Inauguration Day Brief

Hey everyone. So we have just returned from downtown, which is still teaming with crazed Obama fans. For the most part, everything went smoothly, and despite the millions of people out and about at the same time, the events were peaceful. The weather was really cold & almost everyone was stomping around by the time of Obama's speech to keep the blood flowing in their feet. We left from the north side around Columbia Heights sometime before 6 this morning, and walked about three miles to where all of the action was going on. There were people up at this time, scrambling to get newspapers and walking with friends to the event. More and more people joined us as we made our way, and by the time we arrived there was quite a crowd. Thousands of people walked through the 3rd Street tunnel get to The Mall early this morning, and we emerged on the other side of town as the sun was coming up with thousands of confused people looking for where to enter the Inauguration ceremony. The ticketed gates were pure chaos, and nobody seemed to know where to go to get in. But eventually we figured it out, and it was amazing. Although it was freezing and took hours to get through, the crowd fell silent for Obama's speech, hanging on every word. They also fell silent when Bush came out in the beginning, but it was quickly filled with boos and snide remarks. Some people thought it was poor etiquette, but a lot more found it appropriate.

Right now we're going to drive back to Ohio and update more pictures and accounts when we get back. Look for more stuff about the inauguration tonight, when we'll have some time to get our act together.