Last Tuesday can be remembered as the day I played hooky from class, but gave my teacher a clear heads up that I would not be present. In one exciting day I experienced, two Supreme Court Cases, the House and The Senate in Session , the DC botanical gardens, and a guest speaker. I self- proclaimed the day, "Ferris Buellers's day off: DC edition," as our day's activities were only appropriate to what you do in DC when you do not attend class. The day was long but the memories were worth it.
The time we 8:34 am and it was the coldest day that has occurred since I have been here in D.C. My friend Shannon and I waited an hour and a half in the freezing cold to see two Supreme Court Cases. The guards cut off the line of people admitted into the cases just two people behind us. We were so happy and thankful not only that we made the cut but because the two people behind us, happened to be a ridiculously adorable elderly couple from Arizona. Once inside we were sat promptly behind a massive marble pillar. At that point in time I could only see Justice Sotomayor. I was so excited be inside I did even mind I could not see everyone, I greatly respect and admire Justice Sotomayor anyway! So, behind the massive white pillar was where we sat for the first case about guns. Side note, it was still really cold even inside. For the second case I asked politely if we could move seats. You are actually not supposed to move seats but the guard let us move from behind the pillar, making it possible for Shannon and I to see all of the Justices at the same time! The second case was about drugs and was just as confusing as the first. The Justices even said, "This is confusing." I took a US Constitutional History Class two semesters prior, so to see all the Justices in person was a big deal. Afterwards, we did a quick walk through of the building. Upon exciting the building Shannon, my friend David, and I realized we would definitely not make it to our first class. In a spur of the moment spontaneous decision we decided to view the House and Senate gallery.
Thinking back about our experience at the Capitol, and really the whole day, I can shortly describe the experience in three words: cold, exciting, and security check points. First, to enter the Capitol we had to dispense of all our food and drinks, this involved Shannon and I gulping our water bottles, and quickly eating what snacks we had in front of the Capitol guards (I really think they found us amusing). Once in, and through the preliminary check points we discovered that both the Senate and House were in session. At this point, the day could not get any better, or patriotic! Although the topics of discussions were not especially riveting, it was still a great sight to see. The whole process of getting into the galleries took much longer than expected (apparently my umbrella is very dangerous). We knew if we left in a half hour or so we could try to arrive for the last hour of our last class. On the way back to the metro we did the last spontaneous activity of the day and quickly walked through the D.C. botanical gardens. It was beautiful AND warm!
We arrived to class just in time to hear a guest speaker discuss the Affordable Care Act. Something I am so happy I did not miss as she provided a lot of information and answered some great questions. It was a very eventful day, waiting in the freezing cold was worth it! In the words of Ferris in a statement that encompasses my experiences here ,"The question isn't what are we going to do. The question is what aren't we going to do."
The time we 8:34 am and it was the coldest day that has occurred since I have been here in D.C. My friend Shannon and I waited an hour and a half in the freezing cold to see two Supreme Court Cases. The guards cut off the line of people admitted into the cases just two people behind us. We were so happy and thankful not only that we made the cut but because the two people behind us, happened to be a ridiculously adorable elderly couple from Arizona. Once inside we were sat promptly behind a massive marble pillar. At that point in time I could only see Justice Sotomayor. I was so excited be inside I did even mind I could not see everyone, I greatly respect and admire Justice Sotomayor anyway! So, behind the massive white pillar was where we sat for the first case about guns. Side note, it was still really cold even inside. For the second case I asked politely if we could move seats. You are actually not supposed to move seats but the guard let us move from behind the pillar, making it possible for Shannon and I to see all of the Justices at the same time! The second case was about drugs and was just as confusing as the first. The Justices even said, "This is confusing." I took a US Constitutional History Class two semesters prior, so to see all the Justices in person was a big deal. Afterwards, we did a quick walk through of the building. Upon exciting the building Shannon, my friend David, and I realized we would definitely not make it to our first class. In a spur of the moment spontaneous decision we decided to view the House and Senate gallery.
Thinking back about our experience at the Capitol, and really the whole day, I can shortly describe the experience in three words: cold, exciting, and security check points. First, to enter the Capitol we had to dispense of all our food and drinks, this involved Shannon and I gulping our water bottles, and quickly eating what snacks we had in front of the Capitol guards (I really think they found us amusing). Once in, and through the preliminary check points we discovered that both the Senate and House were in session. At this point, the day could not get any better, or patriotic! Although the topics of discussions were not especially riveting, it was still a great sight to see. The whole process of getting into the galleries took much longer than expected (apparently my umbrella is very dangerous). We knew if we left in a half hour or so we could try to arrive for the last hour of our last class. On the way back to the metro we did the last spontaneous activity of the day and quickly walked through the D.C. botanical gardens. It was beautiful AND warm!
We arrived to class just in time to hear a guest speaker discuss the Affordable Care Act. Something I am so happy I did not miss as she provided a lot of information and answered some great questions. It was a very eventful day, waiting in the freezing cold was worth it! In the words of Ferris in a statement that encompasses my experiences here ,"The question isn't what are we going to do. The question is what aren't we going to do."
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