We drove to Washington Saturday morning, May 15th, arriving in the late afternoon. We stayed at the Willard Intercontinental which is at 1401 Pennsylvania Avenue, two blocks from the White House. On Sunday we took a walk to the White House, finding streets closed, barricades everywhere, fences with strategically placed guard stations, and all other variety of blockades that convinced me that the terrorists have, indeed, gone a long way toward winning the war. If their goal was to change the fabric of American life, just travel by air, visit a major office building in any large US city, or tour our nation’s capital. As citizens we are now subject to invasive treatment throughout the US, while we squander billions on a war in a country not even involved in the terrorist attacks of 9/11.
We visited The National Gallery on Sunday afternoon. Founded by Andrew Mellon, Secretary of the Treasury, he chose the name “The National Gallery.” Many art galleries are named for their founders — the Corcoran or the Getty or the Guggenheim. Mellon’s choice of this name, however, would have a major affect on the collections. Based on this name alone, many patrons have contributed the very best works of art so that they can be housed in the nation’s “National Gallery” rather than a lesser gallery. One of the Gallery’s challenges has been to turn down gifts whose quality is not up to the standards of The National Gallery.
Our reception at the White House was scheduled for 9:30 AM. We arrived to find a very long line at about 9:15 AM. The security was tight. First we were cleared by guards with lists of names. Then we walked to the East Entrance, where we were met by more guards, metal detectors, wands, and other invasive tools of the security trade. Joan set off the metal detector and was wanded. I emptied my pockets and was allowed through. Once we were in, we had free reign of the East Wing, or at least two floors of the East Wing. The entrance hallway is covered with black and white photos of the animals that have been kept as pets in the White House. George W. has two dogs and a cat. They, of course, dominated the photo gallery.
There have been some unusual pets at the White House. One was a goat, but at least it might provide milk. The most unusual was a raccoon! Not a great pet unless you crave rabies.
Every hallway and every room is decorated with wonderful paintings and furniture. Many of the paintings were portraits of the Presidents and First Ladies.
There were also landscape paintings by very well-known artists. We saw paintings by Alfred Thompson Bricher, Albert Bierstadt, Martin Johnson Heade, Ferdinand Richardt, amoung others. Portraits were everywhere, but the first room we entered, the Vermeil Room, just had portraits of the First Ladies (seven were represented). We had our pictures snapped in front of Eleanor and then Jackie. Also on the first floor was the Library containing thousands of books with such titles as The Public Papers of Andrew Johnson.
Once we climbed the stairs to the second floor, each room was more dramatic than the next. And, the views out the windows were spectacular — the Washington Monument from one window, the Jefferson Memorial from the next. Of course, there was a military orchestra playing the whole time.
Men and women members of the Armed Services were positioned everywhere in full dress uniforms.
Waiters would approach to pour us fresh orange juice. A huge spread of breakfast foods covered a large table in the State Dining room. The mini-quiches were great; I scoffed quite a few. And, once they had cooled on the tray for a minute or two, the whole tray would be whisked away to be replaced by hot ones fresh from the kitchen. Wait staff were everywhere. There is a great fireplace in the State Dining Room. Above the fireplace is a portrait of President Lincoln by George P. A. Healy. Carved into the mantel below this portrait is an inscription from a letter written by John Adams on his second night in the White House:
I pray Heaven to Bestow the Best of Blessings on THIS HOUSE and on All that shall hereafter Inhabit it. May none but honest and Wise Men ever rule under this roof.
The first room we entered upstairs is called the Entrance Hall. That’s where the orchestra was playing and the waiters roamed the room with fruit juices. Three more “intimate” rooms are off the Cross Hall. They are named for the colors used for their decoration — the Green Room, the Blue Room, and the Red Room. We wandered around freely, with no restrictions whatsoever being placed on us. The lavish breakfast pastries and bite size quiches were in the State Dining Room — a magnificent room with a huge fireplace and what seemed like a fifty-foot table for the eats.
The floral arrangements were magnificent. They could have come from the fanciest wedding you could imagine. And, they were everywhere. We were told the White House has four full-time florists. And, to keep track of the priceless paintings, furniture, rugs, china, and crystal, they have five full-time curators! These are not your average household expenses.
After an hour or so of first class treatment we found ourselves outside the doorway to the East Room. This was where seating had been arranged for Laura’s remarks (note that she’s now “Laura” to us). As we were standing in front of the doorway, it opened. We became the first to enter and be seated. The room is decorated in gold, so I thought it might be called the Gold Room, but my research confirmed it to be the East Room. A lectern had been installed at the front of the room. Laura was announced and made her way into the room and to the podium. She was introduced by Anne Johnson, Director of the ART in Embassies program.
I do not remember a single word she said. I was busy zooming in for pictures of her from our front row seats. (I lie. We were really in the third row. As in all life situations, the first two rows were “reserved” for people more special than we were.) After her remarks, she left the room. We left the room thinking that Laura had escaped back into the private spaces of the White House. Imagine our surprise when we found her in the Red Room. We waited in line a short time before Joan was introducing herself. Joan said we were lenders to AIE but also told Laura that she, Joan, volunteered for Reach Out and Read in Concord, New Hampshire. (Laura Bush introduced Reach Out and Read to the state of Texas.) I asked if I could take a picture, and the rest is history. As Joan turned to go, Laura said, “Thank you for coming and thank you for being a Reach Out and Read volunteer.”
Okay. We had enjoyed the music, guzzled the juice, wandered the rooms, fondled the furniture, slept through the remarks, and met Laura Bush. It was 11:30 AM, and we knew we would soon be asked to leave. So, we returned downstairs, took one last look in the Library, the Vermeil Room, and the gallery of pets, and left the East Entrance for a final picture outside the White House while still inside the steel security fence. In one word — fabulous.