Busy Busy Busy

Where did my week go?! I have been so busy with my internship that it seems to have flown by. For example--having to wake up at 4:30 and leaving for work at 6 a.m. Monday, then not getting home until after the lecture/seminar until about 6 p.m. because of a torrential downpour that began almost exactly as we were dismissed. This is not even an exaggeration, but the wind began to blow, and for a second I thought I saw the Heavens open up and dump the entire Atlantic Ocean on D.C. Okay, so that was a slight exaggeration. Anyway, the speaker was Colman McCarthy. He asked the audience, in a Christopher Walken sounding voice, if they had ever taken an alternative to violence or a peace course and very few of the other interns had. He makes a good point though. Peace classes are rarely offered at school although there are always an abundance of choices for classes about wars. Conflict resolution is an important subject to be acquainted with, especially in our ever-shrinking world. It was an interesting lecture despite the fact that I did not completely agree with some of his opinions. It is essential to keep an open mind though. I am glad The Washington Center is a non-partisan organization and that they provide different points of view even if I do not support them all 100%.

Last week I was feeling a little cynical when I sat down to write my blog. Today as I type I am in a positive mood. I am on lunch break at my internship with NESA. That stands for Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies U.S. Department of Defense/National Defense University. Yeah that is a mouthful. They do a lot of incredible things worldwide but they are a non-attribution government organization and I cannot talk about certain details of my internship. Honestly, if I released the name of some of the participants in our executive seminar, they could be killed in their country. I doubt that my blog is on the favorites list of a computer user somewhere in Iraq and that they are constantly checking for my weekly updates--but I think it’s best to be safe. That makes my internship sound so much more covert and dangerous than it really is. Today I sat in on a breakout group and listened to the participants play out a scenario of a smallpox outbreak resulting from bioterrorism. The participants developed an international emergency plan. My job was to help them set up a PowerPoint slide show to present in front of the entire group. I look forward to this type of work at my internship the most. I get to hear firsthand personal views about issues I study in school from colonels and other mid- to high-level military and civilian personnel. It is a pleasure. Afterward I was walking home from the Metro, limping and sweating from the heat, but I could not stop smiling from thinking about how I spent my day. So I promise this entry will be much more optimistic.

Also at my internship we spent a lot of time out of the office last week. We visited The Department of State on Tuesday. On Thursday we took an overnight trip to Philadelphia. On the trip for dinner we went to The Union League of Philadelphia. That place is astounding; it is such a stunning place. The speaker told us about his thoughts on the future of the Middle East. It is always interesting to look around the room at the participants’ faces, from 22 different countries, when speakers are talking about their region. The best part is that afterwards I get to sit down with them in an informal setting [at breakfast or lunch] and ask them their thoughts on the lectures. We also took a short trip to Gettysburg. I just want to add that all of us interns got our own hotel rooms for the night…on the NESA Center’s tab. I am not going to lie; I felt pretty important. Haha Needless to say I now have a new set of travel size shampoos and soaps.

Friday night I checked out Hawk and Dove for the first time. I would definitely go back despite the fact that it was a trek. It has a nice atmosphere. The downstairs had an old bar tavern-esque feel and upstairs was like a dance club. Hawk and Dove is 18 and over so if there is someone in your group who isn't 21 they can still come out. There were a lot of interns there too. Saturday night I went to Clarendon Ballroom and Liberty Tavern. At Ballroom it was 80s night so they played only the best music ever all night long! Ballroom is a good place to hang out on weekends. There are 3 floors including an outside patio on the roof.

Sunday I went to the mall off the Pentagon City stop! There is a lot of good shopping around here. After my little shopping trip I took the Yellow line and meet a few other interns at The National Gallery of Art. Unfortunately it closes at 6 p.m. and there is so much to see there that I felt rushed. I plan on going back if time permits.

I am really interested in being blatantly honest about my experience here. If there is anything you are curious about feel free to leave a comment and I will try to address it in one of my future entries. If you'd like to be slightly more anonymous please e-mail me at mooreh9@ndu.edu

Ah! I have to go work on my presentation for class tomorrow!

