The day before I was to go home I was able to travel back to the National Mall to take one more walk around. The first day that I arrived in Washington, D.C., I went to the National Mall, so it was fitting for me to go there on my last day. The weather was not quite as nice as it was when I first arrived in D.C., but at least there weren’t many tourists running around. I was also able to see the sun set on the National Mall while sitting on the West side of the Lincoln Memorial, which was pretty cool.

The next day we were supposed to get a bunch of snow, and we did. It started to snow around 10 o’clock that night before we were supposed to go home. Many of my friends left that night in hopes of making it home before the big snow storm hit. Those of us who were leaving in the morning decided to make the best of the snow storm and go outside. Yes, we made a snowman, a little one, but it was still sweet. I was not all that excited about the snow since I come from Ohio and it snows all the time, but others were pretty excited.

The next day I awoke to about a foot of snow on the ground. This was not a good thing, because I was going to be driving home. Once my parents and I had loaded all of my stuff up, we were planning on going to Arlington National Cemetery. We wanted to go to see the wreaths that are placed on the headstones of over 5,000 graves. The Worcester Wreath Company started this annual event in 1992 to honor our nation’s fallen heroes. The wreaths will be at Arlington National Cemetery for approximately 4 weeks. The Worcester Wreath Company has not taken any donations for this event in the past, but this was the first year that they began to take donations for the wreaths that they furnish for the headstones. To our disappointment, the cemetery was closed due to the snow. 

Because of the snow, it took us an additional three hours to make it back to Ohio. I guess I had it better than many of the other students who were unable to fly home and were going to have to wait until Monday or Tuesday to fly home. Of course it had to snow on the day I was traveling, but at least we made it home safely.

This past week I was able to travel to Mt. Vernon, the home of our first president. Mt. Vernon is located about 8 miles South of Alexandria and if you do not have a car then you will have to take a bus. It costs 15 dollars to tour the grounds of the estate. If you are in Washington, D.C. in the spring, I would recommend going there to walk all of the gardens. I was able to take a 30 minute tour of the mansion, which was very informative and interesting. After I toured the house I walked to the back of the house, which overlooks the Potomac River. The area on the opposite side of the river is a national park, so the area has been able to maintain its original landscape over all these years.

I then made my way to the tomb of George and Martha Washington. Before George Washington’s death, he had picked out a location in which he wanted a large tomb constructed to hold family members. Upon George Washington’s death, the new tomb had not yet been constructed, so his body was placed in an older tomb on the grounds. A few years later the new tomb was constructed and his body was moved to where it rests now.

There were also a number of buildings surrounding the mansion. There were stables, kitchens, slave quarters, and barns. There were also a number of animals on the grounds including sheep and cows. One of the most interesting animals that was there was a camel...yes, a camel. When George Washington lived at Mt. Vernon, he decided to bring in a camel one year and the tradition has apparently stuck. There was also a large museum dedicated to George Washington, filled with artifacts from his life.

I was also able to go to the National Mall to see the Capitol Christmas Tree. The Capitol Christmas Tree is located on the west side of the Capital and has been a tradition sense 1964. This year the tree came from Arizona and is decorated with 5,000 ornaments, which were made by children from Arizona. Each year, the Speaker of the House lights the Christmas tree. I was unable to make it down to see the tree at night, but I was able to during the day, so if you’re in D.C. during Christmas make sure to go to the Capitol at night to see the tree.
             

Snow in DC

I am used to snow in Ohio, but I was surprised to see the snow in D.C. at this time of the year. When we woke up my friends and I headed to the top of the apartment building to check out the first snowfall in D.C. this year.    

I was pretty happy that it was snowing and I headed down to the Mall to take some pictures of it snowing. I was also able to go to the United States Capitol with one of my friends who is interning there. We were able to walk around the Capitol and go places that the normal tours don’t show you. We were able to go to the basement of the Capitol and see the hallways, which lead to a number of the adjacent Senate buildings to allow members of Congress to walk from building to building without going outside. We traveled from floor to floor in the elevators and were able to walk some of the hallways, which have huge paintings of past political leaders on them. 

