To end an amazing semester, I thought I would share some of my favorite pictures from the past four months: Andy Warhol, at the National Gallery

Monument: Clearly, D.C. is famous for its monuments. My favorite has to be the Capitol--I’ve gotten to go on two tours, sit in the Press Gallery of the House, and visit the offices of one of my senators and my representative. If you arrange the tours, you can make them happen too, but TWC will probably arrange at least one for your programming group. It’s also a perfect place to just sit outside and enjoy the view. Restaurant: Such a tough call.

As you start your internship this summer, and you find yourself as in love with D.C. as I am, let me recommend something. If you think you want to stay, start looking for a second internship (or job, if you’ve already graduated) now. I guess this is more pertinent when looking for summer internships, which are extremely hard to snag in D.C., but it’s still important to look early.

I am not one to knock doing touristy things. I am a huge fan of all the Smithsonians, all the monuments, and all the Washington guidebooks I have collected. I think one of the neatest things you can see, though, requires a little planning. Touring the White House is one of the most quintessential D.C. experiences you can have, and if you plan in advance, you can definitely make it happen.

As someone with a passion for politics and writing, one of the coolest opportunities I got this semester was to blog at my internship, Rock the Vote. As such a major national organization, it was awesome to have that kind of platform for exposure as an intern.

My plans for yesterday were a bit different than what ended up happening. My internship gave me a free ticket to the Sweetlife music festival in Columbia, Maryland yesterday. I was assuming that by May 1st, the weather was going to be wonderful and I would be enjoying the concerts in a sundress and Ray-Bans. Well, change in plans there. It was rainy, under 50 degrees, and I could see my breath by then end of the festival. However, I still managed to enjoy the amazing performances by Crystal Castles, Lupe Fiasco, The Strokes, and Girl Talk.

There's a weird phenomenon that happens it cities: sometimes, you don't realize how beautiful they are until you leave them. Think about it. Do you appreciate the New York skyline while you're taking pictures in Times Square, window shopping on Fifth Avenue, or wandering around Rockefeller Plaza? No. You don't enjoy it until you're pulling away, drive over the Hudson, and see the buildings and their sparkling reflections.

Let me tell you something now. You're going to get here, and for about the first two weeks, it'll feel like 50% of the words you hear will be "up and coming." You'll develop a love-hate relationship with this term, used to describe the neighborhood in which you'll be living. The area doesn't yet have the draws of Foggy Bottom or Adams Morgan, but you'll grow to love some of its charming features:

Some people say D.C. is Hollywood for ugly people. While I agree with the premise of the statement (I mean, when was the last time you hung a poster of a politician on your wall to drool over like the NSYNC posters in my bedroom circa 1997? Exactly.), I disagree. Everyone here has perfectly pressed clothes to match their perfectly coiffed hair and perfectly applied makeup on their perfectly pretty faces. Also, fame is a little different here. I have been starstruck on numerous occasions, but it's the kind of nerdy political starstruck at which most people wouldn't blink an eye.

Mashable, one of the most widely read technology blogs in the world, recently published a list of the top 100 socially networked cities. Not surprisingly, D.C. was at the top of that list. When you move here, you will quickly develop a love-hate relationship with the concept of networking. On the one hand, your skills in networking will quickly open a million doors that were never before available to you, but on the other hand, the overuse of the word and its importance will quickly grow tiresome.