?!  

And while the snow was not so strong any more I had a chance to explore the National Air and Space Museum. I was awed by the number of space artifacts they have stored there. From the module that brought the Apollo 11 astronauts back home from the moon to Spaceship One. I had the theme music of the TV show “Enterprise” playing in my head the whole time….yep big Star Trek fan here.

The museum also included a large number of artifacts from WWI and WWII, both from the Pacific and European theaters. It was the section on the Japanese attack to Pearl Harbor which interested the most to a lot of us, especially since the anniversary of the attack was the next week.

The end of our adventures is near but it was good to begin the ending of this semester on that note!

Let the Christmas holiday season begin!!!

On Thanksgiving week, some of the interns who live in Braddock and I decided to get together for a holiday meal. Each of us would bring a couple of dishes for the meal and we would all chip in for the pre-cooked turkey. I brought rice and also made yams with marshmellows. The turkey was great and at the end with all the dishes everyone brought we had rolls, stuffing, a green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, mac & cheese as well as some very tasty apple pie!

This was a night to give thanks for the opportunity to explore DC and learn so much in our stay in the nation’s capital. And at the end, we had enough food left over for each of us to take to our apartments and enjoy it during this long holiday weekend.

During that same week I found a link to the National Harbor’s website, where their annual Christmas tree lighting and fireworks show was been advertised. On the Friday after Thanksgiving, several artists were scheduled to perform at this free event. And after finding how to get to the Harbor using both the green line Metro and the bus, I made my way to a very windy and chilly evening. But it was all worth it! The musical performances, the Christmas tree light show and to finish it off, the fireworks were really impressive.
And best of all once I got to the apartment, my Thanksgiving dinner leftovers were waiting for me.

Check out the video!!!

What should I expect about TWC housing?

In the past days I have been receiving messages on facebook from potential Washington Center interns who want to find out more about the housing provided. And while I cannot speak for all the buildings in which students live I can let you know a few things about the rooms in Meridian at Braddock Station and my apartment.

One thing I can ask you to do, regardless of where you will be living is to take a look at the Washington, DC Metro map. Start clicking around their website and you will find a trip planner and information on the SmartTrip card, which you should get at any DC-area CVS and then add money to it in order to go through the entrance of the Metro faster than the guy who has to add money every time he needs to go somewhere. The Metro will not wait for you, and unless it is rush hour you will have to wait a minimum of 15 minutes for the next one.

I am in Alexandria, northern Virginia and only a few steps from the Metro station. Other interns live in Maryland, and TWC is in the process of constructing an apartment building in the District. At my building we do not have computer labs, so for those who want to know if they should bring their laptops the answer is yes. How about internet? Well, you may get really lucky and have a neighbor who for some reason has not locked his/her wireless connection which you can use as I have heard some students have been able to do. But I would rather suggest that you bring your own wireless modem and connect it to the internet cable that is located in the living room. Just make sure to tell your roommates to either chip in for the device or the 4 of you can buy one the first week you get there.

My room has a dinning table, not a desk. We have four chairs, two sofas and a living room table. In the kitchen you will find cutlery, 3 pots and one pan, a teapot, a coffeemaker, a toaster, microwave, refrigerator, more than enough plates, the same with the glass cups and coffee cups. I bought one of those pans that don’t let food stick since I have a habit of cooking in order to save money (hint to what you should also do) and non-sticky pans work for me. There is a can opener and a waffle maker also. Oh and a dishwasher. I didn’t use one before, but I have to tell you this one works pretty well. Regardless, I'd rather wash my dishes, dry them and put them back in the cabinet rather than waiting for the dishwasher to be full to have the dishes washed.

What else? My bedroom has one dresser with 4 drawers and one nightstand with two drawers, a walk-in closet and a bathroom, which has a bathtub. You've got a washer and dryer as well in one separate room. Plus the broom, mop and iron with the ironing table, finally….the television with basic cable.

If you are looking to buy things once you get there you should check out the Potomac Yard Shopping Center which is located say…a good 25 minutes away from the apartments if you walk. Maybe you might want to get a cab on the way back, depending on much you bought. There you will find lots of stores; a Shoppers supermarket with low prices, a Target, a Subway, a place to get a haircut, etc. There is also a store called Giant which is closer to the building. When you get there before you buy anything go to the counter and get the “Giant discount card.” I now I sound like a commercial, but you will see the discounts.

I think that was a lot of details, so now go ahead copy and paste this post to Word, print it, make a list, start thinking about what you will be bringing and be relieved about knowing some of the stuff you will find in one of the apartments where TWC will house you.

You may even get free coffee in the morning!