The Press was not given an early admittance or separate gate to enter, so we were forced to line up with everyone else. We hopped the barrier and jumped right in line with the crowd. The weather was ridiculously cold and we were forced to stay stationary for hours. So needless to say, many of us were beginning to go numb and experiencing equipment malfunctions from the frigid air. Every few minutes, we seemed to only move a centimeter or two, and by this point, the crowd began to push and shove and grow impatient.

We finally made our way to security where we were told to turn on all electronics and make our way through the metal detector. We finally made it through the gate and discovered that we were led in the completely wrong direction. Instead of getting to the Swearing In Ceremony area, we ended up on the other side of the Capitol on the parade route. After several minutes of arguing with secret service agents, we were escorted to the other side of the route and found our way to the National Mall for the Swearing in Ceremony of Barack Obama and Joseph Biden.

Being a part of that moment in history, being thrown into the crowd of people, witnessing their emotions, and watching the Inauguration in person made every struggle of the day well worth it. In the end, we discovered that yes we can, and we did! We triumphed over obstacles and were able to cover this historic Inauguration that will be forever engrained in our memories.