Hi, Christina. I live in Silver Spring, outside the Beltway. Do you have to have to go to work that day?

Even FedEx and UPS are considering suspending services that day (and maybe the day before). They don't think they will be able to get from the airports to the warehouses for loading the trucks.

The Washington Post has now listed more buildings that were to be open and now will be closed. In looking at my maps , I am not sure where buildings are that are open -I am looking for buildings close to the mall.
Can any one help? Thank you!

What are you talking about? Can you link the Washington Post article?

From Washington Post:
Inauguration Day Update: Open and Shut
It looks like the 300,000 people watching the inaugural parade may have a harder time finding shelter than we initially reported.

Since our last post about places to warm up, grab some food and use the bathroom on Inauguration Day, there has been one large change: The National Gallery, whose West Building was set to be open on Tuesday, will actually be closed. It turns out that security and parade assembly areas have made it impossible to open the museum on Jan. 20.

UPDATE: Another one down. The Holocaust Museum has announced that security and traffic concerns have prompted the museum to close up shop on Tuesday.

UPDATE part II: With the bad news comes some good. The Navy Memorial and Heritage Center, which is conveniently located along the parade route, plans to open on Tuesday. For $30, ticket-holders can come and go from the building, taking advantage of warmth, bathrooms, food by Organic To Go and a 46- by 16-foot screen televising the inaugural events. Only 300 tickets will be sold, so hop to it (or call 202-380-0733) if you want one. (Tickets have sold out)

Here's an interesting site with the history of the various elements of the Inauguration Day proceedings:

http://inaugural.senate.gov/history/...ents/index.cfm

well, I am not going to work that day now -- I managed to swap Monday, MLK day holiday for Tuesday, the inauguration. My boss said fine, he didn't care. Some people don't have Monday as a holiday so couldn't do that. I am now going out of the city towards Baltimore to watch it with a friend on a big screen TV.

I actually was going to work something out -- comp time, say I was working at home, whatever, to avoid the traffic that day. I think traffic Monday around the beltway may be bad, also, with people arriving, but not as bad as Tuesday could be for going home.

THE INAUGURATION ROAD TO HOPE


My Dad asked me why I wanted to go the Inauguration in Washington, DC when I could watch from the comfort of my home and see more than if I was there. So did Mike Mayo of the Sun Sentinel who was with us on that long road north. My answer was simple. When Barack Obama made a commitment to run for the Presidency of the United States and to make a change for the better, I made a commitment that if he won, I would do everything in my power to be there to cheer him on.

We boarded the bus in Oakland Park, Florida at 5:30pm on the 18th of January - young and old, black and white, from all walks of life. Some using walkers, little ones on the hips of their mothers, we took our seats and headed north with a rickety bus beneath us, God above us - and hope soaring among us.

A minister led us in prayer as we headed north singing hymns along the way. It was a long journey and we didn’t arrive at our hotel in Richmond until the next day. Some slept that night while some quietly pondered what lay ahead.

My bus mate was Gladice and we got along fine, talking and laughing throughout the ride. My bunk mate at the Comfort Suites was Miss Queenie - a fine woman, originally from Jamaica who emigrated to Canada - and then to the United States. She had ten children, was in her seventies, with diabetes - but that didn’t stop her from going to Washington. Her wisdom and character shone from her eyes as she talked of family and life in general.

We did not have time to go into Washington on that first day - so I set about finding a taxi (van) that would take eight of us into historic Richmond. We piled into Deb’s Taxi - with Heather sitting on David’s lap, laughing all the way to Shockhoe Bottom in the historic district. Along cobblestone streets we walked, stepping through the door of The Tobacco Company and into the past - the early 1900’s to be exact. Beautiful antiques, original wood floors, and old brick graced this restaurant as we said hello to Richmond’s past. We laughed and talked in front of an open fire and soaked up the wonderful atmosphere. Then on to an Irish Pub called Sine - built in the 1800’s it was used as a tobacco warehouse. You could feel the history around you - and I just soaked it up! We had a drink, laughed and talked - and wound up singing at the top of our lungs with our arms around each other - celebrating the reason we were all there…

We said good bye to Deb’s Taxi at the hotel and thanked her for getting us safely back to the hotel. We learned that our 5:30am departure had been changed to 3:30am - which we all understood, given the reports of 3 million people. We were getting ready to settle in for the night when the power went out in the hotel. Seems someone slammed into an electrical pole outside the hotel. Two of the oldest, sweetest ladies on the bus, Willie Mae and Julia - got stuck in the elevator, while everyone scrambled for flashlights and the lights of their cell phones! I found Ms. Queenie sitting at the desk in our room - trying to have a bite to eat, with only her cell phone to give her light. I didn’t know how I was going to get ready for a 3:30am departure in the dark - and then two young men offered to go to 7 Eleven and get some candles! This was just another testimony to the spirit of giving that surrounded this event! So by candle light I laid out my clothes and got Miss Queenie settled for the few hours of sleep we were going to get!

The morning dawned brisk as we headed north midst mountains of cold weather gear. Because we left early we missed most of the gridlock on the highways. RFK stadium where we parked was a sea of tour busses from all over the country! Shuttle busses took us from there to the Capitol. Washington was ready for us and had young people all along the route to assist with any problem you could think of. Raising my hand high and turning around periodically to ensure they were still there - I led eight people to the Mall that morning! Unfortunately, when we got there and I screamed left, left - but some went right, right! All went well though, as new friend Freda took charge of the five with her - and I had Alice and Walter with me!

How to describe that day is hard. It was a feeling in the air - of hope and joy and of truly being one people, indivisible, all together there on that Mall - reaffirming the words of our forefathers - with liberty and justice for all. I saw perfect strangers, young and old, hugging each other - laughing and crying together - helping each other - looking forward to a better future… no words can describe what I felt that day on the mall - it was a spiritual connection of three million strong!

When Alice, Walter and I got cold - we headed for the L’Enfant Plaza - and the Plaza Hotel - which had been literally taken over by the huge crowds of people. We watched together there as Barack Obama took the oath of office. We, all of us there, prayed when the minister prayed and we cheered when the whole world cheered! I do not think the Plaza Hotel will ever again see something like that in its lifetime…

The rest of the trip was a blur of packing and a gentle letting go of the pent up energy and adrenalin that had gotten us through thus far. The bus ride back was quiet as in our minds we relived memories of the past few days. It was highlighted by a stop in the Carolinas where it had snowed. The air filled with laughter and snowballs whizzing by, while Freda carefully lay down to make a snow angel!

When we were delivered safely home, our goodbyes were long and wrapped in tears and long hugs - and promises to keep in touch.

Thank you God for the blessing of being a part of this moment in history - for the wonderful people I met along the way - and of living in a country where such things are possible.