Busting out of DC

I still haven’t made it back to Canada, so I guess I have yet to completely reflect back on my whole Washington experience, but I can say that leaving the city was pretty sad. The last days at the Embassy were really interesting, and I am still pretty choked that I couldn’t see my final project through to the end. It was also tough to say good-bye to the other interns at the Embassy who I have been sharing an office with for the past months; it’s already very weird to not see them every day. I gave a mini Canadian flag to my supervisor on my last day as well, and, of course we all took some group photos.

Final day at the Embassy, with the other NAFTA interns and our supervisor

Just hangin’ out in front of the Embassy of Mexico

My last day in DC was spent packing like a crazy woman and hanging out with my roommate, who I’m also really gonna miss. I left on an overnight Greyhound bus to Wilmington, North Carolina to visit a friend for a few days. Thankfully, my beautiful roommate gave me a ride to the Greyhound station…just a heads up if anyone plans to travel while in DC, be careful around the Greyhound station. It’s not the safest area, and is metro accessible but only via a pretty long walk from Union Station. Basically, I wouldn’t recommend getting a late bus unless you can get a ride there or take a cab.

I made it safe and sound to Wilmington and we ended up spending the day on the beach, eating a TON of seafood, and camping for a night. It was an awesome time, and the seafood was so intense. Mussels, crab, oysters, crawfish….all of which I’ve never had before (or never had fresh before, which is completely different).

I’ve moved on from Wilmington now and am spending some time near Charleston in South Carolina with some friends. The south is beautiful! I would recommend a trip this way for anyone. I have one final stop in Savannah, Georgia, and then I head home on Tuesday. I think things will finally hit me when I get home, mostly regarding how much I’ve learned and being able to look at things a little differently. I haven’t had much time to think about it all while travelling, but I’m sure after about a week back home I will be missing much about DC.

Overall, I have had a great experience. I’ve learned a lot, met some great people, and seen more than I thought I would ever have the time for.

This will be my final blog for TWC, and If I could personally wipe that tear from your eye I would. Thanks for reading (whoever you are), and I really hope that I have been able to give all you potential TWC’ers a glimpse into the program and the DC lifestyle. Good luck in Washington!
Be prepared for an amazing semester!

PAZ!!

The End of an Era (and by era I mean internship)

I will be finishing up at the Embassy of Mexico tomorrow and will be leaving behind a big project I’ve been working on. I really wish I could see it through, but I guess its time to pass the torch to the next set of interns…touching I know.

I definitely took advantage of my last weekend in DC and was able to hit up all the final attractions I had yet to visit. I spent Saturday at the National Archives and the National Museum of the American Indian, both of which are very cool. At the American Indian museum the cafeteria is divided by different Indian groups, and each one serves the typical food of the group…..it was pretty awesome. At the archives I was able to see the actual constitution, and bill of rights. It’s crazy to be able to see signatures like George Washington’s.

The Declaration of Independence…but mostly, it’s John Hancock’s John Hancock. Hahahaha. I’m sure that’s the first time that joke has been made.

Unfortunately, my Saturday ended on not such a good note when I returned home to hear that my roommate had been robbed at gunpoint the previous night in Columbia Heights. I felt quite upset for her, and think I realized how much you are distanced from when you live in such a nice area like Bethesda. My view of DC has been one where I have not once felt in danger, even walking home from the Metro alone at night. I guess I’ve been pretty isolated from some of the other areas of DC which aren’t so safe. Luckily, she's ok. We both stayed in Saturday night, ordered pizza, and I think she was feeling a lot better after talking to her family and getting over the initial shock.

Sunday I took the Capital Crescent Trail from Bethesda into Georgetown in order to prep for my half marathon when I get home. I survived!

Unfortunately, I didn’t want to run with a camera, so I have yet to get any photos of the pathway which is seriously the most beautiful thing I’ve seen since living here. Hopefully I will have some time to take a quick walk on Saturday before I leave and document the area.

Monday was our final TWC speaker and commencement ceremony. It was a good day, but was definitely sad to say goodbye to the people in my program.

It’s very cool to now have some friends all throughout the Americas so hopefully soon I will meet them again on my travels. The commencement ceremony was great as well. We were able to hear quite a few stories of what other interns had accomplished this semester, and there were some pretty amazing stories!

The Global Trade and Regional Integration Program crew. Oh the good times we’ve had...

Now it’s just down to my last internship days, combined with a little packing, and I’m outta here. I’ve finally figured out my travel plans, and will be heading to Wilmington, NC on Saturday for a few days, and then SC for a few more visiting friends along the way. It should be a fun time, but I am definitely getting excited to get home on May 26th. It will be great to see my friends and family, and arrive just in time for some nice Canadian summer weather.

Paz.

Comida Mexicana!

