Hiya! My name’s Hashem Hamdy, and I am one of the TWC summer term bloggers.
Let me introduce myself. I am a fourth-year political science student at Carleton University in Ottawa. Don’t know Ottawa? It’s in Ontario. Ontario? Canada, do you know Canada? Wonderful. While in D.C., I will be working in a nondescript government relations (read: lobbying) firm as a part of the political leadership program. I’m living out at Braddock Road in Alexandria, Virginia, which I will discuss later.
The Washington Center experience has thus far been pretty fantastic. Having never been to the United States, much less Washington, I largely left Canada without any serious preconceived notions about the United States. I was given consistent warning about was the summer heat in The District. Washington is healthily under the Mason-Dixon Line, and the several 100+ degree days we’ve had in the last week have consistently reminded me of that. Aside from the heat, Americans are nice, the city is beautiful, things are cheap and Chipotle Mexican Grill is delicious. I love D.C.
The Wednesday arrival day gives TWC interns about a week to get oriented and see the city, as well as a weekend to ensure that all of the local bars are in working order (hint: they are). Like many interns, I’ve used this time to sightsee, shop, figure out the Metro system (it’s great!) and get to know my roommates and fellow interns. Most importantly, make sure to get a SmarTrip card! It’s available at any CVS Pharmacy for $10, it’s rechargeable and you can track your balance online, and if you lose it or it’s stolen you can cancel it and keep your balance. There are many important things all interns need to do in their first week, and most of them are mentioned above. Of course, all of the standard DC landmarks need a visit; the Lincoln Memorial, Washington Monument, White House, Supreme Court, Congress and pretty much every other Washington icon will always be packed with tourists, but don’t let that dissuade you. You’re an intern: you are better than them. Just keep your camera in a briefcase and wear some chinos and nobody will be the wiser. Never tell anybody you’re an intern, though. Interns are right above tourists and right below the homeless guys outside Union Station in the pecking order of DC.
Yours truly on the Mall
I made a few superfluous trips of my own desire. A District icon, Five Guys Burgers and Fries (actually started in Virginia, to VA’s credit) is a must visit for anybody visiting DC. It is a near-religious experience, as well as an unhealthy one. A regular cheeseburger and fries with a drink will set you back about $10 and 2,500 calories, but you can get away with it by engaging in a horrendous amount of walking, like I did in my first week. Other than that, I stumbled upon the flight of stairs from the climactic final scene of The Exorcist, which for those who haven’t seen the film, is the place where Satan dies. I’ve also made it a goal to visit and photograph every street-level embassy in Washington, so I’ve been running around Kalorama and Embassy Row a bit. The most awesomest embassy is, of course, the Canadian one, but I’ve been quite a variety of them so far, from Turkey to Madagascar to Argentina to Australia to Togo.
Heaven in a cardiac infarction
The Washington Center held two days of orientation, with a “casual” orientation session on Thursday and a more professional one on Friday. We were introduced to our program advisors, and I was very happy to finally meet these people we had been corresponding with for so long. My advisor, Kevin, seems like a great guy and I feel fine working with him. However, the Thursday session offered interns very basic professional tips as “dress professionally” or “don’t come to work drunk.” I was, of course, planning on doing the latter of these things, so this was a bit of a letdown for me. We had an “icebreaker” game called “Zip Zap Zoop”, which essentially amounted to saying “Zip” “Zap” or “Zoop” while pointing at people. Naturally, we did so a circle, as required by ancient law governing all “icebreaking” sessions.
Xenophon, Ancient Greek philosopher and historian best known for his master work, On Tyranny, and his lesser-known work, On Icebreaking, a classic treatise that theorized the circular nature of icebreaking sessions, something later proven by Copernicus.
The Friday orientation session gave us some more substantial information. Unlike the “casual” session, which focused on programming and professionalism, the Friday session gave us an idea of what DC was like, with a presentation from NOMA, or North of Massachusetts Avenue and a presentation from the DC Police. The latter session stuck with me, notably the phrase “urban common sense”, which really does need to be exercised in D.C.
As I said before, I am out at the Braddock Road residence. TWC really did a great job with a lot of things- the furniture is great, the TVs are all HD, and all the kitchen appliances and the washer/dryer work. Much to my delight, the Internet connection is extremely fast. Looking at the other housing units out at Braddock Station, ours is one of the best. However, you should definitely bring your own cookware, as ours consisted of a plastic spatula from what I believe is an Easy-Bake-Oven. TWC will replace anything that’s missing, but if you’re particular about your cooking like we are in my apartment, heed my previous advice.
Additionally, our apartment was infested with several different species of parasite or microorganism, such as mildew, mold, and most importantly, bedbugs, fifteen of which we found on one mattress. To TWC’s credit, the fumigator was here the next day and all of our mattresses are being replaced, but if I am to be infested with parasites, I would rather it be my own doing.
Just to finish off, our RAs, Chazzy and Diane, are awesome. They’re extremely friendly and relaxed, and all the “hiccups” (especially the ones that live where we sleep) have been taken care of promptly. Internships start this week, and while I’m keeping mine on the DL, I’ll be sure to keep everyone posted on what I’m hearing from other interns and other internship sites.
Welcome to The District.
-Hashem
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