The best part of our visit was when we were able to walk out on the steps of the Capitol. Standing on the steps of the Capitol, I was surprised of the great view I had looking out onto the National Mall. Most people will not be able to freely travel the halls of the Capitol, but I would recommend going to the Capitol to take one of the general tours. On the tours you would be able to walk through the Rotunda and walk around Statuary Hall. 

From the Capitol we walked to the White House to see the National Christmas Tree. Once we arrived at the National Christmas Tree, I was surprised to see the number of people there and everything that was going on. There was a stage with people tap dancing to Christmas music, children talking to Santa Claus, and model trains. Surrounding the National Christmas Tree were smaller trees representing all 50 states, the five territories and the District of Columbia. All 57 trees are lit form dusk till 11 pm in order to help conserve money. The decorations on the Christmas trees are enclosed in plastic bags to help preserve them. There are a number of performances every night of the week and no tickets are required to attend these events. The National Christmas Tree was planted on the Ellipse in 1978 and is currently 46 years old. I thought that it was interesting that the same tree is decorated year after year.

If you are here during the winter I would recommend going to the South Lawn of the White House to see the National Christmas Tree. 

While interning with The Washington Center we are encourage to become civically engaged. I was able to participate in the 2009 Help the Homeless Walkathon, which helped to raise money for the homeless in D.C. I was able to serve breakfast for members of N Street Village; an organization that helps to provide underprivileged women with a place to stay and provides them various other support programs. On the day of the walkathon we met outside the Old Post Office Pavilion and ate breakfast together. Then as a group we walked to the National Mall to participate in the walk. The walk started on the National Mall and made its way around the Jefferson Memorial and back to the National Mall. This was a great opportunity to help make a difference in peoples lives and a great deal of good will come to the homeless in the city because of this walk.

The next day two of my friends, Kyle, Jack, and I decided to go to the National Zoo. It was a very nice day and pretty warm for this time of the year, so it was a great place to go walk around outside and enjoy the weather. I soon found out that we were not the only ones who thought it was a good opportunity to go to the zoo, because it was packed. The main exhibit at the zoo was the panda bears. The pandas are on loan from China and will soon be going back, so it was a good chance to see them before they go back.

The best part about the zoo was that it was free and the next best thing was the lions and tigers. There was only one of each, which was kind of disappointing, but still cool. The tiger was walking around, but the lion was sitting there chewing on a bone.

About a week before we went to the zoo a baby deer managed to jump into the lion cage and the hunt was on. The lions attacked the deer, but the deer was able to get away and the zookeepers were able to get the deer away from the lions. The deer suffered a great deal of wounds from the lions and had to be put down. So much for the cutie and cuddly lions everyone thinks of.

I’m not really into birds and don’t really like them at all, especially all the pigeons that are everywhere here, but I was pretty excited to be able to see the eagles. They are surprisingly big. My friend Jack was very excited about going to the petting zoo. To his disappointment most of the animals just stayed in the back of their cages and wanted nothing to do with the hoards of kids. All in all we had a great time at the zoo and if the weather is nice, this is a great place to go on a Sunday afternoon.

In the past month I have been able to go on a few field trips with the other interns at NCIS. We were able to go to the Pentagon and take a tour of the massive military complex. I know the pentagon looks big from the outside, but once inside I was able to see just how big it really is. When we got inside of the Pentagon we were broken into smaller groups and were guided by honor guard members. Those who give the tours are active members of the military and were chosen for this job because of their outstanding actions in the military. They have to go through an intensive course and have to be able to give the entire tour, which last about an hour, walking backwards without running into anyone or anything. We were lead down a number of halls with display cases lining the sides. It was similar to a museum with memorabilia and information about important military events in US history. The tour was short, but very interesting and it was great to actually have been able to be inside of the Pentagon.

