In one of my more memorable IFLRY endeavors, I was in Washington, DC, for the inauguration of the 44th President of the United States. It was cold and a very early morning, but definitely a great experience. To me, the most interesting feature of the day was being amid the hundreds of thousands of people and hearing them chat among themselves about Obama, the campaign and the future of the United States. It’s about seeing the tears in my neighbour’s eyes during Obama’s inaugural speech and peering over the uncountable bowing heads during the invocation by Reverend Warren. This is really a completely different thing from any European political event that I’ve attended and certainly had a sense of magic.

So much is being written about the inflated expectations of the Obama presidency, and surely some people will be disappointed. From an international point of view, the air does suddenly feel much lighter though. The hawkish rhetorics combined with the unilateral policies of the Bush administration have tainted America's picture around the world. Let's hope that Obama's promise to bring the USA back at the forefront of the peaceful fight for freedom and democracy, while sticking to the principles of multilateralism, is going to be kept.

Thanks to Jeff Leanna (YDA) for arranging the inauguration tickets!