Washington, D.C.
A month ago, I was one of 20 students at my university to be selected to travel and experience the working culture over at Washington DC.
I had not travelled anywhere near America before, most of my education of its climate came from what I consumed from books, telly, and social media. It’s also important to note that I had never actually heard an American accent in real life until I went to uni. Even then it sounded unreal as if it didn’t belong outside of the world I knew it from. The prospect of going there however was not on my 2022 cards but alas I was there and now I live to tell the tale.
Our journey began on 9/11 — not the best of dates to associate travelling with, especially on an airplane to the States. I was anticipating being welcomed with vicious TSA staff and intimidating security who would not believe me even when I was telling them the truth. I thought they’d find my pain killers and tell me I was illegally transporting drugs across the border. It did not go like that at all. We landed with ease and almost no complications. I remember getting my ESTA Visa Waiver accepted the month before and the letter ended with, ‘Have a nice trip. Welcome to the United States’. I interpreted the tone as militant and direct but it could have just been brief and simple.
Once we arrived at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (I wish I could have abbreviated the name but I was unsure whether it would work and I could not risk it as an uncultured British on the matter) — we collected our luggage and jumped on to the Metro and headed off to our hotel over at Arlington. The first night we didn’t have anything planned, it was evening when we collapsed into our rooms. We agreed on going for dinner based on the majority vote and it ended up being IHOP. My table indecisively chose the same meal for all — chicken and waffles. I loved it, the fluffiness of the waffles and the warm syrup spilling from the top with a dash of what we discovered was not actually ice cream but butter! Yes, their butter was fluffy and white as opposed to firm and yellow, I was surprised. We also got sweet tea as well as iced tea to refresh ourselves — this tasted pretty similar to Lipton. When it came to paying, my anxiety grew as I knew nothing of tipping culture and I didn’t want to offend the staff by underpaying due to my terrible maths. Luckily, with the assistance of a calculater we managed to figure it out.
Monday morning started with a trip to The National Museum of African American History and Culture. We had an out of hours, exclusive tour led by (the amazing, most intelligent, scholarly woman) Angela Tate, and the lovely Shannon (didn’t catch her last name). They educated us about the different time frames in history as well as the cultural and political influences that changed and altered the world we’re living in today. I didn’t expect myself to cry, I mean I felt a mixture of emotions from anger, sadness, frustration, and heartbreak. The one that did it for me was the story of Emmett Till. My heart just shattered when I thought of my own friends who could have easily been in his situation if they were in the wrong place, wrong time and I hated the idea of it so much that I quietly cried in the corner before bawling on my way out. Luckily for me there was a meditation room right after the tour and we spent some time there reflecting on the past and really sitting with the events that took place. We were then led to a conference room where we had the pleasure of meeting Timothy Burnside, the Creative Director of the Museum. She spoke of her career, the challenges, and rewards of the work she does. Afterwards, we made our way to the canteen and decided to pick our meals from, ‘The Agricultural South’. I did not have a big appetite after the waterworks so I settled for a mac and cheese and chicken burger — both were delicious.
Once we were fed, we decided to take a quick tourist stop to see The White House. I was expecting lots of people like other travellers, news reporters, soldiers, and security at every foot. It was however, underwhelming and a lot smaller than I expected it to be. After taking a few pictures we broke off into groups. I went with a group to the Pentagon City Mall for some shopping. We ended up having dinner there too. I had orange chicken and noodles as I’ve always heard about it but realised after the first bite that it was just a large portion of sweet and sour chicken.
The rest of the week started to blur into one another.
On Tuesday, we met our alumni CEO and President of Health Prime, Pranil Vadgama, who gave us insight about his global career. His ambition to learn at any opportunity was admirable and he gave us free company merch as well as a very informative Q&A. We then headed off to our lunch spot at Fight Club over at Pennsylvania Avenue but before that, we stumbled into The Southeast Neighbourhood Library. I love my libraries and this was no exception. There was a $1 book sale and these large, gorgeous windows that bought in so much natural light and outdoor stairs that were apparently infested with rats. I was inside so luckily I did not run into them and I cannot confirm or deny if they were actually there or not — it remains a conspiracy in my books.
