One of the hottest tickets in town is a visit to the White House and to state it is hard to get in is quite the understatement. Unfortunately the opportunity to visit is slim to none during the summer, especially if you have not made arrangements months in advance. Fortunately I have the wonderful opportunity of interning with the office of a House Representative, which of comes with its perks!

This weekend, my unpaid internship was able to redeem itself once again by providing the rare opportunity of visiting the White House at a last minute visit. Members of Congress are allotted one White House pass to be used once a month for special occasions and guests. A special guest from the Congressman’s district was set to visit and as an intern with the office I was able to join the group in visiting the world’s most powerful house.

As a person of dual citizenship (USA and Brazil), it always blows me away how much access we as the public have to the upper tiers of the American government. I truly believe it is something the American people take for granted, especially when you do not recognize how limited access is in other countries. I personally have been to the capital of Brazil (Brasilia) and no matter who I knew, there was never be an opportunity as such to visit the Palacio da Alvorada (Presidential Residence) or the Palacio do Planalto (Presidential Office).

It may be nerd in me, but the opportunity to walk where American Presidents reside, to brush against the furniture that dignitaries such as Princess Diana have sat upon, is indescribable. As a first generation American and child of immigrants, it’s the opportunities like a visit to the White House that the American Dream becomes a visualized reality of hope.

Washington D.C.
There’s always hope.