Hey!

The past week brought relief from that horrid humidity that plagued the previous weeks. I had a spirited social weekend despite the fact that I have “the boot” on my foot. I had a good time at every place that I visited.

Friday night a group of us went to Mei n Yu. It has received a variety of awards in the bar and restaurant arena. This place is worth going to, even if it is just for the bathroom experience, because it is undeniably… an experience. I am not one to bring up my bathroom ventures on any normal occasion but this wasn’t normal. I would go into further detail but I’d like to let you find out for yourself.

I went to the National Aquarium on Sunday with Brandon and Steve, two interns from Canada who live in the same apartment building as myself. I only invited them to come because I like hearing them say the words “about” and “out”. Lol just kidding! To be frank the aquarium in DC is actually quite monotonous. It was one room and is one of the few “educational” places where you had to pay.

The best part of my Sunday was going to Ben’s Chili Bowl! Since the first week I came to DC everybody I’ve met has asked me if I had been there yet. I didn’t realize how notorious it was until we got there. There are photos of numerous famous people eating there including George W. Bush, Bill Cosby, Dr. Dre, and Hilary Clinton. Go! and when you do get a chili dog and cheese fries!



I almost forgot about our visit to the Washington Monument. I can pretty much see it from everywhere- the apartment complex, fort McNair, everywhere! But I’ve never realize how large it was until I was right next to it.

For my internship on Monday we had a tour at Capitol Hill. They are rough with the security there. They took one of the interns, Jeremy’s, peanut butter sandwich and then tried to confiscate my deodorant. Trust me… that would have been a bad idea for everyone around. Poor Jeremy though! I guess his lunch may have been a threat to national security. Thank God they got a handle on it before things got out of control. I hear peanut butter can be dangerous especially when someone is trying to make an important point and they have a spoonful before trying to speak! It could have held up the Senate for hours!

This is a little irrelevant, but I went to see The Happening last week as well and it was atrocious. It will go down in cinematic history. I think I might give it a rating lower than Mariah Carey’s debacle Glitter--but you may not remember Glitter as we all tried ever so hard to push it from our memories. If you like movies that feature characters who run away from wind then it is definitely your type of movie. I think I will stop there concerning the awfulness of the Happening as it does not warrant even this much contemplation. M. Night Shyamalan, the tally is in, and you owe me personally 27 dollars for The Village, The Lady in the Water, and now The Happening.

I have a very busy week with my internship coming up which I will share asap.

Week Two: About Setbacks and Success

Success! Today I found Starbucks. Now, I don’t even really drink coffee, and this apartment complex provides a variety of flavors of coffee every morning, however this event is still fairly significant for me. Today was the first time I took off all on my own to do some exploring. I found a variety of cute shopping stores and interesting exotic places to eat. I must admit I was a little intimidated but now I feel relieved. I was able to conquer it with a ridiculous limp as well… this weekend I broke my foot on an escalator in the Metro! I broke three metatarsals in my right foot. OUCH! If I can hobble around the city and get around with ease then there is nothing for anyone else to worry about.

Wow is it hot! Today it was 96 degrees with ridiculous humidity. My internship advisor Wendie emailed me the uniform schedule about a month before I came down here. She wrote that it was going to be hot and humid down here. I never conjured up this type of uncomfortable weather! To add to the heat I am shuffling around in this cast/walking boot. As I began to walk around today with my injury I noticed something pretty profound… The people in Washington DC and Arlington are extremely nice and accommodating. If you are coming from a small town and are worried about the hustle and bustle of a city, or fear that fast paced urban atmosphere, there is one important thing to remember- most of the people here are also from small towns. This is a huge melting pot of characters. It is different from New York City where I have spent much of my time. The people there seem to be a tad bit jaded [no offense New Yorkers]. That’s something I have not encountered in Washington DC.