We were also able to go to the CIA and were given a presentation on job opportunities within the agency. We were not given a tour of the facility, but we were able to go inside and see the CIA Memorial Wall. The CIA Memorial Wall has 83 stars engraved in it to represent the individuals who have died in the line of duty. Below the stars there was a book with the names of about half of those individuals and the dates that they were killed. We then listened to a number of individuals talk about what their particular department does. After the presentation we were then able to talk with some of the current interns and new hires to learn about their backgrounds and how they were able to obtain their position. It was great to be able to go to the CIA, which is a place that not too many people are able visit.

One of the most interesting places that the other interns and I were able to go to was the Baltimore Medical Examiner's Office. We were given a brief introduction as to what the examiners do and how they conduct their investigations. We were then led down to a room with a number of bodies to watch the examiners and their staff conduct autopsies. I have never been exposed to anything like this and I was surprised that I was not bothered by the sounds and smells. There were individuals who had died for a number of reasons, including stabbings and strangulation. We were able to watch the whole process of conducting the autopsy and ask the examiners any questions we had. It was also nice to know that I will not be bothered by these types of things when I encounter them in the future.

NCIS is a great place to intern because of the experience gained at work and the number of trips we are able to take to gain a broader understanding of the different career paths that can be taken.

Good to be home…

On Thursday I was able to fly back home to be with my family for Thanksgiving. It was nice to be back home and see my family and also to get out of the city for once. One of the best parts about being home was the fact that I was able to drive my truck. I have been here 3 months and have only driven once since. I was able to go shoot every day, which was great.  

One thing about living in D.C. is that the airport is so close to where we live. I am just one Metro stop away from Reagan National Airport, which makes it easy to get there without a car. Many of my friends were able to leave a few days early from their internships to have a few extra days back home and most of the internships have no problem allowing you to go home early. So you shouldn’t have a problem taking off work if you have a good reason to be leaving.  

I didn’t have to work the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and decided to go walk around D.C. for a little while. I ended up at the Supreme Court and was able to go inside and look around. There was not too much to see and do inside of the building, but it was pretty cool to be able to go inside and look around. There were a few displays in the hallways to look at and a few statues, but other than that there wasn’t too much to do. I would still recommend taking the time to go there for the simple fact that it is the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court is located right across the street from the Capitol and the Library of Congress. 

 

I then made my way over to the Library of Congress. The Library of Congress was incredible inside, with marble staircases and pillars. I was a little disappointed that I was not able to actually go inside of the rooms where the books are kept. I was able to go out on one of the balconies and look down into the circular room where many books are on display. There were rooms that guests are able to go in and view some of the items stored in the Library of Congress. The Gutenberg Bible is on display there and there was also a room there which displayed maps of the world dating back to the 1500’s. The Library of Congress was a very neat place and is right next door to the Supreme Court so if you are here you can go to both of these places even if you only have a few hours.   

I did not go to the Capitol on Wednesday, but it is right across the street and it is easy to gain access too. There is not too much to see and do, but it is the Capitol and a “must go” place if you are visiting D.C. You are able to go into the crypt were George Washington’s body was suppose to be buried in, but never made it there. There are also a number of statues located around the rooms of famous people. These three places are great places to go to and do not take a great deal of time to tour.

So long for now…

This weekend I was able to go to the Newseum, a museum dedicated to the media. This was one of the best museums that I have been to. At first, I thought it might be a little boring and I wasn’t sure if I had just blown $20 on it, but I was surprised how interesting it was. The museum had a number of sections of the Berlin Wall, as well as one of the watch towers from a check point along the wall. Inside the museum was the actual Unabomer’s cabin, as well as newspaper articles from the event. The best exhibit was the Pulitzer Prize display. There were copies off all the images that have been given this award and it was an interesting way to view history through photography. One of the rooms was filled with the front covers of newspapers covering important events throughout American history. In the September 11, display there were hundreds of newspapers reporting on the events, which were displayed 2 stories up the walls and in the center of the display was one of the communication towers from the World Trade Center. The museum is located on Pennsylvania Avenue and from the top of the building you get a great view of the Capitol.

