Tuesday June 30
Today we start our visit to the Library of Congress early, because we expect security checks like in all government buildings. Many people say that the Thomas Jefferson Building is the most beautiful of all government buildings in Washington.
Dienstag, 30. Juni 2009
Montag, 29. Juni 2009
Monday June 29
Today we start the official program. In the Institute for International Education we meet the Program Officers who coordinate and manage our program. Aproximately 3000 people per year are invited under similar programs to the USA. We discuss the program in detail and settle a lot of administrative questions.
After a lunch sponsored by the US Department of State Mr Edwin S. Clay, the Director of the Fairfax County Public Library, starts the first lecture. 81 % of the 123.000 libraries in the USA are connected to schools, 8 % are public libraries (usually equipped with heritage rooms), 7 % are specialised libraries and 3 % are academic libraries. 62 % of the US adults have library cards and check out 7 books per year! Apart from many other facts we learn that being a librarian is not only highly estimated in society, but also highly paid! Libraries keep privacy. The moment a book is returned to the library the name of the borrower is erased.
Due to long opening hours I can spend an hour in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, where I find among others three paintings by John Singer Sargent. In the Gallery of American Presidents you find the portraits of John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton both painted by female artists.
Today we start the official program. In the Institute for International Education we meet the Program Officers who coordinate and manage our program. Aproximately 3000 people per year are invited under similar programs to the USA. We discuss the program in detail and settle a lot of administrative questions.
After a lunch sponsored by the US Department of State Mr Edwin S. Clay, the Director of the Fairfax County Public Library, starts the first lecture. 81 % of the 123.000 libraries in the USA are connected to schools, 8 % are public libraries (usually equipped with heritage rooms), 7 % are specialised libraries and 3 % are academic libraries. 62 % of the US adults have library cards and check out 7 books per year! Apart from many other facts we learn that being a librarian is not only highly estimated in society, but also highly paid! Libraries keep privacy. The moment a book is returned to the library the name of the borrower is erased.
Due to long opening hours I can spend an hour in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, where I find among others three paintings by John Singer Sargent. In the Gallery of American Presidents you find the portraits of John F. Kennedy and Bill Clinton both painted by female artists.
Sonntag, 28. Juni 2009
Sunday June 28 2009
Today the group of 22 participants from 21 different countries meet for the first time. We are more women than gentlemen, but that is quite typical for librarians. Six of us are from Europe, three are from Asia, nine from Africa and four from Central America.
A special tour of Washington has been arranged for us. We learn a lot about key historic facts. Freemasonry was an important concept for the forefathers. Turn a one dollar note around and you'll find symbols such as the pyramid and the eye of God who will never be reached by buildings erected by human beings. We are lucky, the tour guide is excellent. Compared with my stay in Washington in 1997 I must admit that things have become far more complicated after 9/11. You have to prebook for many sights such as the Capitol, the White House or the Washington Monument. In 1997 I could just go there and perhaps wait in a queue to be admitted.
Our next stops are the Jefferson Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. The model for the Lincoln Memorial is the Greek temple Parthenon from the Akropolis. There it was on August 28 1963 that Martin Luther King said the famous words "I have a dream" adressing more than 200.000 people. Today 77% of the population in Washington is Afro-American. After the end of our tour at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial I walk over to the National World War II Memorial which was only opened in 2004.
In the evening our group meets for a first intragroup discussion in the hotel. This meeting gives us a chance to present our countries and our careers and to get to know each other better. Group photos are an important tool to get closer!
Today the group of 22 participants from 21 different countries meet for the first time. We are more women than gentlemen, but that is quite typical for librarians. Six of us are from Europe, three are from Asia, nine from Africa and four from Central America.
A special tour of Washington has been arranged for us. We learn a lot about key historic facts. Freemasonry was an important concept for the forefathers. Turn a one dollar note around and you'll find symbols such as the pyramid and the eye of God who will never be reached by buildings erected by human beings. We are lucky, the tour guide is excellent. Compared with my stay in Washington in 1997 I must admit that things have become far more complicated after 9/11. You have to prebook for many sights such as the Capitol, the White House or the Washington Monument. In 1997 I could just go there and perhaps wait in a queue to be admitted.
Our next stops are the Jefferson Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial. The model for the Lincoln Memorial is the Greek temple Parthenon from the Akropolis. There it was on August 28 1963 that Martin Luther King said the famous words "I have a dream" adressing more than 200.000 people. Today 77% of the population in Washington is Afro-American. After the end of our tour at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial I walk over to the National World War II Memorial which was only opened in 2004.
In the evening our group meets for a first intragroup discussion in the hotel. This meeting gives us a chance to present our countries and our careers and to get to know each other better. Group photos are an important tool to get closer!
Samstag, 27. Juni 2009
Saturday June 27 2009
At 11:30 am I leave Vienna. Nine hours later the plane - operated by Austrian Airlines - lands at Dulles Airport, Washington, DC. A friendly taxi driver is already waiting for participants of the IV-program "American Libraries". Alena from Slovakia, Thea from Georgia, Yusuf from Sudan, Obama from Egypt and I are brought to the Palomar Hotel, 2121 P Street, NW. The English Language Officers for this project Suzane, Stanley and Irwin welcome us in the hotel lobby. What a day. In the US capitol there is really summer. After a short swim in the hotel pool I feel just tired and go to sleep.
At 11:30 am I leave Vienna. Nine hours later the plane - operated by Austrian Airlines - lands at Dulles Airport, Washington, DC. A friendly taxi driver is already waiting for participants of the IV-program "American Libraries". Alena from Slovakia, Thea from Georgia, Yusuf from Sudan, Obama from Egypt and I are brought to the Palomar Hotel, 2121 P Street, NW. The English Language Officers for this project Suzane, Stanley and Irwin welcome us in the hotel lobby. What a day. In the US capitol there is really summer. After a short swim in the hotel pool I feel just tired and go to sleep.
Dienstag, 16. Juni 2009
WELCOME
A warm welcome to my first blog.
A lot of people have a dream. One of my dreams was and is to learn as much as possible about libraries. When the US Embassy informed me that I - as one of the few Austrian librarians since the start of the program in 1950 - was invited to join the International Visitors’ Leadership Program “American Libraries” I could not believe. But it is true. I’ll start on Saturday June 27 2009 together with 22 approved candidates from all over the world. The project is designed to promote a better understanding of the role and function of libraries and information specialists in U.S. society; provide information on a wide variety of U.S. libraries and information management systems; demonstrate the diversity of library services and study technology and its use in library systems, including online and digital services. What a chance!
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