My internship is going very well. Despite my initial doubts about the placement process they nailed my interests precisely. If you are interested in global affairs and relations with the Middle East I would highly recommend you apply for this particular internship. Sometimes I feel as though I should be paying them to work there. I am able to sit in on discussions between experts regarding topics that I have only read about in class. It is an absolute pleasure. This week for work we had a reception at the Willard; an extremely historic and picturesque place. It is known for many things among Lincoln’s ten day stay and features the Thomas Jefferson Suite which is 2200 square feet! We also have plans to visit the Pentagon, go on a tour of Washington DC, and visit Capitol Hill. With an internship like this who needs to plan tourist trips? Hopefully my leg will improve and I will be able to make it for the excursions.

I had planned on posting photos from a variety of sites that I had visited this weekend but with the accident the only pictures I would have been able to take would have been at the hospital and me sleeping in my bed. Personally I did not think those would be as interesting. So I will cross my fingers for this weekend, otherwise you’re getting the sleeping photos. haha

Introducing Heather Jane Moore

Well, my name is Heather Jane Moore. I come from a small town in Connecticut. It’s the type of place where you pretty much know everyone and their business. I would say the exact opposite of Washington DC. haha.

Washington DC...When I say or think about the city name it brings about so many different ideas and feelings. When my friends heard about the internship I was applying for and the city I would be “deserting” them for each one of them had different advice and words to share. The frequent commentary seemed to based around three general themes. “Wow, there is a lot of crime there, BE CAREFUL!” [thanks, mom!] was number one on the list. Then, “You’re going to meet a great man to date and have tons of fun down there!” was the second. Last but not least people said, “You are going to learn a lot--take advantage of it.”

I thought about DC in some kind of mixture of all three. Crime? What crime? We moved in right behind the police station! So far I haven’t found very bad parts of DC, but I have not wandered off too far yet. The housing that TWC provides and area it is in are insanely beautiful. As for the great men… well there aren’t any yet, just a bunch of friendly interns. As for the last comment it appears that I am already learning all types of information to guide me in the right direction.

Going entirely back to the beginning now, when my professor recommended The Washington Center program to me, I never imagined it would be like this. The initial process of picking a topic to write my essay about all the way to my phone interview with my [hopeful] internship advisor was nerve-racking to say the least. I just kept hoping that my application was good enough to get me a rewarding internship. Through it all I ended up with an internship I desperately wanted at the NESA center/National Defense University. However, during the whole process there was a lot of doubt. For a vast amount of time you do not know where you will be placed, what class you will get into, and who you will be living with. These were all great stressors to me but it worked out well in the end. The Washington Center really hooks it up with a place to live, especially if you are coming from a dorm. On move in day I was singing that theme song from The Jeffersons… “Movin’ on up! To the East side- with a deluxe apartment in the sky” haha. No, but seriously check out the pictures. There is a really nice view from the apartment.

Unfortunately for the first few days during orientation I was extremely ill and feeling a bit down. As I lay in bed I kept thinking, “How am I going to be able to navigate the Metro?” “Will I be able to find the grocery store?” Today, however, as I walked back from the grocery store, with my new friend Casey, in the warmth of a Sunday evening, I really appreciated where I am. In this short weekend, I have met people from all walks of life, from California to Florida, each one of us as eager as the next to see what opportunities await us. There is such a clever bunch of people here. I can not wait to hear what all of them have to say about the places they come from and what their plans are while they are in Washington. I was initially worried that I would not know anyone and would have to go this alone...boy was I wrong. My roommate, well, I definitely got lucky; she is a doll. Before all the work started we were able to spend some time at the mall and by the pool (the sun is super strong here!). I was a lobster for my first day at work. I guess that it was not too bad though because it hid my red face when I tripped over a step in front of another intern. haha.

I have a tip to offer and I am not sure if I will be doing it every week but I feel that this is important. I would suggest that when you come to the TWC you take advantage of the orientation days to talk to as many people as feasible. Get numbers. Get lunch. Get connections. Make a little network for yourself as early as possible. It will really make a difference in your quality of life while you are here.

Well here goes nothing… I’ll leave you with some pictures. You can definitely expect more!!

This is my first taxi ride alone. Apparently I am pretty excited over it.

This is me my first day at work with my face still red from the day before.

A couple of the guys I intern with on the way down to the Metro after work.

This is that sick view I previously mentioned.