We then made our way to the Library of Congress — now, this felt like Hogwarts from the architecture, to the art on the ceiling and the large pillars at every corner. I can’t forget to mention the stunning and antique looking library, which holds almost 39 millions of books (according to Wikipedia). Even the warm lighting gave it an ancient and magical feeling. After a scroll around of looking, admiring and learning about interesting artefacts, we decided to go see The Capitol.
There was a lot more security here, vehicles of all shapes and sizes. I remember someone shouting, ‘That’s a GTA motorbike’. I, as many others couldn’t grasp how the riots had taken place a few years prior, the images of the incident and the reality of what I was seeing seemed so far from each other. It was quieter, with less visitors and one guy on a bicycle holding a cardboard scribbled with words — I wasn’t sure if he was protesting or marketing something.
Our last stop of the day was visiting our alumni, Director at National Bell Festival, Paul Ashe over at Kennedy Warren. He prepared a relaxing evening of piano recitals performed by Jason Solounias. This was a great opportunity to remind ourselves to appreciate as well as endorse the funding of the arts and humanities. My own degree falls into this category and I love how creative, evolving, and knowledgeable it continues to be. It brings people back to themselves, grounding us, challenging us and reminding us to be present with the finer details in life. The knowledge of this is why we have such great (and terrible) writers, poets, politicians, historians, journalists, filmmakers, musicians and the list goes on.
On Wednesday, we visited Montgomery College in Maryland to go see our alumni, Professor of English, Emily Rosado and Senior Director Project Management of Capital One, Javed Mohsin. They spoke about their education and the routes they took before settling into their careers. We had the opportunity to socialise with the students on campus who were in all matters, going through the same life experiences as us.
The evening was free so we broke off into groups again and a few of us decided to go see the DC Improv Comedy Club. We bought some snacks there — beers, hummus, pita bread, nachos, and a slice of chocolate cake to share. The food came in large portions as it did everywhere we went, so at that point it was enough to suffice for dinner. In terms of the actual show, we got a lot of comedians — more than the ones we’d get in a normal show over in London. I have to say after experiencing both climates, UK has to be better with the comedy (sorry we’re just funnier).
We started Thursday morning with a trip to John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Inside, you’re welcomed with flags from all over the world spiralling down from the ceiling and the walls are filled with pictures of monumental presidential events. The atmosphere changes in every room, most of which inhibit gifted pieces from allies abroad. These come in tiles, chandeliers, pieces of art, furniture etc. The rooftop centre view is a serene look over of the water, while the other side encounters a busy motorway.
Soon after, we headed to meet our alumni, Founder and Chief Consultant Lorenzo Evans of CLE Business Services. He spoke about his education, career, entrepreneurship, and gave an honest and useful Q&A. We then went for lunch at a spot near the river. I decided to settle for shrimp tacos to which I flooded with lemon juice; it was scrumptious. We had some free time and split into groups again. I decided to shop in Georgetown, not realising this was probably way out of my budget as it was the equivalent of Knightsbridge over at London. I did however, stumble into an old pub that was there for over 100 years. No one in the group had data so we relied on store Wi-Fi’s and asking staff for directions. A lot of those working were from out of state so they didn’t know much about the area themselves.
To end the night, we had an alumni networking event over at Chaplin’s Restaurant and Bar. We met a mixture of senior university staff to students who exchanged to an institute in DC and other alumni’s we hadn’t yet already met during the week. The night was rich in storytelling, exchanging resourceful information and advice. When I went back to the hotel later, I realised how easy it is to connect with others at a glance. The real challenge for me was keeping networks. I hope to overcome this and I do plan on working on it. I think sometimes we are only meant to keep people in our lives for a moment, a week (like this trip) but to keep a connection long-term, people have to be willing to put in the effort to make it work.
Friday approached sooner than we expected it too. We started our day by meeting Shana Glenzer and Brian Alexander who represented Dilligent Corporation. They spoke to us about changing careers and exploring different sectors to find one that fits with their passions and gives them a good work/life balance. We had an early lunch before heading off to another event to meet our alumni Varnika Roy, Senior Director and Head of Analytical & Materials Science Technology at GSK. She talked about her student life and the opportunities she took to grow early on in her career. Her passion for science can be seen from her years of hard work and dedication to the field.
