Epic post after a long weekend

My favorite place that we visited!

My apologies to all for being a slacker on my blog the last couple days. I’ll do my best to recap the last four days and give the reader’s digest version of what’s been going on. Prepare yourself: It’s a long one.

Thursday: On the last day of my short work week, I photographed Senator John Cornyn, R-Texas, while he did an interview with Alan on Kagan’s upcoming confirmation hearing. After a short trip back to the office, I went back to the Hill to photograph the conference committee on financial reform. No, I didn’t understand anything they were saying. Unlike most committee hearings where the senators or representatives sit behind the dais like you see on C-SPAN, they were all sitting in a round table format. I have to say I prefer the dais because it’s easier to get unobstructed views of each member of Congress, but the round table offered a great opportunity for candid shots of members of Congress talking with aides, whispering to each other, etc. As some of you may know, the Russian president was in town last week. I attended a photo op with him, the Senate leadership, and several former presidential candidates like McCain and Kerry. It was a pretty powerful room, to say the least. Unfortunately, with so many people in the room and trying to get them all in one shot, it was a terrible time for my wide angle lens to break. I did have another camera with a zoom lens though so I just have really close photos of about two people at a time. Better than nothing, I guess. I’m hoping for a similar photo op later this summer when British Prime Minister David Cameron comes to visit.

Friday: I had an all too early start Friday morning, leaving my apartment at 7:30 to head to Union Station to take Amtrak to Philadelphia. For those that don’t know, the Alan I keep referring to is my boyfriend of a year and a half and we were visiting Philly for his annual check up at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). To put it simply, he has a complicated medical background and after getting sick his junior year of high school, he was sent to CHOP when no doctors in Atlanta could figure out what was wrong with him. After finding an answer at CHOP his case was featured in a New York Times Magazine column on medical mysteries and, for those interested, you can read it here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/15/magazine/15diagnosis-t.html

I was very honored when he asked me to come with him to Philly for his appointment because I know CHOP holds a special place in his heart and mine, as well. I feel forever indebted to Dr. Ichord, who manages his case and is also the doctor who was able to give him an answer to what was wrong. I enjoyed having lunch with her and being able to talk with her not just about Alan, but everyday things too like how our internships in DC are going and everywhere Dr. Ichord has traveled. After lunch, we went to visit a cousin of mine who lives in Philadelphia, Adrienne, who works at a gelato shop. We couldn’t visit long since she was working, but we did sample the gelato: a lemon/ cookies and cream combo that was both sweet and refreshing. We visited the historic district that afternoon and got our picture with the Liberty Bell and at Independence Hall. I must say, taking photos as a tourist is a little weird now. It’s not in my nature to take a snapshot and move on. I’m used to taking photos from all different angles and distances in order to get a true understanding of what is going on at a given scene. Made me think tourist photography was almost a little shallow and that everyone’s pictures will look the same, and it just struck me as very unoriginal. But I won’t go too far on that tangent. That night we had an amazingly delicious dinner at The Melting Pot, of which my favorite part was obviously the dessert chocolate fondue. Cheesecake drizzled in chocolate is terrible for you, but so tasty!

Saturday: We spent a short time in Philly on Saturday before heading to the train station for New York. I hadn’t visited New York since my junior year of high school (also my first trip to NYC), so I was very excited to go back. First priority on our agenda was lunch. We had a wonderful lunch at Bubba Gump at Times Square, although, the one disappointment of the trip came at this time. After a game of Forrest Gump trivia with our waiter, I asked him how many times he had to watch Forrest Gump before being hired. He said it wasn’t a requirement at all and the restaurant just hands out a sheet of trivia questions to ask and the waiters memorize the answers. Not cool. But he earned back a few points when he said he had watched the movie several times to form his own tough trivia questions. After lunch, we went in search of a new wide angle lens, which was a success and then started a pretty rigorous walking tour of New York. From about 4:00- 7:00 we managed to see NBC studios, Rockefeller Center, Central Park, Fifth Avenue, M&M World, and Hearst Tower. (Had to visit the home office and, may I say, it’s much nicer than the one I work in.) We had a wonderful dinner at Il Vagabando - thank you Mr. Blinder for the restaurant suggestion – followed by a night-time view of the city on top of the Empire State Building. It’s always a beautiful sight. After a whirlwind day, we crashed early to prepare for one final day in New York.

Sunday: I’m writing this post from the train on my way back to DC after a very busy day in New York. After walking everywhere all day on Saturday, Alan and I decided to experiment with the New York subway in order to save some time traveling between the sites. We somehow managed to squeeze everything in that we wanted to do despite on being in New York for about 29 hours. We started the day with lunch in Chinatown at one of its many Chinese restaurants. I am by no means a pro with chopsticks, but I made do since no silverware was provided. After lunch we went to Ground Zero, which has changed quite a bit since my last visit four years ago. Last time it was still a giant hole in the ground, but there have been great improvements in the construction of a memorial and building around it. We also saw a memorial at the fire station literally across the street from the World Trade Center site. An engraved mural outside the station shows all the faces and names of all the men who died trying to save others. The mural that spans the length of one side of the station says it best: “May we never forget.” Our next stop was Tiffany & Co. I had to stop in and see the famous Tiffany’s of New York. Many other tourists had the same idea. Our visit there was short and sweet, but stayed long enough to see lots of pretty diamonds. I was told by Allie Blinder I simply couldn’t leave New York without stopping at Magnolia Bakery. Man, was she right. Allie, my sister Liz, and I often spend way too much time talking about desserts and which places are best to go and I’m so glad I took her recommendation. I had an excellent chocolate chunk blondie and a homemade lemonade. Yum!

On a personal note, my family gets into town on Friday to spend the Fourth of July in our nation’s capitol. Can’t wait to see Mom, Dad, and my sister Liz and show them the city I’ve come to love over the last three weeks! But first, I must face the week ahead, which includes Kagan’s confirmation hearing and a visit from the Saudi king. At this point I’ve completed a third of my internship. I’m very thankful for the opportunities I’ve had and have really enjoyed watching our government up close. It’s way more interesting than a textbook. I realized how much I had learned when I stood in the Senate Press Gallery on Thursday and watched as many senators came in for a vote. At the start of my summer, I knew Georgia’s senators, the leadership, and maybe a few others, but I found myself able to recognize almost everyone in the room, senators from all regions of the country, from seeing them at various committee hearings or press conferences. I was very pleased and know I will continue learning more and more each day.