Inauguration Day

Sorry, we haven't finished the post yet. After yesterday we were too tired. It will be posted ASAP.

Day 3

Hey everyone, we had such a busy day today. We started the day by seeing the Vietnam, Korean, World War II memorials and the Lincoln Monument from afar. They were deconstructing the stage that had been set up for the Kick Off Event so we couldn't get too close. It was really pretty though because it was flurrying and the scene from the Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool was very pretty. After that, we rode the bus to the Capitol area to get our tickets for the Inauguration. We walked up the steps to the Supreme Court and took pictures in front of it. We tried to get into the Library of Congress, but it was closed despite earlier assurances that it would be opened. We then went to the Air and Space Museum which was really cool. They had airplanes hanging from the ceiling and a lot of cool things there. From there, we headed to lunch at the Ronald Reagan Building. Then we went to the National Archives to the the Declaration of Independence, Bill of Rights, Louisana Purchase, and other important documents. We also went to the infamous gift shop where Nicholas Cage stole the Declaration of Independence in National Treasure. Johnny also pretended to be Nicholas Cage and "steal" the Declaration of Independence (a big step up from chicken nuggets! : ) ) It was really cool to see those documents that are hundreds of years old. After that, we went to the National Museums of Natural and American History. They were pretty awesome. We saw all kind of exhibits of animals, cultures and history. They were pretty interesting places. We finally got to have dinner at Union Station and we got to do some shopping as well. And after hours and hours of walking and touring D.C., we finally made it on to the metro where we departed for the hotel and our beds.
Tomorrow is going to be our busiest day yet with the inauguration. We have pretty good seats where we should be able to have a good view of Barack Obama and Joe Biden, hopefully. Wish us luck on fighting the crowds and the aches in our feet tomorrow!

Day 2

Holocaust Museum

First thing we did this morning was go to the Holocaust Memorial Museum. If you ever have the opportunity to go there, I highly suggest you take advantage of the chance. It was both really amazing and incredibly sad. The museum had 4 levels and so many different sections. It was set-up in the time line of Hitler's reign and showed so many different parts.

There were millions of people, literally, at the Kick-Off concert in front of the Lincoln Memorial. Our best view were jumbo trons throughout the mall. People were also hanging and climbing trees for a chance to get a better view of the celebrities singing and speaking. All the performances were very entertaining. Afterwards, we "marched" on Washington through the streets. We saw protesters and jokingly booed at them, Seth got us lost from the main group and we had to seek refuge at a caged restaurant. We finally found our way back to the group and waited for an hour to get on the subway, in the subway station. Once we got back to the room, the boys enter and find that Josh has turned the heat up to about 90 degrees. So there was a drastic climate change and we cursed at Josh for doing it. So tonight we are looking forward to a poker game and wait for what happens tomorrow.



Celebration of Freedom Concert line up:


Bruce Springsteen - "Rising"
Laura Linney
Martin Luther King III
Mary J Blige - "Lean on Me"
Steve Carrell
Jamie Fox
Bettye LaVette & Jon Bon Jovi
Tom Hanks
Marissa Tomei
James Taylor, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles - "Shower the People"
Joe Biden
John Mellencamp - "Pink Houses"
Jack Black
Rosario Dawson
Garth Brooks - "American Pie" "Shout" "We Shall Be Free"
Ashley Judd
Forrest Whitaker
Usher, SteveWonder, Shakira - "Higher Ground"
Samual L. Jackson
Bono with U2 - "One Love"
Barak Obama
Bruce Springsteen
Beyonce - "America the Beautiful"

Interview on Channel 45

Here is a YouTube clip of our interview on Channel 45.

Day One

We arrived in Washington D. C. around 4:30 pm. After freshening up, we headed to Pentagon City Mall for shopping and dinner. Our very knowledgeable bus driver, then took us to various sight in downtown. After today, buses without a special pass will not be allowed in the city.

Highlights from the tour:
Marine Memorial - Iwo Jima
Air Force Memorial
FDR Memorial
Thomas Jefferson Memorial
9/11 Memorial at the Pentagon
and many more!!!

Mrs. McIntosh's brother and his partner were in town visiting a friend so they stopped by for a visit.

Mrs. Allison and Mrs. McIntosh came back to the hotel to a snore-fest giving by Mrs. Toadvine and Ms. Cullen. This started a giggle-fest accompanied by a rattling heater motor.

Ready to go!

Hopefully, everyone is packed and ready to go. The next post will be from Washington D.C.

Set your DVR!