By the time it was evening, a group of us decided to go to a baseball game, Miami Marlins VS Washington Nationals. My knowledge of baseball goes as far as Twilight and High School Musical. I didn’t know how the game was played but I had hopes to learn. The stadium was large, food was available everywhere and a lot of people were surprisingly not paying attention to the game. We got seats that were pretty high up and God, anyone with fear of heights could not have handled the view. I felt if I made the wrong step I’d stumble and fall into the field. To accompany us, we picked up some soda, beer, hotdogs, chicken, chips, and popcorn (everything available was unhealthy). The game was definitely one of the highlights of the trip, I loved how late at night it was yet the lighting managed to brighten up the field so you practically forgot about it. There was a sense of community here that I couldn’t feel outside in the city. On the large screen, there were names read out of the players and instructions for the crowd to cheer and even a surprise marriage proposal — I hope Suzanne Smith said yes. Once the game was over, we stopped by Kilwins ice cream; I picked up a pecan caramel scoop and it was the perfect end to the night.
I’d say most of us slept in on our last night. We had to pack, sleep, and get ready to leave midday. In the morning, a group of us decided to quickly stop by the mall and pick up some souvenirs and gifts to take back home. We headed into Harris Teeter’s to get some food to eat at the airport. I picked up sushi and it was honestly one of the best crab rolls I’ve ever had in my life, I still think about the taste even now.
Once we checked out the hotel and headed to the airport, I encountered a mixture of feelings. I was happy to be going home, starting the new semester, and getting ready for the next thing but at the same time I was unhappy that the trip was over and everyone would go back to where they were before they arrived at the airport a week ago. As if the trip would be locked in a memory and we’d continue on from where we left — strangers but with a familiar face and a story of a trip we shared.
We had a quick flight to Toronto where we got confused with the maze-like airport zones. I ended up having a tantrum because passengers were not queuing up properly and I had to project my anxiety somewhere so I swore out of frustration, which probably made a lot of Canadians upset. When we did get onto the plane, I felt less anxious and more calm. I couldn’t sleep properly and I knew once I got back to London, I’d have trouble adjusting my sleep to its regular cycle.
And when we did get back, we were ready to go home and jump into our beds. I knew once I had my luggage that if I stayed any longer with the group, I’d probably break down in tears. The thing is, when you have a trip like this, you meet people who have a shared sense of courage and curiosity to learn and explore. Once you’re out of the environment it gets tricky to upkeep it. I felt like I made real connections but a part of me also knew it could simply end here.
I also had other observations, like how my perspective of the trip was heavily mirrored with the way Americans treated me. I have a British accent so people were more friendly and open. They stopped me for a chat, they were curious about me and the story attached to the ‘cool’ (and more accepted) accent I held. I was also not wearing a religious garment to represent my faith so I was protected from outright discrimination. The only factor that could isolate me was my skin colour but even then I am South Asian. I experienced a sort of privilege due to my ‘model minority’ appearance.
The trip overall was educating and enlightening in more ways than for which it might have been intended for. I have gained a global insight on career opportunities, the culture in and outside of work as well as an appreciation for the people and the intercultural dialogues we exchanged not only with the Americans but also within the group. We were a mixture of international and British students and I remember telling someone, ‘this feels very much like a social experiment’. I noticed how my humour was not for everyone and I could easily offend someone if I wasn’t careful. Likewise I couldn’t always catch onto someone else’s humour which was a continued joke for them (Miguel).
In conclusion or moving onwards, I’d like to work on creating and maintaining networks both professionally and personally. I’ve been told I’m a ‘floater’ because I don’t know how to develop a relationship and it’s easier to just talk to someone and never see them again — I blame this heavily on my upbringing in London, a city where everyone moves in and out so you lose touch and it unintentionally becomes a conditioned thing you learn to do. I believe a writing career (the one I have my eyes on) starts in storytelling and learning about people but to really learn people I have to be able to go beneath the surface to somewhere deep, that’s where the real story is. I’m not sure where I’ll be in 10 years but I hope to have the pen as both my companion and with luck, my possible career.
