I Was There!|我在現場!|我在现场!

I Was There!

The 2009 Inauguration festivities started for me on 1/17 with the DNC cocktail at the American History museum.  We were told to come early because this party, unlike all of the other Washington parties, had an open bar and decent food causing it fill up very fast.  It was true.  The food was amazing and the drinks were free.  No big deal for me since I don't drink alcohol anyway, but the venue was awesome.  We got to see Howard Dean speak at the event  and we were able to walk around parts of the museum during the party.   The First Lady's exhibit was the perfect way to add to my excitement of the occasion.  Seeing all the dresses collected made me realize the significance of the inauguration.  In the displays were dresses from Martha Washington and Abigail Adams!  And Mary Lincoln's waist must have measured only about 14 inches!  Portraits and photos of the first ladies lined the walls, ending with Michelle Obama, already up 3 days before the actual swearing in.

The second night was the Hawaii cocktail on the roof of the Hay Adams Hotel.  I was a bit worried about how a bunch of Hawaiians would survive a night on a roof top in 20°F weather but of course it was well tented and the heat was blasting in so hard that I nearly burnt my ankles standing in front of the vent posing for a photo.  It was more like a roof top sauna with all the big men dripping with sweat in their shirts rolled up to the elbows, but the mood was joyous and full of aloha.  Jonathan Cruz was the local entertainment flown in from Hawaii along with tropical flowers, lei's and, of course, there was plenty of good food ( the Hawaiian measure of a good party ). We hung out with Lisa Ling and her husband Paul all evening and took photos with Maya Soetoro-Ng, Barack's sister.  The highlight of my evening was seeing my former classmate, Billy Kenoi, who got kicked out at 7th grade and is now the mayor of the Big Island!

(photo taken from Lisa's blog athttp://www.oprah.com/article/world/peopleandpolitics/pkginauguration/20090119originaugurationlisablog/5)

Monday night we attended the Pearl Gala and Green Ball, our first attempt to party hop in DC.  The food at the Pearl Ball was good, too, but I wasn't able to eat anything because I was too busy taking pictures and doing interviews for the Hawaiian news stations.  After we left the Pearl Gala we tried to take a cab to the Green Ball on the other side of the mall.  With all of the road closures and tight security it was impossible for us to get there by car.  So we had the driver drop us off at the metro and took the subway.  It was a bit awkward in black tie and gown and getting up the escalator proved treacherous as I nearly fell tripping on my gown, but everyone was very nice in the metro, complimenting us on how great we looked.  I guess black tie is normal on the subways during the inaugurations.  We finally got there in time to see Maroon 5 perform and had a wonderful evening despite my aching feet.  Thank goodness we had VIP access where we could sit down.

The next morning we got up at 8:00 and left by 9:00 to get to the mall for the inauguration.  I wanted to get up earlier but Mitch insisted that we would be fine with our exclusive VIP purple tickets. We found the street that led to the entrance for the purple ticket holders and it was 4 blocks long.  And I don't mean single file!  It was shoulder to shoulder packed with people and ambulances trying to squeeze through the crowds as well.  There were times when I could literally pick up my feet and still be held up by the crowd.  Imagine that for 4 blocks!  Apparently there were 50,000 VIP purple ticket holders.  The crowds were anxious but not violent by any means.  Nonetheless, I developed a strategy to jump on top of one of the cars next to us should a stampede break out, rather than on the scafolding on the other side.  I had visions of the scaffolding collapsing under the weight of everybody trying to climb on, but that's just my neurotic tendencies peeking out again.  After about 30 minutes of waiting in the crowd we bumped into ( or rather, pressed up against ) an older couple who, holding silver tickets, told us that they just came from another gate for purple ticket holders on the next block so we tried our luck there.  The crowd was much better but still about 30 people deep when we got there.

There must have been about 2000 people all trying to get through a security gate about 5 feet wide.  They would only allow 50 people at a time as not to clog up the metal detectors and body searches.  I had my doubts about us getting in before the ceremony was over, but we finally did just as they introduced Biden.

When we got to our area we were able to hop over the wall that divided us from the section in front and there was tons of room there.  We watched the rest of the inauguration from about 75 yards away.  Everyone looked like tiny chipmunks from where we stood but we could see the arm movements and stuff as it was all happening.  It was an amazing moment.