I’ve just got one more week of interning here in DC, and this past one has been focused on trying to get my projects done at work. I’m not gonna lie, I have been working on some research (still regarding the trucking dispute, which I am pretty much obsessed with by this point) and am “supposed” to have it completed by the end of my internship next week, but I’m feeling a little stressed out because I really don’t think it’s possible….but of course, I will try.

Also this week I’ve experienced the rainy season of DC. I’m not really sure if there is such a thing, but I’m gonna take it and roll with it because it’s seriously been 8 days of straight rain. Honestly, it’s actually a nice change considering in Calgary it’s normally snow or nothing; but really, 8 days? Come on. It let up today which was nice so a couple of other interns from the Embassy and I were able to return to our local lunch spot (Quizno’s of course, 4 dollar sub…can you blame us?) and sit outside.

On Thursday I took a break from work and went to a Naturalization Ceremony that was held on the Mall. A Naturalization Ceremony is the ceremony done where immigrants actually become American citizens. I thought it was a pretty crazy concept….to be able to witness the moment when somebody, who possibly has spent years and gone through unimaginable circumstances to become an American. I did happen to show up late, and missed the actual oaths that are taken by the people, BUT I still got to see them all afterwards hugging their families and taking pictures, which I thought was pretty touching. I was probably the creepy random at the back of the crowd watching them, but whatever, it was a cool moment to “creep” on.

New American citizens at the Naturalization Ceremony

Another stellar thing that happened this week was a lunchtime getaway. One of the employees at the Embassy took me and the two other NAFTA interns outside of DC to Maryland for comida Mexicana (Mexican food!!!) It was quite a ways away, but sooooo worth it. I haven’t had authentic Mexican food since my student exchange in Mexico a few years ago, and I can honestly say that it is amazing. The place where we went was located in an area with a large Latino population, and was even in a strip mall with a Panaderia (selling pan dulce – Mexican sweet bread), which I was also pretty excited about. Basically the whole trip was spent with the Mexicans laughing at me because I was so ridiculously excited to eat the food that they get every day back home. Oh how lucky they are.

So pumped for Pan Dulce!

With another NAFTA intern, Hector from Mexico, outside the Mexican restaurant.

One more cool DC experience I had this week – Passport DC. It’s an event that happens every year where about 30 Embassies all around the city open their doors for a day, and have things like food, drinks, music and dance.

I was able to hit up a few Embassies during the event last weekend, including Colombia, Haiti, and the Bahamas. At the Colombia Embassy we got FREE Juan Valdez coffee, which is amazing! At the Haitian Embassy we then chased the coffee with rum punch which was also delicious. My favorite stop was the Bahamas, where they had people playing bongos and singing and dancing, as well as coconut milk. It was a great time, and I couldn’t believe how many people were out and about for it.

Music and dance at the Embassy of the Bahamas for Passport DC

This weekend is my last one in DC. I’m gonna try to hit up the last few sights I still have on my list, and RELAX because my portfolio is done!

PAZ!

Portfolio. Check.

This past week I got an email from my home university telling me that they needed all of my TWC stuff as soon as possible in order for me to be eligible for graduation in June….this was a COMPLETE surprise for me seeing as my semester here will be extra credit so I didn’t think the timing of my grades from TWC was all that important. Basically I thought I had two weeks to complete the massive TWC portfolio, but that was condensed into about 4 days. Good times!

I was pretty stressed out, but had thankfully already started on it so it wasn’t completely crazy. I ended up finishing it and getting it all fancy bound at FedEx and am super happy with it. It is pretty much a complete overview of my entire semester in DC and includes work samples from my internship, a research paper, civic engagement report, and a whole lot more. I made myself a copy as well (even though I definitely could have saved the money) because I know it will be great to have when I get home.

Now I am feeling completely relieved to have my portfolio done, and will be able to fully enjoy my last two weeks in DC without stressing out. Also, it rained all weekend so as I was working on it I wasn’t feeling like I was missing all that much.

Last week (before the stress of the portfolio) my sister came to visit which was a ton of fun. She’s not all that into history and museums and I was happy about this because I think I’m getting to point of being “museum-ed out,” if you catch my drift. Anyways, we spent most of our time in all the different neighborhoods just exploring and walking around.

We even took the Capital Crescent Trail into Georgetown from Bethesda which is amazing! It’s as if you are in the middle of the forest even though it’s so close to the city. We spent some time in Alexandria as well wandering around the waterfront, and also through Dupont. It was a really good visit, but now I’m feeling very nostalgic and missing my family quite a bit…yep, I’m a Debbie Downer. But seriously, I think that when I get back home it will be great to see everyone again.

My sister hangin’ out on the beautiful streets on Alexandria, VA

Just a glimpse of the Smithsonian gardens located around the National Mall

I just have two more weeks of interning left and received some big projects to complete so I’m sure the time will fly by. I’m also in the process of planning a short trip south after my internship and before I head home. I have a few friends dispersed throughout the Carolinas and a cousin in Florida so hopefully I will be able to see them all before I head back to reality of job searching back in Calgary.

Paz for now amigos!

Sarah