While I was walking around, I walked past the United States Navy Memorial, located just north of the National Archives. Every Monday, The Washington Center has events planned in the afternoon for us to go to. When I get off of work on Mondays, I go to the Navy Memorial and sit outside and eat lunch with some of my friends. There are a number of delis in this area and tons of people go here to sit and eat their lunch outside.

I was heading over to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial and decided to walk past the White House. When I was on the back side of the White House I saw that the National Christmas Tree was already up and people were decorating it. I guess it is that time of year, but I still think it is a little early. I then started heading for the Roosevelt Memorial and right when I got there I looked over towards the Washington Monument and saw that the Presidential Helicopter was landing on the White House lawn. If only I had stayed around the White House for 15 more minutes then I would have been able to see the president getting off the helicopter. However, I did get some good pictures of the helicopter and the Washington Monument in the background.

While walking around the Tidal Basin to the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, you are able to get a good view of the Jefferson Memorial. The Roosevelt Memorial is very different than many of the other memorials. This memorial was not a big structure, but a maze of rock structures with waterfalls in them. The walls were engraved with many of his quotes, which took you through his years as president. It was an interesting memorial, in that it was near the Mall, but it was somewhat secluded with all there trees, rocks and water features.

Cold and wet, but it was worth it…

On Veterans Day I went to Arlington to observe the ceremonies to honor our veterans.  I wanted to make sure that I was able to get a good seat in the amphitheater where the event was to take place, so I arrived in plenty of time.  I was standing outside the gates of Arlington Cemetery at 6:45 am.  I was a little early, but soon after people started coming and the line began to grow.  I was the fifth person in line.  At 8:00 they let us in the gates and directed us to shuttle buses that would take us to the amphitheater.  It was nice to get on the bus because it was about 45 degrees and raining.
 

When I arrived at the amphitheater there were a number of metal detectors that I had to go through.  Once past the metal detectors I could either go to the back of the amphitheater to watch as President Obama laid the wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier or go inside the amphitheater to see the other events.  I decided to go inside where most of the events were to take place.  I sat in the cold rain for two more hours until 10:30.  That is when the United States Air Force Concert Band started to play.  President Barack Obama, the First Lady, Vice-President Joe Biden and his wife arrived and took their seats.  The ceremony began around 11:30 with the National Emblem March, where veterans marched to the front caring flags.  The ceremony began with a prayer for veterans, given by the Director of Veterans Affairs Chaplain Service.

President Obama then spoke for about 10 minutes honoring those individuals who have served in our armed forces.  It was a great opportunity to pay respect to those who have served our country.  There are not many opportunities for the average citizen to personally see and listen to the President speak, so if that is something that interests you, this would be a good way to get the chance.  No tickets are required to attend, so the earlier you arrive the better seat you get.

After the ceremony I was tired, cold, and wet.  However, I am glad that I went because I will probably never have the opportunity to go again.  If you spend a fall semester interning in DC I recommend you take advantage of the privilege to pay your respects and honor those who have served and are now serving our country by attending any of Veterans Day ceremonies that are held in Washington DC.   
     

The leaves are turning and the air is cooler….Fall is here in D.C.

This week I decided to try and get away from the city and Theodore Roosevelt Island was a great place for that. The only way to get to the island is by crossing the long wooden bridge across the Potomac River. There are a few miles of trails that wind through the island with a memorial in the center dedicated to President Theodore Roosevelt. It was nice to be in the woods again because it reminded me a little of home. However, back home when I go hiking in the woods I don’t here planes flying over every 5 min or the constant sound of sirens. It was nice to get away from all the people, if only for an hour.