Later that night we made the decision to stick to one ball after the fiasco the evening before.  We chose to stay at the Obama Home State Ball, where we met up with our friends Lisa Ling and Paul Song and blew off the Creative Coalition Ball and Spike Lee after party.  There we get to witness Barrack and Michelle's first dance and watched John Cruz perform with Jack Johnson.  The food was pretty horrible and the drinks were cash bar, but worst of all, there were no chairs to sit on at all!  The Hawaiian in me came out after about 45 minutes when the shoes came off.  But I wasn't the only one.  Lisa Ling and some other Hawaiian women walked around with shoes in their hands too.  We didn't stay long at the ball.  Besides my aching feet I wasn't feeling good and had developed a fever.

I didn't bother to buy any souvenirs while I was in DC but I did manage to pick up one hell of a flu on my trip.  Still recovering from that.  But it was all worth it just to say, "I was there!" | 我在現場!

1月17號，我出席DNC雞尾酒會，在美國歷史博物館開始慶祝二零零九年的總統就職典禮。我們被告知要早點來參加派對, 因為這個派對跟其他在華盛頓的派對不同之處在於，它有開放的酒吧跟不錯的食物，所以很快被填滿。真的，食物很棒, 飲料也免費。不過對我無所謂，因為我不喝酒。但那個地點很好，我們能夠看霍華德·迪恩 (Howard Dean) 的演講, 在派對上也有機會在博物館裡到處逛。第一夫人的展覽令我增加了對這個活動的興奮情緒，看見收藏的所有裙子，讓我領悟到就職典禮的意義。其中有瑪莎·華盛頓 (MarthaWashington)和艾比蓋爾·亞當斯(Abigail Adams)的裙子! 而且瑪麗·林肯(Mary Lincoln) 的腰圍應該只有十四寸! 所有第一夫人的畫像和照片都一幅一幅的排在牆壁上, 而最後一幅是米歇爾·奧巴馬(Michelle Obama) 的畫像, 在她宣誓的前三天已經排在牆壁上。

第二天晚上我出席了在海亞當斯飯店(Hay Adams Hotel) 屋頂上舉行的夏威夷雞尾酒會。當初我有點擔心，一群夏威夷人如何能在二十華氏度晚上的屋頂上度過。當然屋頂被帳篷蓋得好好的,而且熱氣都強烈地爆進來，讓我站在通氣口拍照時都差點燒傷了腳腕。那裏比較像一個屋頂桑拿浴，讓所有在滴汗的大男人都要捲起衣服到手肘。可是氣氛依然很歡樂，充滿夏威夷氣氛“aloha”。喬納森克·魯斯是當地的娛樂人士, 從夏威夷來，順便帶來了熱帶花“lei’s”。當然還有很多美味食物(在夏威夷裡代表著好的派對)。我們跟麗莎·玲(Lisa Ling)和她的丈夫保羅(Paul)一起度過晚上，還跟奧巴馬的妹妹瑪亞(Maya Soetoro-Ng)拍照。那天晚上最棒的時刻是我重遇了同學貝利(Billy Kenoi)。七年級時他被學校開除，但現在他是大島的市長!  (照片來自Lisa的blog:http://www.oprah.com/article/world/peopleandpolitics/pkginauguration/20090119originaugurationlisablog/5)

星期一晚上我們參加了Pearl Gala酒會跟Green Ball舞會，我們第一次嘗試在華盛頓開party。Pearl Gala酒會的食物很好吃，可我什麼都不能吃，因為我忙著拍照，還有跟夏威夷的新聞臺做訪問。離開Pearl Gala酒會後，我們試著搭計程車去廣場的另一邊出席Green Ball舞會。可是所有的路都被封了，再加上嚴禁的保安措施，我們無法坐車去，所以搭了地下鐵。感覺有點奇怪，因為我們都穿著黑西裝和禮服，而且搭乘扶手電梯很危險，我幾乎被自己的裙子絆倒。可是有在地鐵的人都很友善，稱讚我們很漂亮。我想在就職典禮的時刻，在地下鐵裡穿黑西裝是很平常的事情。當我們終於到達時，還趕上看魔力紅(Maroon 5)的演出。雖然我的雙腳很痛，還是度過了一個精彩的晚上。能坐在貴賓區真是很榮幸。

