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My First 30 Days in Washington DC, in Numbers

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Claudia Elena Irizarry Aponte Student Contributor, University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
UPRM Contributor Student Contributor, University of Puerto Rico - Mayaguez
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UPRM chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

One month ago today, I arrived at Washington, DC to start my semester-long internship. Here is a summary, in numbers, of the first thirty days.

30 daily “cafĂ© de las tres” consumed thus far

 

29 daily average degrees, Fahrenheit

28 days until Spring

(Can you tell I’m counting the days?)

27 Puerto Ricans living in the same building

 

We’re the third largest US group in our dorm building!

26 total inches of snow in DC during the historic blizzard last month

 

This was my first time seeing snow, ever. This picture was taken on the second day of the storm–the snow was halfway up my thighs.

 

And this was my street after the first 11 hours of the blizzard. The storm lasted 48 hours.

25 average amount spent–in dollars–on the metro on weekends

24 hours we had to prepare for the blizzard

Which started pretty much 24 hours after we arrived in DC

23, January: the first day I saw the sun shine on the District

And the snow cemí I made on the first day it did.

22: average age of interns**

**Based on my incredibly scientific research

21: legal drinking age in the US

Still not used to the whole “carding” culture

20, January: the day we arrived to the District

 

19 Smithsonian museums in DC (with just 6 visited so far)

 

The National Gallery of Art

 

The view from the National Portrait Gallery

18: price, in dollars, to travel two blocks during an average Uber surge

17: despite rules to the contrary, the average number of people we have fit into our rooms during a Friday night pre-game ritual

16: estimate overall hours spent on the phone with Mom

15 work days so far

14 hours (per week) spent practicing on Final Cut Pro at work

13: average number of Ubers taken so far

In DC Metro we trust.

12: the maximum number of guests actually allowed per apartment

11 weeks left

10 hours spent travelling to DC

 

San Juan>Orlando>Indianapolis> DC

9 hours spent exploring Annapolis

 

Pictured here: the Maryland State House, which served as the nation’s capitol when Annapolis was the capital of the USA.

8: the price of an espresso and bagel

DC may be a lot of things, but it ain’t cheap.

7: average amount of empty bottles at the end of a Friday night

Sorry, Mom. I promise we work as hard as we goof off.

6 hours spent to prepare for the Best Coast/Wavves show

 

The show was sold out but I managed to–miraculously, after desperately searching through social media–get tickets that same morning. Best night ever!

5: average layers of clothes worn daily

Bra, tank top, blouse, blazer, coat–Latinas weren’t made for cold weather!

4 packages received from Mom

3 phenomenal suitemates

 

Shoutout to Mikaela, Maggie and Frances. You are all the best and when I think of you, a Coldplay song plays in my heart.

2 visits to the White House Press Briefing Room

 

Here I am, caught in the act by a network camera during a press conference.

One epic face plant on my first day at work, in front of two of my superiors

(And only fall so far)

One hour time difference between Puerto Rico and DC

One incredible first month

 

Claudia is a witchy English Literature and International Affairs major from La Parguera. She's worked in various on-campus projects, such as the MayaWest Writing Project and as a tutor at the English Writing Center. In addition, she's worked at Univision and has also been published in El Nuevo Día and El Post Antillano. When she doesn't have her nose in a book, you can find Claudia tweeting something snarky and pushing boundaries as a BeyoncĂ© expert.

Follow her on Twitter and Instagram, @clauuia.
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