Day at the Inauguration

INAUGURATION OF THE 44th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA - BARACK OBAMA

Everything started as a regular day; for me anyway. I woke up at 1am to go to work, and all I could think of was the day that was ahead of me. That day was the 20^th of January of 2009: The day of The Inauguration of the 44^th President of the United States of America: BARACK OBAMA.

I ended work at 3 am, quite in a hurry to get back home, change into warm clothes as the day was announced to be a very chilly one. I slip on my jeans, put a shirt on, 2 sweaters, my hat, my warm jacket, grab my mp3 player, a book, my wallet, car keys, and here I am, ready to brave what is going to become one of the most memorable day of my life.

Getting to the metro station at 3.45am was an easy task, although the parking entrance was quite disorganized. A line of people of about 200 yards was already waiting for me, so I decide to park close to the end of the line, so I would to the back of the line quickly… I could see people try to park close to the metro entrance, which was pointless, because they would then need to go up to the end of the line. Anyway, the metro entrance opened at 4am and the line was already twice as long as I went I got here. Getting to the trains was pretty smooth. Many people who hadn’t purchased the tickets in advanced were grouped around the ticketing stations. Having purchased mine the week before, I proceeded directly to the train, but the cars were packed, so I figured that standing up wasn’t after all a so bad idea.

I exited the train at the “Federal Triangle” metro station, and knowing not which way to go, I decided I would follow the herd until I meet with an authority to ask for directions to get to the parade route. The week before, I had done some research on the internet about the inauguration and found out that people who would decide to go to the National Mall to hear BARACK OBAMA being sworn-in as well as his speech, would not be able to attend the parade. So my goal was to be at the parade, as I would have a closer spot than I would at the National Mall, and I didn’t feel like watching BARACK OBAMA on the screen. The parade would be more close and personal.

So, I followed the “herd” to what I though was a checkpoint to get to the parade route, but a man, looking like a secret service agent, tall guy, black pants, black shoes, black hat, black trench coat, little hear piece going from his ear to his jacket, told us very courteously to turn around and take another way for the parade route. People even took pictures with him and he accepted.

I looked around, fascinated by these huge buildings staring at me from above as the orange night sky sent a cold breeze down, brushing my face. And I ask 1, 2, 3 and more police officers to direct me to the closest entry point to get to the parade. Some were telling me to go back the way I came, others telling me that they were here to help for the Inauguration, that they were from New-York City, not knowing how to show me the direction. So, after 1 hour was roaming around back and forth in the streets of Washington, DC, I realized that my plans were starting to shift to a different direction that I had imagined. Being a little disappointed, I started to take the road leading to the National Mall, where everyone was rushing to, thinking at that point that I could have had a better spot if I had gone directly there after exiting the metro station.

To my surprise, I was able to clear a path into the crowd and I finally ended about 10 feet from the fence guarded by police, as beyond that point, only people with tickets could get to. I could have a great view at the Capitol Building, and this was the closest point I could get to without Inauguration ticket, which only 5,000 people got a hold of anyway. So out of the hundreds of thousands of people who were going to be here that day, I knew I couldn’t get any better. And being a Frenchman in the USA on that day meant a lot.

People around me were so enthusiastic that I could feel the unity in the crowd, our goal that day was of one, listening to a man who would bring hope not only to the American people but also to the people of the world. The thought of waiting here, in the cold, for the next 7 hours until the swearing-in of BARACK OBAMA rapidly faded away as people began chanting songs, I could see the happiness on people’s faces, their will to go on and seize the frigid day. The whole world was represented in this flood of humanity: families, couples, many came on their own, like me, teenagers, college students, Blacks, Whites, Latinos… People on that day forgot about their personal space, we were all inches from each other, sometimes stepping on someone else’s toes, even elder people were trying to stay straight holding on younger stranger’s shoulders, but everything was fine, we were all here for that same undeniable purpose. Teenagers were sitting on the ground in the middle of the crowd to keep warm, an older bearded man opened a book and started to read out loud “The dreams Of My Father”, written by BARACK OBAMA.

The night was still dark and people’s breaths could be seen rising above the crowd as the spotlights were shinning on the hundreds of people already here. We were all waiting for that sun to rise, thinking that it would warm us up, but when it finally came up, so did a little breeze, and it got even colder, people were jumping up and down, stomping their feet to try to keep away from hypothermia. I had already been here for over 3 hours, and it seemed like I had been here forever. Some people were trying to clear a passage through the wall of humans, but in vain, it was our territory now, and no one could get through.

At around 10am, I started to hear music on the speakers which stood right behind me, overlooking the crowd of now hundreds of thousands of people. I reached into my pocket to grab my camera; I elevated my arm as high as possible and took a few pictures and videos to immortalize the moment, and was not surprised to witness that sea of people, but being here, among hundreds of thousands of them was overwhelming.

I started to think “yes, Stéphan, you are indeed in the United States, celebrating what most people would only dream of: the Inauguration of The President of United States of America: BARACK OBAMA.