第二天早晨我們八點起床，九點就出發到廣場出席就職典禮。我本想早點起床，可是Mitch堅持說，我們拿著專屬貴賓紫色門票，不會有問題。後來我們發現，紫色門票入口的隊排了四個街口那麼長，而且不只一條隊! 肩並肩地擠滿了人，連救護車也試圖擠過人群。有時我還可以走出去，但很多時候都被人群擠著。想像一下，這樣的情況出現在四個街口! 總共大約50,000人拿著專屬貴賓紫色門票。人群很急，但不暴力。儘管如此，如果有驚逃爆發，我會跳到車子上，不會跳到另一邊的棚架上。我在想棚架不能承受所有人的重量，一定會倒下，但這只是我多慮了。我們在人群中等了差不多30分鐘，碰到了一對老一點的情侶，手上拿著門票。他們說從隔壁街口的另外一個紫色門票閘口來，到我們這邊試試運氣。果然人群不那麼擁擠，但這條隊也有30多人在排隊。

有大概2000人要通過5尺長的保安門，他們每次都只讓50人進去，因為不能堵塞金屬探測器和搜身的程序。我本來估計來不及進去看就職典禮，但我們終於在他們介紹拜登(Biden)時到達了。

到了我們的區域後, 我們躍過前面阻隔的圍墻，那邊位置很空。我們在75碼內觀賞了進行中的就職典禮。從我們的位子看，所有人都很象小小的花栗鼠，但還能看到他們的動作，觀看了整個過程。這時刻令人振奮經過了前一天晚上在地下鐵的經歷，當晚我們決定只出席一個舞會。結果我們選了出席奧巴馬家鄉的舞會。我們會合朋友Lisa Ling和Paul Song，去參加了Creative Coalition舞會跟Spike Lee的派對。在那兒, 我們見證了奧巴馬跟米歇爾的第一支舞，還看了喬納森克·魯斯跟傑克·傑克遜(Jack Johnson)一起表演。食物很差，飲料也很貴，最糟糕的是完全沒有椅子坐! 我骨子裡的夏威夷人作風讓我在45分鐘內就脫下鞋子。但我不是唯一的，Lisa Ling跟一些夏威夷女人手裏也拿著她們的鞋子。我們沒有在舞會上逗留很久，除了腳很酸疼，我還覺得不舒服，發燒了。

在華盛頓時我沒有買紀念品，但得到了感冒。正在康復中，但這一切經歷都值得我說"我在現場!"| 我在现场!

1月17号，我出席DNC鸡尾酒会，在美国历史博物馆开始庆祝二零零九年的总统就职典礼。我们被告知要早点来参加派对, 因为这个派对跟其他在华盛顿的派对不同之处在于，它有开放的酒吧跟不错的食物，所以很快被填满。真的，食物很棒, 饮料也免费。不过对我无所谓，因为我不喝酒。但那个地点很好，我们能够看霍华德·迪恩 (Howard Dean) 的演讲, 在派对上也有机会在博物馆里到处逛。第一夫人的展览令我增加了对这个活动的兴奋情绪，看见收藏的所有裙子，让我领悟到就职典礼的意义。其中有玛莎·华盛顿 (MarthaWashington)和艾比盖尔·亚当斯(Abigail Adams)的裙子! 而且玛丽·林肯(Mary Lincoln) 的腰围应该只有十四寸! 所有第一夫人的画像和照片都一幅一幅的排在墙壁上, 而最后一幅是米歇尔·奥巴马(Michelle Obama) 的画像, 在她宣誓的前三天已经排在墙壁上。

