Inauguration Day
Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 10:04PM Woke up early Tuesday morning to make the trek into DC for the Inauguration. We decided to see how the crowds were once we stepped out of the Metro station and decide if we were going to do the parade or the Mall for the ceremony at the steps of the Capitol. We decided on the parade...an hour in line to get through the metal detectors at 11th and Pennsylvania next to the Old Post Office before we were told that the two entrances at 7th and 10th and Pennsylvania were wide open. We hurried down to the entrance at 7th and Pennsylvania and sure enough no wait and we were front row for the parade, six hours before it as scheduled to begin. It was much colder than the previous two days and my brother in-law decided he was not up for standing for the next eight hours so he said farewell and headed back to Alexandria...little did he know that getting back to Alexandria was not an option. Getting back on the Metro was futile so he settled in on the Mall as I tried to stay warm waiting for the parade.
They had a nice PA set up so I was able to hear the swearing in ceremony while waiting for the parade to begin. The killer was the time between when Barack's speech ended and the parade started...all told it was three and a half hours as the parade started an hour late. It was crowded but less so than I expected...and for the most part a well behaved group. I was fascinated by the Secret Service and the snipers positioned a top the National Archives and Justice Department buildings directly across the street for me. In hindsight I now know why there were so many snipers as the President and First Lady first exited their limo right in front of where I was positioned. The photo below shows them as they walked past my location. In addition, I have never sen so many State Troopers in my life, the Virginia and Maryland troopers were near me and they were shoulder to shoulder along the parade route.
I was amazed as 90% of the crowd left immediately after the President walked past us...the parade had just started and was scheduled to last another two hours. I went and grabbed a cup of coffee at the deli that was packed a half an hour before and watched the next hour of the parade in the front row. One of my impressions is that the Marines have by far and away the coolest ceremonial drill group and best looking dress uniforms. I next headed up Pennsylvania and tried to get as close as possible to the Presidential viewing platform but had to settle for a distant view on the other side of Lafayette Park. From there I called it a day and headed back to Alexandria.
Back to Chicago early in the morning with a possible short detour to FL Wright's masterpiece "Falling Water" in western Pennsylvania. All in all a very memorable four days.
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