D.C.!

I just got back from my to D.C. yesterday. That was my first trip to D.C. ever, and my first time being on the East Coast (excluding Florida).

Here's me in front of the White House:

And me in front of the Capitol Building:

The origional impetus of the trip was an invitation from my dad to join his at a fund-raising banquet for Speaker Newt Gingrich (Republican Speaker of the House during the Clinton administration) that he'd got two seats at. My mom didn't want to go, so he invited me. I immediately made a business trip out of it for myself and spent about 30 hours over a week's time to cold-contact BYU alumni working in consulting out there, and ended up with 5 appointments while I was there - 2 with Booz Allen Hamilton employees, and three from Deloitte's federal consulting arm there.

It was a very helpful/productive trip for me as far as those interviews went - I made some great contacts out there. Networking works!

And the fund-raising banquet was a great experience. Newt Gingrich gave a great, insightful speech about the need for greater leadership and participation in politics at the local level. His point was basically that we can't have all of the talented leaders in Washington - we need them at home, too! Dinner was nothing short of fantastic. It was a fun environment, with everyone dressed up in gowns and tuxes, all elegant-like - it was like something I've only seen in movies.

Here's Dad and I in our tuxes:

And the banquet hall (that's Newt Gingrich speaking at the podium)

And our fantastic dinner (this is our main course, with desserts already placed in the middle)

The trip was Monday afternoon through Wednesday afternoon, so I didn't have much time at all to tour (considering the evening spent at the fundraiser and my 5 appointments with consultants).

Out of my many options of museums to see of the Smithsonian, I chose the Space and Aeronautical Museum. Perhaps my favorite exhibit there was on early attempts at human flight:

But the more modern stuff was pretty slick, too:

It was a great but exhasting trip. To close, here's my dad and I at the National Mall (the area with all of the monuments and such):

Thanks, Dad, for the wonderful trip!