Day 1, DC

Well,

Today was my send-off and meet-and-greet. This morning I milked the goats one last time and finished packing up. We had a late breakfast at IHOP and then went to the hotel in DC.

Our schedule today was fairly relaxed. We had a some time to meet each other and then went on a "team building" scavenger hunt across DC. From what I've seen so far, this is a pretty neat group of people. Their interests range from space systems, to human trafficking, to neuroscience, to music theory. It seems that everyone is excited, motivated, and passionate about their chosen fields of study, which is, of course, no surprise. I've had a lot of fun just listening to everyone describe what they are going to be doing.

After the scavenger hunt, two former Marshall Scholars, the director of the Congressional Budget Office, Peter Orzag, and Jason Bordoff, of the Brookings Institute, gave guest lectures on the role of the CBO and their response to the challenges facing America's economy. I'm no economist, but is was all very fascinating never-the-less.

We then split into small dinner groups and were taken out to eat with members of the British Council. My group went to Tabard's, the restaurant made famous in Grisham's The Pelican Brief. Breaching all conventions of dinner etiquette, we talked politics, the role of music in post-apartheid South Africa, the effect that hosting the Olympics had on China, the anti-American sentiment in South Korea, and the changing political landscape of British youth. Again, I was a little out of my element, but I was able to follow most of the conversation - at any rate, the food and company were both excellent.

I'm getting ready for bed now. My roommate, Matt, is from Annapolis and will be studying Terrorism and Security at the University of Belfast. He seems pretty nice and we are getting along well.

I think that's pretty much all the news from today. Tomorrow we have a busy day planned, so I'm going to read some and then hit the hay.

Goodnight!


Current Theme Song: Faith My Eyes, by Caedman's Call.
Current Book: How Should We Then Live, by Frances Schaeffer.