I arrived at my friend's house just in time to shower and dress for a pre-inauguration house party. There were several people at the party that I had not seen since FAMU. Some people were planning to go to the inauguration, while others were unable to go due to their flights. After the party, we took a friend to BWI. We finally got back to the house around 4am and I decided I would take a nap for a couple of hours. Before I laid my head down, my friend, who had been watching the news downstairs and saw the reports about the chaos already happening at the metro stations, told me I should probably just head to the Metro station without the nap. I had not slept since Sunday night, but I reluctantly got dressed (in layers).
I went to the Metro station and the ticket machines seemed possessed. I stood in line waiting to buy my ticket, and it flashed "Out of Service" as soon as I stepped up. I moved to the next line. Another machine would not allow a woman to enter her fare. I finally got mine, and walked through the gates to wait on the train. I had observed from the parking lot that the cars at the end of the train were practically empty, and people were crowding in to the middle. I got my seat at the end of the train and proceeded to DC. I closed my eyes and tried to sleep. I opened my eyes every time the doors opened and saw more and more people in my car. I embarked from the train at Judiciary Square station. It was 6:48am when I walked out on the street level.
There was a huge crowd on the street that was not moving. They would not allow anyone to walk towards the Mall until 7am. Those with tickets were directed one way and the others went another way. I did not have a ticket. There were volunteers on several corners giving us directions as we walked. We walked almost an hour on streets, through a tunnel, up hills, around corners, and finally onto the lawn of the Mall. There was no security check for the unticketed area. We were greeted by rows of porta-potties with lines already formed in front of them.
It was a few minutes before 8am. We still had a few hours until the ceremony started. What do a million people do in 20 degree weather for 3 hours? Keep moving. I walked onto the lawn and moved as close to the front as I could. I stood in front of the red castle in the first section of the unticketed section. I could see the Capitol in the distance ahead of me, the Washington Monument was behind me, and the museums of the Smithsonian flanked the sides. The concert from the night before was showing on the screens. I had a hard time viewing the jumbotron with all the tall people in front of me, but I could hear everything clearly. Everyone sang and danced to keep their spirits up and their bodies warm.
After over 2 hours of standing there marching in place to keep my blood circulating, I could no longer feel my toes. I was so afraid I had frostbite. The rest of my body was pretty warm because I dressed in layers, but I failed to layer my socks. That was a very dumb move for me. I will never ever do that again. I had to find some toe warmers. I left my spot up front and walked out to the sidewalk. I spotted a couple of Boy Scout volunteers and asked them where I could get toe warmers (heated packs you place in your shoes or gloves). They told me they were being sold at the concession tent. I walked the length of the Mall all the way to the back where the tent was. I didn't realize how close I was to the front until I took that walk. I stood in line for an hour and watched the procession of dignitaries on the screen as I waited. I heard Aretha Franklin singing, but could not see her just as I stepped up to order hot chocolate and toe warmers. I was so hurt when they told me they didn't have the toes warmers. I walked away just in time to see Barack Obama take the Oath of Office. I found a spot better than the original one (I could see the jumbotrons clearly) and stood amongst my fellow Americans beaming with pride, tears streaming down my face. It was so cold I thought my tears would freeze.
Everyone around me waved the flags the Boy Scouts passed out while cheering and celebrating this moment in our history. There was complete silence as President Barack Obama gave a very commanding speech. I was happy to share the experience with all the people around me. After the speech, some of the crowd started walking off the field. As I walked, I listened to the inauguration poem, and then the prayer by the legendary Rev. Joseph Lowery.
All 2 million people poured out from the Mall at the same time. Some people decided to visit the museums and stood in the long lines to enter. For those of us trying to get to the trains/buses to take us home, we were told to walk to 14th St. to exit, but they were not allowing anyone out that way. While I was walking, I finally found someone selling toe warmers, and put them in my shoes. I turned around and walked east going against the crowd headed west. I couldn't get out that way either. We couldn't walk north because Constitution St. was closed. I stopped to ask a few police how we were supposed to get out, and they said, "I don't know." It was pure chaos. There was no organization around clearing people out of the area - no signs, no volunteers giving directions, nothing. We felt like trapped animals. I found a set of stairs near a museum and stood there to get out of the crowd while I tried to figure out my next move. The crowd started thinning, and I decided I would walk south back across the Mall. I followed the crowd walking south where there were vendors lined up hawking their wares. I skimmed a few and kept walking when I didn't see anything I wanted. I looked at the map to find the closest Metro stations on the south side. I went to L'Enfant Plaza and was mystified by the crowd I saw waiting to enter the station.
crowd waiting to enter station
I was tired, cold, hungry, my body was sore from all that standing and walking, and I needed to go to the bathroom. I was on the verge of tears. I just wanted to get on a train and get out of there. I was surrounded by thousands of people, exhaust fumes from the tour buses, and the piercing sirens of police cars and ambulances parting the ocean of people in the streets every few minutes. I kept walking down 7th St., and I saw a line of people. I asked someone why they were in line. It was the line for the Federal Center Metro station with the yellow/green lines. I needed to be on the red line to get back to Rockville, but I was willing to get on any train that would take me out of the area. I could read the map to figure out where to go from there as long as I wasn't outside anymore. The line was wrapped around the building on 7th and down E St. I stood in the line which seemed to move a couple of feet every few minutes. After waiting in line for about an hour or more, I was finally on the escalator down to the platform. I walked through the doors of the train where I stood holding the straps for 2 stops before changing trains at Gallery Pl./Chinatown. I stood in the line to enter the platform for the red line to Shady Grove. I walked all the way to the end of the platform where the crowds usually don't go. The doors opened and I sat down. I finally exhaled. The ride to Rockville was pretty calm. I actually nodded off for a bit. I was so exhausted.
Would I do it again? Was it worth it? I would not have missed the inauguration even with all the drama and stress surrounding it. I endured the freezing temperatures for hours, walked for miles, and went without sleep on behalf of my unborn children. I want to be able to tell them I was there between the US Capitol and the Washington Monument on the day that President Barack Obama was sworn in. The people who participated in the March on Washington witnessed Dr. Martin Luther King's famous "
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