No windows, no doors, a room full of people...

The places where I lived during the summer deserve special attention. First, there was the Ethiopian-Russian community at our manager's house; second, the basement, which everyone affectionately called Moscow because of the constant cold and darkness. The benches on the National Mall (very comfortable, I must say) and the constant random sleepovers in Washington don't count. More on those later ;)

The first month felt like a dream, as our manager turned out to be a world-class person, putting us up in his home and spoiling us like his own kids. And there were five of us, so there was never a dull moment. Ethiopian and Russian parties, movie nights with beer, chatting about nonsense, and frequent letters home—in short, a kind of template for the summer scenario for most Work and Travel participants. Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, it ended quickly, and in early July, the three of us moved in with some Arab acquaintances.

To be honest, the shock of seeing the room we were supposed to live in is impossible to put into words. This tiny closet didn't just lack furniture; it didn't even have windows! Furthermore, it was freezing in the basement (the air conditioning, of course, was on full blast...). Now imagine how hard it was for us to get up in the mornings when it's dark and cold outside, it was terrifying!!

At first, we even went upstairs to socialize with the other members of this Jordanian family; I spent three whole days memorizing the names of all eleven people and various greetings in Arabic. But soon, we got tired of the same faces and the dull atmosphere in the basement, and we often just stayed over at our friends' places. Sometimes in Washington, sometimes in Annapolis, sometimes in Baltimore... In short, we had fun however we could :)