Aaron and Anne-Sophie

We braved the freezing temperatures to attend the “We are One” Inaugural Concert for Obama at the Lincoln Memorial. No matter what happens or what you think of Obama, his inauguration will always be seen as a historic moment. Perhaps only FDR’s and JFK’s inaugurations have caused so much excitement. After 400 years of struggle, an African-American will hold the highest office in the country. It was quite a scene to see a large portion of the estimated 1-4 millions in town to see Obama’s inauguration on the same steps of where millions have marched for change before. On the day before King’s celebrated birthday, it was an amazing juxtaposition to see Obama speaking at the same place where MLK Jr. gave his “I have a Dream” speech, which helped make Obama’s future presidency a possiblity. The vibe of the crowd, despite the cold, was of anticipation and hope for Obama, and relief from the end of Bush. To make the moment even more special was the number of celebrities speaking and performing at the concert. It was like going to the Oscars or Grammies. It included Denzel Washington, Bruce Springstein, U2, Shakira, Usher, Beyonce, Stevie Wonder, Tiger Woods, Steve Carrell, Jack Black, Will I Am, Sheryl Crow, Tom Hanks, Garth Brooks, Queen Latifah, Mary J Blige, Jamie Fox, George Lopez, Samuel L. Jackson, Bon Jovi, Josh Groban, Herbie Hancock, John Legend, James Taylor, John Mellencamp, Rosario Dawson, and Kal Pen (Kumar from Harold and Kumar). Interestingly, Gene Robinson, the first openly gay bishop of the Episcopal church gave the invocation and Rick Warren, who was very anti-gay marriage in California, will be doing it at the actual inauguration. It was quite an experience, and we’re satisfied enough to skip the actual inauguration on Tuesday for the out of towners to do. It’s too freakin cold and we’ll get a better view on TV. Given the crowds, we had to see most of it from a jumbo screen. Still, I posted a few photos.

I’m posting some photos of our New Orleans trip in the short trips album. We had a good time overall. New Orleans is certainly rebuilding and is as lively as ever. However, the crime and poverty have also returned which I experienced first hand by being mugged-hopefully a once in a lifetime experience. I blame the travel channel for getting me all hyped to get the “best fried chicken” in the country which caused me to wander off the touristy areas and getting jumped 2 blocks away before reaching the restaurant. Still, you should go and support its revival by having fun, eating well (you got southern, cajun, and creole food), and enjoying the beautiful architecture. It’s sort of like Vegas with a history and without the cheesiness of the fake famous sites. We came at the beginning of Carnaval, so we saw some mini-parades, but of course it will be much more exciting when Carnaval snowballs into Mardi Gras in a month.

We’re back in DC and I’ve posted highlights of our almost 500 photos (Colombia and Venezuela Album) to give you an idea of what our trip was like. Both are gorgeous countries with amazing cultures and friendly people, but face challenging political problems. (more…)