Just down the road from my apartment in Alexandria, VA is The George Washington Masonic Memorial. The memorial was built by the Freemasons and it was a great place to go and see the city of Alexandria from the top of the tower. Upon entering the temple there is a 30 foot tall sculpture of George Washington. There are free tours throughout the day, which last about an hour. On the tour we traveled up many floors, which depict different aspects of Freemasonry. I knew very little about the Freemasons before I went on this tour, but learned a great deal while there. There is a large collection of items that belonged to George Washington, including the George Washington Family Bible, the chair that he sat in when he was a Freemason, and his desk. At the top of the monument there is an outside observation deck, where you can see the city of Alexandria and Washington, D.C.

The tower was located on the West side of King Street in Alexandria. King Street is filled with restaurants and shops. It is a great place to go and is just outside of DC. I would recommend going to Gadsby’s Tavern. The tavern was built in 1785 and was visited by George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, and many other political figures. This was the location of several receptions and balls held in honor of some of the earlier Presidents of the United States; and a place full of history. Below is a picture taken from the top of the Masonic Memorial looking down King Street in Alexandria.

One of the top five places I have visited while in DC is the National Rifle Association Museum. I am a huge advocate of my Second Amendment rights and it was nice to visit the most active organization trying to protect this right. The museum was filled with thousands of guns which showed the development of guns over the years. There were guns that appeared in famous movies, such as the gun used by Inspector Callahan in the movie Dirty Harry. One of the exhibits showed the evolution of weapons used by the United States Military. The museum is located a little ways outside of D.C., so unless you want to ride the bus for an hour, you better have a car to get there. Still, its is a great place to visit while in the D.C. area.

USS Dwight D. Eisenhower

Last week some of the other interns and I were able to go to Norfolk, VA and take a tour of the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower. It was a great opportunity to get a glimpse of what it would be like to work on such a massive ship. The USS Eisenhower is a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier powered by two nuclear reactors and able to carry 5,000 members. Once on the ship, we were led to a small room commemorating the President that the ship was named after. We were given a tour by the current NCIS agent aboard the ship. He gave us a tour of the brig and his office, which was very small and compact. We then took a long walk up the winding stairs to the top of the bridge, where we were able to see all of the controls of the ship.

We were then lead down to the flight deck and were able to get a better idea of how massive the ship really is. We were able to walk around the flight deck and look at the catapults that help to launch the aircraft off the ship. We then went to the officer’s cafeteria and ate lunch aboard the ship. The food wasn’t bad, a lot better than I imagined. After completing the tour we went back to the NCIS office on the navy yard and sat down and talked with the agents about their duties. It wasa great opportunity to gain some insight as to what it would be like to be an NCIS agent on a ship.

Shooting Range

A few days later we were able to go to the shooting range and meet up with NCIS agents. Back home I go shooting a several times a week, but have not been able to shoot since I have been here, so I have been looking forward to this day. We met in a classroom and were informed about the different guns we would be shooting. We were able to shoot a 12 gauge shotgun, 9mm handgun, .357 handgun, and a MP5 sub-machine gun. We then went out to the range and were given 4,000 rounds of ammunition to shoot! Of course, the first thing I went for was the MP5. We were able to shoot the gun in semi-auto and as we became comfortable with the gun they let us shoot the gun in 3 round burst, then full auto. I was also able to empty the gun in full auto, 30 rounds in 3 seconds. AMAZING. The agents were also able to give me some pointers on different shooting techniques. That was one of the highlights of my time here inDC.

Internship

At my internship I am currently looking over a case dealing with a murder for hire. I am very excited about this since my minor is forensic accounting and I am able to use the information that I have learned in both my major and minor at the same time. I am looking through a mountain of paperwork pertaining to the financial records of individuals. Looking through tons of financial paperwork may not seem like fun, but it is interesting to me and I enjoy it.