We have been invited to Dayton's Channel 22 morning show tomorrow. We will be in the studio answering questions about going to the Inauguration from 7:30 am - 8:30am. I am not sure how much will get aired, but it will still be cool going to the studio.

The Madison Group

Back Row: Lucas Taulbee, Johnny McGuire, Brooke Tipton, Seth Treadway
Front Row: Amber Fox, Katie Young, Hannah Fassler, Paige Hueman, Brittany Alcorn
Not Pictured: Steve Johnson, Josh Hughes

It's Official: Bruce Springsteen to Headline Obama's Sunday Concert

As The Post's Lena H. Sun first reported last week, Bruce Springsteen will be among the headliners at Obama's welcome concert on the National Mall on Sunday. The event will be from 7 p.m to 9 p.m near the Lincoln Memorial and it will feature performances by Beyonce, Mary J. Blige, Bono, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Renee Fleming, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, Heather Headley, John Legend, Jennifer Nettles, John Mellencamp, Usher, Shakira, Bruce Springsteen, James Taylor, will.i.am and Stevie Wonder.

(Clarification: The event starting time has not been announced. It appears likely to be in the afternoon. Update: The event will begin at 2 p.m.)
The concert, which will be televised live by HBO at from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., is free and open to the public. The title of the event is "We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial."

According to the Presidential Inaugural Committee Web site Jamie Foxx, Martin Luther King III, Queen Latifah and Denzel Washington will be among those reading historical passages. The Rev. V. Gene Robinson will give the invocation.
---From the Washington Post

Helpful Links

Inauguration Central from the Washington Post:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/inauguration-central/


From the Washington Post listing prohibited items:
http://voices.washingtonpost.com/inauguration-watch/2008/12/whats_prohibited_where.html


Presidential Inaugural Committee:
http://www.pic2009.org/content/home/

Anything you would ever want to know about the inauguration, past and present, from the Joint Congressional Commitee:
http://inaugural.senate.gov/index.cfm

Inauguration D.C. 2009 –Itinerary

Saturday, January 17th
7AM Depart CHS (students will need packed lunch)
4PM Arrive D.C.
6PM – 9PM Dinner/Shopping Pentagon City Mall


Sunday, January 18th
8:45AM Be ready to leave hotel (eat your breakfast before leaving)
9:30-Noon Holocaust Museum (reservations at 10AM)
Noon – 1 PM Lunch/Shopping at Old Post Office Pavilion
1PM – 3:30PM Smithsonian Museum of American History
Smithsonian Museum of Natural History
3:30 – 5:30PM Ford’s Theatre/Peterson House
5:30PM – 7PM Dinner somewhere delicious in D.C.
(Attend Inauguration Kick Off in front of Lincoln Memorial)


Monday, January 19th
9:00AM Be ready to leave hotel (eat your breakfast before leaving)
9:30 – 12:30PM Capitol Hill – Go to House of Rep offices to pick up tickets
Library of Congress
Air/Space Smithsonian
12:30PM – 1:30PM Lunch Ronald Reagan Building
1:30PM – 3PM National Archives (Reservations @ 2)
3:30 – 5:30PM National Zoo if weather permits
6:00 – 7:30PM Dinner at Union Station
(Attend any Inauguration Events Open to the Public)

Tuesday, January 20th
9:30AM Be ready to leave hotel (eat your breakfast before leaving; you may want to put a snack in your pocket as lunch may be late; be prepared for the weather as we will be outside for a long, long, long time)
11:30AM – 2PM Inaugural Events
Oath of Office – Swearing in of the President & Vice-President
Presidential Inaugural Address
2PM – 2:30PM Lunch
Inaugural Parade
6PM – 7PM Dinner – Pizza
7PM – 8PM Free Time Hotel
8PM – 11PM Night Tour D.C.
Vietnam Veterans Memorials; Korean Memorial; FDR Memorial; Lincoln Memorial; Jefferson Memorial World War II Monument

Wednesday, January 21st
8:30AM Be packed and ready to leave hotel (eat your breakfast before leaving)
8:30 – 10:30AM Arlington National Cemetery
Changing of the Guard
Tomb of the Unknowns
Kennedy Gravesites
Space Shuttle Challenger Memorial
10:30AM Board bus for home
8:30PM Arrive CHS Parking Lot

We are getting ready to go!

The plans are becoming finalized for our trip. We received an updated itinerary last night. Jeanne and Heather have worked very hard to schedule as much as possible. This will the first visit to Washington D.C. for many of the students.