People were being announced on the giant screen, which was set about 400 yards away; congressmen, senate people, all the very important people of Washington DC. I knew then that it was only a matter of time before the still President Elect BARACK OBAMA would appear and be sworn-in as the President of the United States of America. Many groups starting to chant OBAMA’s name were soon followed by an army of voices elevating the atmosphere to a level I had never witnessed, my heart was not at rest anymore, I could feel the adrenaline being pumped through my veins.

When Mr and Mrs Clinton appeared, the crowd started to cheer, the moment was very close. Then arrived the actual President of the United States Georges W. Bush, some boos could be heard emanating from the crowd, but it wasn’t as bad nor as long as I thought it would be, which was a good thing, after all, he had been the President for 8 years, and respect was due, we had to let aside old grudges and think ahead to the years to come.

The first big cheer came when Sasha and Malia Obama arrived. Finally here, the moment that everyone had awaited for: the appearance of the President Elect BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA and his wife Michelle. People were cheering so loud that all I could hear was a loud roar. It felt so wonderful and that’s when I understood what was really happening, my chest felt so weird at that point, I thought that I felt some tears come up but nothing, I knew it was the Moment, the Time where everything was going to change, it was unimaginably grandiose.

Then the swearing-in started, there was a great silence, only people sniffing could be heard in the crowd, but the cold wasn’t a factor anymore, I looked around and I could see many wipe tears away, and when it was over, people cheered even louder then earlier, and the crowd started to say his name “OBAMA! OBAMA! OBAMA!…” and at this point, that was it, BARACK OBAMA was the President of the United States of America. It was done, the first Black American President of the United States of America had been sworn-in, and I was here, I was part of history, and it felt tremendously amazing to be here that day.

After his speech, and more cheering, I decided to leave the National Mall in direction of the nearest metro station, because I thought that the parade route would be closed by now, as they might have reached the maximum occupancy, so I followed the herd once more, it was an insane sight, streets were flooded with people, ambulances trying to make their way through the crowd was taking forever. Once I reached the first metro station “L’Enfant Plaza”, hundreds of people were already waiting to enter the station, the line was on a stand still. After 15 minutes of waiting, a guy came to tell us that there would be a 2 hour wait for the people who were at the back of the line, and I was part of it, so I decided to find another station, knowing that it would be the same ordeal. I then decided to find the other entrance of that station which was located on 7^th street, but once I got there, the entire intersection was crowded with people trying to get into the station, and I could see people going any direction in search of a station, just roaming the streets in vain, sidewalks, streets were totally packed with human beings. I stood there, in the middle of the nonsense, took some time to think and then went back toward the mall to try to reach Union Station, watch a movie, hoping that no one would have the same idea, which, of course, was a pretty laughable thought, but I had to try anyway… Then, I walked down Maryland Avenue, passed by the Museum of the American Indian and when I arrived at Constitution Avenue, the road was still closed, and people were waiting, so I decided to ask a police officer what was happening. He told me that the parade was running late, then I thought “I did not miss the parade”, the motorcade still hasn’t shown, and it was 3.15pm by then, they were 45 minutes late as the parade was due to start at 2.30pm. I grabbed my mp3 player and tuned to the NPR news radio, which indeed confirmed that the President was still inside the Capitol, and I heard that Ted Kennedy had a seizure during the luncheon which is why the parade was delayed. Finally, after 30 minutes of waiting, the motorcade arrived, followed by foot soldiers, different kinds of units (sorry for my lack of American military knowledge), then in the distance, the Presidential limousine showed itself, move at a very slow pace, coming down Constitution Avenue… People were ecstatic, some were cheering, others just screaming their lungs out. It took about 5 minutes for the limousine to arrive at our level, so I started to film, I was so close to the actual event, it was nerve wracking. I was shaking like a leaf, adrenaline mixed with the shivering temperatures didn’t help, here I was, arm up camera in hand, filming. At first, I could see a hand waving from inside the car, then, as it got closer, I realized that it was the First Lady, Michelle Obama, yes, yes, there she was, I was waiving back, so was everyone else, this was the moment where everything just felt great, that exact time when I saw her, with my own eyes, she was about 20 feet away, it was an amazing feeling, and she was very graceful, a big smile on her face, a genuine smile. And that was it, the car continued its way, but it felt like the time froze for a few seconds and nothing else mattered. I knew then that BARACK OBAMA must have been on the other side of the vehicle, but badly as I wanted to see him, I felt totally satisfied to have seen the First Lady. Not many Americans, let alone French people will ever have that privilege to see either of them in person.

My day ended there, on great note, not only I participated at the Inauguration at the National Mall, but I also had the luck to see the parade. The parade then continued, but I had seen what I came here for, so I went back toward the Mall hoping that the craziness had cleared, and indeed, I arrived at Federal Center metro station, and it took me only about 10 minutes to enter the station, and from there, got into a train and went back home.

The day started like another, but it ended being one of the greatest, if not the greatest day of my life… Well, put aside the birth of my son of course…