On Saturday, my roommate, Dollian, and I decided to go to The Taste of Georgetown. One of the side streets in Georgetown was closed off and a number of local restaurants had booths set up and we were able to sample the food. We had to pay $20 for 5 tickets and each sample cost a ticket. The portions served were huge and I was stuffed by the end. I was able to sample food from Old Glory Bar and Grill, 1789, and Dean & Deluca. Georgetown Cupcake had a booth there and luckily I was able to take some cupcakes home with one of the tickets. Most of the booths had menus available to view and I am pretty sure that I won’t be eating at them; they were a little too pricy for an intern.

After filling up on food we went to the National Museum of Health and Medicine. The museum is not near the Mall and it takes a little while to get there, but it was very interesting. There were very few people inside the museum, which was nice to be able to look at the displays and not have to fight 100 other people, which is common in many of the other museums. I was able to see the bullet that killed President Lincoln, along with a cloth stained with his blood. There was also a huge display depicting the stages of growth in a child’s bone structure from 4 months prenatal to 1 year old. If you are interested in the history and development of microscopes then this is the place for you; I bet there were about 200 of them on display. I liked the display on the army and how the medical field equipment has changed over time to help save wounded soldiers. The museum was out of the way, but if you are going to be interning in DC, then I recommend going to the museum.

On the way back from the museum we decided to make a stop at Ben’s Chili Bowl. It’s a restaurant, but it’s also a huge tourist attraction and it was packed. The founder, Ben, died last week so the place was busier than normal. They serve chili, obviously, chili-dogs, fries, hamburgers and anything that goes along with chili. The food was very good and I plan on going back there in the near future, hopefully it won’t be as busy next time.

Sunday afternoon I went to the National Museum of Crime and Punishment, located in Chinatown. Unlike many of the other museums, this one charges 18 bucks to get in, but it was well worth it. If you are majoring in any type of criminal justice field, then I am sure you will find this place to be very interesting. I was able to see items related to many of the people that I have studied about the last three years of college. Upon entering the museum, the first displays are related to crimes in the Middle Ages, the western expansion, mobsters, and current financial crimes. I liked the exhibit on the Crime bosses of New York and Chicago. There were also several exhibits on prisons and capital punishment. They had an electric chair where over 100 people have been executed and a gas chamber. There are simulators used to train law enforcement officers in driving and shooting that you are able to use. I also liked that there were T.V. monitors playing the show NCIS, sense I am interning with NCIS.

One of the best parts about the museum was that the show America's Most Wanted uses the basement for the taping of the show. I was able to walk around the set and see information about the people that have been brought to justice because of the show. There was lots of information on John Walsh, the host of the show. There was a display case filled with awards that he has received because of his work in aiding law enforcement agencies throughout the US.

I'm finally getting used to life as an intern.

This weekend I was able to go to the National Cathedral. On my way to the National Cathedral I decided to walk down Embassy Row, which is a stretch of road with a number of embassies from around the world. It was a nice walk and it was interesting to see all of the buildings. There were also a number of trees along the walk, which might not seem like a big deal, but it was a nice change of scenery after being around all of these buildings for so long.

The National Cathedral is a must see when in DC, even though it is a little ways away from most of the other tourist attractions. Once inside, you are able to walk around the cathedral, which is huge. There are anumber of very old tapestries on the walls and the stained glass windows were incredible.

I was able to go to the Old Post Office Pavilion, a tower that overlooks much of the city. You are able to take the elevator to the top of the tower, which provides a great view of the city. You can take great pictures of the Capitol, which is right down the road. If you are only going to be in the city for a few days an have not made reservations to go to the top of the Washington Monument this is a pretty good substitute to be able to get a good view of the city. I was also able to go to the top of the Washington Monument, which is something that everyone must do. However, it happened to be raining on the day that I went to the top of the monument and there were rain drops all over the window and none of my pictures turned out. Don’t worry, I plan on going back up, so check back in later posts for some of those pictures.

If you are looking for a good place to do some shopping or eating, then Georgetown is a great place to go. There are a number of stores and restaurants to eat at, be prepared because everything will be packed. While I was there my friend and I decided to make a stop at the very popular Georgetown Cupcake. Yes, it is a very popular place. We stood in line for 20 minutes for a cupcake. It was good, but 20 minutes for a cupcake is a little extreme.

