WASHINGTON D.C.— Today is my first day in Washington D.C., well, my second day technically. It's 2:12 a.m. out here. After 6 hours on a plane and a 3 hour time change, I'm starting to feel the jet lag.

I landed at Baltimore Washington International Airport (BWI) about 8 hours ago. As soon as I stepped off of the plane I could tell this place was different.

For one, the airport was about as loud as a library, which, to anyone who has ever flown out of Ontario or LAX, is like stepping off of the plane and on to another planet.

And second, everything is green.

Driving down through Maryland to get to D.C. I drove the Greenbelt and two thoughts immediately ran through my head:
1) Where's the traffic?
2) Where are the dirt and weeds?

The Greenbelt is a large portion of the 295, which is a major highway, but it's 2 lanes wide, the exits are miles and miles apart and, instead of K-rail and cement dividers, the street is lined by decorative stone guarders on one side and a freakin' forest on the other. But it's beautiful--really.

My impression on arriving in D.C. was less inspiring than the drive through Maryland. I can't help but puzzle over my new surroundings.

Washington D.C. is a city of contradiction and juxtaposition.

The modern and historic twist is very cool--especially to me since I come from Corona. You can walk down the street between a row of century old buildings and a street lined with the newest high tech cars and designer cafes. It's all the convenience of the 21st century in the architectural setting of the 1800s.

It's very beautiful, sure, but it's also very ugly.

In the middle of town near the Metro Central Station, you can find young successful yuppies meandering through the streets, window shopping at Ann Taylor and other designer stores. But, at the same time and in the same place, you can also find an old man sleeping on the stoop of a church with all his belongings in a grocery basket.

And, before I left, I was advised to be safe, use the buddy system and keep an eye out, because D.C. can be a dangerous city. It has one of the highest murder rates in the country.

It's strange to me that, in the very city in which our lawmakers spend most of their time, the failures to protect and empower the people could be so immense and so terribly blatant.

Allow me to introduce myself

My name is Desiree Perez, and, as the title of this blog suggests, I'm going to Washington.

I applied for an academic program called "Capital Semester" through The Fund for American Studies (TFAS). As part of this program, students from all over the world "Live, Learn, and Intern" on Capitol Hill.

As far as the "Live" goes, for the next four months I'm going to be living practically on Congress' front porch, sharing a four bedroom apartment with eight other girls.

I know, I know. It sounds like an episode of "The Real World," but I'm optimistic that we're all going to get along.

So far, I know one is living in Kentucky, one in France and one in Poland. I still live at home—with my parents—so the diversity is going to be a trip in and of itself.

As for the "Learn" portion, all of us in the program will be taking 12 units at Georgetown University, focused on the study of political journalism.

Last but not least, I'll be "Intern"-ing at a small, but amazing paper called Street Sense, "Where the Washington area's poor and homeless earn and give their two cents."

Right now, I'm kind of in a frenzy. I'm packing and shipping, and tying up loose ends. I don't know what to expect once I arrive (except cold weather), so I'm pretty nervous, but I'm also very excited about taking advantage of this once in a lifetime opportunity.

And as for you, I'll be posting blogs as often as possible, that way you can come along for the ride.