D.C. Update

It's been a busy couple of days. Tuesday morning we had a 9:00 a.m. tour of the White House, which was surprisingly short. We could only see a fraction of the spaces available for public viewing, including the East Room, the Red Room, and the Green Room. There is a definite sense of history and formality - the areas that we saw still contain a lot of original furniture and artwork purchased by former presidents and first ladies. It felt more like a museum than an actual working residence, but apparently these rooms are still used for dinners, greeting international leaders, and even press conferences.

We also went to the National Gallery of Art, and ended our day with a tour of the Capitol Building. I really enjoyed the tour of the capitol; we got to go onto the Senate floor and see where all the senators sit and see the original Supreme Court courtroom. The building is beautiful; everything is made of marble, and the ceilings and walls are covered in the original murals with enormous chandeliers, etc. I'll post the photos when I'm back in San Diego.

This afternoon I attended the first of my conference seminars. It was a session about using "new media" and the Web to attract and/or retain patients. Tomorrow is the actual conference kick-off, so I'll be in sessions from 8-5 the next two days.