When you’re here make sure that you are back to the mall by sunset in order to get some great pictures of the monuments. It’s also neat to see all of the monuments lit up at night. The coolest thing is to look towards the Lincoln Memorial and see the statue of Lincoln lit up. …I’m out.

So… I finally started my internship at the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) cold case homicide unit. The first day I made sure that I was there early and I was….way too early, but I guess that’s better than being late. Upon arrival I was greeted with more paperwork to fill out, but that was expected. Once I was able to get most of the paperwork out of the way and get my badge I was able to go to my department and right away I was tasked with sorting through pictures from a crime scene, which was a lot better than I expected. I’ve only been there a week, but I am pretty happy I am interning with NCIS, it’s not like some other internships which just make you do boring administrative tasks all day long. I am actually helping some of the special agents solve cold case homicides.

The other day at NCIS a few interns and I had to go to the National Archives Library and conduct some research for one of the cases we are working on. That was the ultimate library. There were a number of people there who could help you find what you are looking for and you need help cause there’s no way anyone could just walk in there and find what they are looking for. We had to look through a great deal of microfilm to find the information that we needed. We were also given a government vehicle to drive there, which was sweet. I am happy I wasn’t the one who had to drive; I am way too nervous that someone would hit me and I don’t think NCIS would look too highly upon me if I crushed their new Jeep.

Some of the other things that I do at work is call around to different places and seek out information about people and places, which can be hard. This is cold case homicide so many of the cases are 10 or 20 years old and people move and places go out of business. It is nice to actually be able to do some investigative work and it can be very rewarding when I am able to find information which may help to solve a crime.

There are a number of fieldtrips that we are able to go on including going on a tour of the Pentagon, tour an aircraft carrier, and going to the shooting range. I am pumped about going to the shooting range since I usually shoot three or four times a week back home. Now I have to go four months without shooting, so at least I get to go once.

Check back next week for some more information about the exciting life of a NCIS intern.

Hello!

Welcome to my blog. My name is Matthew, and I hope to give you some good insight as to what the life of an intern in Washington, D.C. is like.

I’ve only been in D.C. a week and I am already starting to get the hang of the city. The first few days were crazy when it came to riding the Metro. It didn’t help at all that part of the Metro was closed for track repairs, which added an extra 45 minutes to my ride. During the week the Metro is packed, and I am not a big fan of being stuffed into a little box with a bunch of other people, but it gets me to where I need to be. If you plan on coming here make sure to always leave earlier than you think you need to cause chances are the Metro will randomly stop on the tracks and what should be a 20-minute ride will turn into a 60-minute ride. When you get off the Metro and are on the escalators to get to the top, stand to the right unless you plan on walking up the escalator. If you are standing on the left side then you will be yelled at and crushed. No joke, so remember that the first time you use the Metro.

The best part about living in D.C. compared to back home in Ohio is the fact that there is always something to see and do. You will never be bored here. There is no way I’m even going to be able to see everything in the short time that I am here. If you like taking pictures than this is a great place for that too.


One of the first places I went to was Arlington National Cemetery, which is quite an experience. The pictures that I’ve seen don’t even begin to explain what an amazing place this is. So many historical individuals that I’ve read about in school have been laid to rest here. It is also and eye opener to see tombstones of people who are younger than I am who have died for this country fighting in Iraq.


The museums here are filled with historic documents and artifacts. The National Archives is the best museum that I’ve been to while in D.C. It is pretty cool to be inches from the United States Constitution or the Bill of Rights. The Smithsonian Museums are interesting and would take days to walk through them all. The National Museum of Natural History is filled with animals and gems, such as the well known Hope Diamond.

This fall I am interning at the Naval Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS). (No, I do not watch the show). I’m looking forward to starting my internship and hopefully in my future posts I will be able to give you a better insight into my day-to-day activities. Ok…stop back next week to find out what NCIS is like.