第二天晚上我出席了在海亚当斯饭店(Hay Adams Hotel) 屋顶上举行的夏威夷鸡尾酒会。当初我有点担心，一群夏威夷人如何能在二十华氏度晚上的屋顶上度过。当然屋顶被帐篷盖得好好的,而且热气都强烈地爆进来，让我站在通气口拍照时都差点烧伤了脚腕。那里比较像一个屋顶桑拿浴，让所有在滴汗的大男人都要卷起衣服到手肘。可是气氛依然很欢乐，充满夏威夷气氛 “aloha”。乔纳森克·鲁斯是当地的娱乐人士, 从夏威夷来，顺便带来了热带花“lei’s”。当然还有很多美味食物(在夏威夷里代表着好的派对)。我们跟丽莎·玲(Lisa Ling)和她的丈夫保罗(Paul)一起度过晚上，还跟奥巴马的妹妹玛亚(Maya Soetoro-Ng)拍照。那天晚上最棒的时刻是我重遇了同学贝利(Billy Kenoi)。七年级时他被学校开除，但现在他是大岛的市长!  (照片来自Lisa的blog:http://www.oprah.com/article/world/peopleandpolitics/pkginauguration/20090119originaugurationlisablog/5)

星期一晚上我们参加了Pearl Gala酒会跟Green Ball舞会，我们第一次尝试在华盛顿开party。Pearl Gala酒会的食物很好吃，可我什么都不能吃，因为我忙着拍照，还有跟夏威夷的新闻台做访问。离开Pearl Gala酒会后，我们试着搭计程车去广场的另一边出席Green Ball舞会。可是所有的路都被封了，再加上严禁的保安措施，我们无法坐车去，所以搭了地下铁。感觉有点奇怪，因为我们都穿着黑西装和礼服，而且搭乘扶手电梯很危险，我几乎被自己的裙子绊倒。可是有在地铁的人都很友善，称赞我们很漂亮。我想在就职典礼的时刻，在地下铁里穿黑西装是很平常的事情。当我们终于到达时，还赶上看魔力红(Maroon 5)的演出。虽然我的双脚很痛，还是度过了一个精彩的晚上。能坐在贵宾区真是很荣幸。

第二天早晨我们八点起床，九点就出发到广场出席就职典礼。我本想早点起床，可是Mitch坚持说，我们拿着专属贵宾紫色门票，不会有问题。后来我们发现，紫色门票入口的队排了四个街口那么长，而且不只一条队! 肩并肩地挤满了人，连救护车也试图挤过人群。有时我还可以走出去，但很多时候都被人群挤着。想像一下，这样的情况出现在四个街口! 总共大约50,000人拿着专属贵宾紫色门票。人群很急，但不暴力。儘管如此，如果有惊逃爆发，我会跳到车子上，不会跳到另一边的棚架上。我在想棚架不能承受所有人的重量，一定会倒下，但这只是我多虑了。我们在人群中等了差不多30分钟，碰到了一对老一点的情侣，手上拿着门票。他们说从隔壁街口的另外一个紫色门票闸口来，到我们这边试试运气。果然人群不那么拥挤，但这条队也有30多人在排队。

有大概2000人要通过5尺长的保安门，他们每次都只让50人进去，因为不能堵塞金属探测器和搜身的程序。我本来估计来不及进去看就职典礼，但我们终于在他们介绍拜登(Biden)时到达了。

到了我们的区域后, 我们跃过前面阻隔的围墙，那边位置很空。我们在75码内观赏了进行中的就职典礼。从我们的位子看，所有人都很象小小的花栗鼠，但还能看到他们的动作，观看了整个过程。这时刻令人振奋经过了前一天晚上在地下铁的经历，当晚我们决定只出席一个舞会。结果我们选了出席奥巴马家乡的舞会。我们会合朋友Lisa Ling和Paul Song，去参加了Creative Coalition舞会跟Spike Lee的派对。在那儿, 我们见证了奥巴马跟米歇尔的第一支舞，还看了乔纳森克·鲁斯跟杰克·杰克逊(Jack Johnson)一起表演。食物很差，饮料也很贵，最糟糕的是完全没有椅子坐! 我骨子裡的夏威夷人作风让我在45分钟内就脱下鞋子。但我不是唯一的，Lisa Ling跟一些夏威夷女人手里也拿着她们的鞋子。我们没有在舞会上逗留很久，除了脚很酸疼，我还觉得不舒服，发烧了。

在华盛顿时我没有买纪念品，但得到了感冒。正在康复中，但这一切经历都值得我说"我在现场!"