They walked for miles and queued for hours but those who witnessed the Inauguration of the 44th President of the United States were proud to take their place in history.

For the Bermudians who travelled to watch Barack Obama be sworn-in as the first African-American President, the journey was indeed a long one, both spiritually and historically.

They endured bitter temperatures but, in a crowd of more than a million, experienced first-hand the feelings of warmth, joy and unity generated by this new President.

"Deeply emotional", "fantastic" and "the experience of a lifetime" were just some of the words used to describe being present at the ceremony in Washington D.C. on Tuesday.

Spencer Critchley, a 50-year-old Bermudian communications consultant, travelled to the US capital with his wife Bobbi.

Mr. Critchley is the son of Island civil rights campaigner David Critchley, who drafted the 1950s manifesto for change 'An Analysis of Bermuda's Social Ills'. Following in the footsteps of his father, he volunteered for the Obama campaign in Spring 2007. He then became staff, helping to coordinate press interviews and queries in the battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, Colorado and Michigan.

Mr. Critchley described the experience of watching Obama being sworn-in as President as "deeply emotional".

"The general election campaign, from August to November, was the hardest and most stressful work of my life, but also the happiest and most rewarding," he said.

"We worked 12-hour days on average, seven days a week, but I felt lucky to be there."

Mr. Critchley, who now lives in California, describes Obama as "a transformative figure in world history".

The man himself, he describes as "relaxed, friendly, open and thoroughly decent".

Commenting on Tuesday's events, Mr. Critchley said: "It was just unbelievable to be there, the atmosphere was amazing. Standing in that crowd, there was a powerful sense of calm, readiness and deep happiness. "I so wish my father could be alive to see this. This is the realisation of what my father dreamed about."

Robin O'Neil, of the Obama supporters' organisation Bermuda4Barack, also travelled to Washington D.C. Together with Bermuda4Barack coordinator Amani Flood, and another member Lynnette Furbert, she got up at 4 a.m. to take her place in the crowd at the National Mall.

"To be at the inauguration was magical, and to hear Obama speak about standing on the shoulders of the African-American greats who have gone before him, his speech was just phenomenal," she said.

"Even though we were there for six hours waiting for the sun to come up, everyone was jovial and there was a spirit of co-operation. People shared their handwarmers and passed around American flags to wave."

Mrs. O'Neil, a Physical Programme clinical educator at the King Edward VII Memorial Hospital, is originally from Dallas, Texas. She said: "It felt so good to see the end result of what my parents and grandparents have worked for, for it to happen in my generation.

"Unfortunately my mother passed in August, although she voted for Obama in the primaries. But I know she is smiling from heaven. To be able to witness that kind of history was amazing. It was worth waiting those six hours in the cold. We were all very blessed."

Vicki Crabb, a history teacher at Saltus Grammar School, accompanied 21 students to the US capital.

"It was amazing, it really felt like we were in the midst of a moment of history, especially during President Obama's address. The whole crowd fell silent," she said.

Miss Crabb said the group left their hotel at Ronald Reagan National Airport at 6 a.m. After an hour-long bus ride they walked for another two hours just to get to the National Mall.

"The atmosphere was just incredible," she said. "It was very emotional for all of us."

Kelsey Wotton, 16, of Smith's, said: "It was very exciting and Obama's speech was amazing. The intensity of the crowd around us was pretty moving."

Anthony Wade, deputy principal of CedarBridge Academy, took a party of 12 students to witness the inauguration, trekking three miles from their hotel to see it.

"It was fantastic, the experience of a lifetime," he said. "We were all aware we were witnessing history. It was an unbelievable experience for us."

Dessiree Waldron, a Bermudian student at North Carolina A&T State University, said: "It has been breathtaking and emotional. I am filled with so much joy to be a part of history as Barack Obama is sworn in as President."

Cathy Stovell, The Royal Gazette's 'Body and Soul' columnist, watched the ceremony from the West Lawn of the Capitol Building. She said: "People hung on every word of President Obama's inaugural address and people of all races openly embraced in our area. We didn't even know each other."

Meanwhile in Bermuda, people huddled around television screens to witness the dawn of a new era for America.

Diane Gordon, executive vice president of the Bermuda Chamber of Commerce, said: "Everyone was very excited from first thing, there was definitely a buzz around the Island of history in the making."

In Reid Street, Phoenix Stores CEO George Grundmuller helped to make sure shoppers did not miss out on history, inviting them to watch the inauguration on four large TVs at P-Tech.

"We had quite a gathering, people were clapping, cheering and were quite emotional," he said.