When world leaders and powerful potentates visit Condoleezza Rice at the US State Department they don't enter through the front door.

They come through a private entrance out of view of the public and a special elevator whisks them to the office of the US Secretary of State.

Yesterday, Premier Ewart Brown, whose tiny island home would fit three times over into the District of Columbia, went in through the front door - but he wasn't complaining.

While Bermuda's flag might not have been among the 200 or so hanging in the marble entrance hall of the monolithic State building on C Street - representing every nation, as opposed to country, on earth - it was undoubtedly a coup for the Island to be granted an audience with Dr. Rice.

The Premier was the first to admit that the meeting was really just a photo opportunity and the briefest of chats, but he still came out of the building grinning.

For while Bermuda may not mean much on the world stage, this week's second bilateral trip to Washington by a Government delegation proved that its name raises a smile even among those with far weightier matters to consider.

The US House of Representatives spent this week voting on how to spend the US's $2 trillion budget.

Its members - hugely busy Congressman and women - could be seen everywhere, dashing through the corridors of power tailed by harassed chiefs of staff and unfeasibly fresh-faced interns.

For those that sat down with Dr. Brown and Deputy Premier Paula Cox, discussion of the Island seemed to trigger some latent desire for the peace and tranquility of an ocean paradise.

Congressman Artur Davis, a young Democratic Representative tipped by some as a name to watch in the future, told The Royal Gazette he regretted never having had the chance to visit.

"I'm sure at some point in my life I'll get there," he said, wistfully. "It's a beautiful, beautiful country."

Veteran politician John Lewis from Georgia dished out Coca Cola and peanuts to the delegation and later waxed lyrical to this newspaper about Bermuda's beauty.

He said he'd been once before to speak but longed to return as a tourist. "There's something about the spirit, not just of the place, but also about the people," he said. "That spirit goes a long way."

If Dr. Brown dropping in provided the Capitol Hill politicians with a brief moment of calm in a frenetic day, the opposite was true for the delegation.

Known to like packing a lot into his schedule, there was barely a moment to breathe as the Premier and his team bustled from place to place, eating lunch on the hop and glued to their Blackberries.

"Busy, busy, busy," chuckled Dr. Brown, as he came out of one meeting with literally seconds to spare until the next, clearly enjoying every minute.

Day one began with a hearty breakfast at the official residence of Alan Charlton, deputy ambassador at the British Embassy.

The talk was all about what the team hoped to accomplish on its visit - with not a word spoken about Dr. Brown's recent and highly publicised row with the Governor.

"I was waiting to see if it came up, I was ready to engage in that subject," said the Premier, a twinkle in his eye. "But it never did."

As the day wore on, Dr. Brown's energy never seemed to flag, even as younger members of his team appeared to be tiring.

As proceedings drew to a close at a lunchtime cocktail reception at the DC office of Bermuda-based philanthropist Stewart Mott yesterday afternoon, the 61-year-old leader still shone for the cameras - or, at least, the videographer being paid by the Progressive Labour Party to document his every move.

Some will question the purpose of the trip and query why it required the presence of a Police officer to protect him and a stay in the luxurious Ritz Carlton on 22nd Street, where rooms start at $349 a night.

But Dr. Brown unarguably gives value for money. In the city where he lived as a student and where one of his sons still studies, he has no time for leisure. "I don't need to do the tourist thing," he tells his team as their car cuts across the city to yet another meeting.

He admits the next day that he's loved the experience - he's visited once before since becoming Premier and he'll be back.

A former US citizen, he counts a number of national lawmakers here as personal friends and is keen to forge further relationships.

While his visit may not have made the pages of the Washington Post or figured on most people's radar, it put, as his press secretary Glenn Jones said, a "sparkle in the eye" of a handful of key legislators.

Back at the State Department, a friendly security guard ponders the whereabouts of Bermuda. "It's in the ocean," he says, confidently. "I guess it's about 1,500 miles from America."

Advised that he's just given the Premier of Bermuda access to the building, he grins broadly. "That guy who just went through now?," he asks incredulously, pointing towards the labyrinth of corridors within. "Hey, that's actually kind of cool."