A walk through the White House

WASHINGTON

As the nation prepares to inaugurate a president Thursday, all eyes will again be on Washington D.C.. Plenty of visitors, both American and foreign, visit our country's capital each year. But a trip to the White House can't be planned on a whim.

Tickets must be reserved months ahead of time. Fortunately, a family reunion in Maryland, scheduled a year in advance, proved the perfect opportunity for my sister to get tickets for us, our kids and a friend who had tried -- and failed -- to go spur of the moment once before.

So -- first step in planning your White House visit: Get out that 2005 calendar and pick a date. Tours are available Tuesday through Saturday, 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Step two, contact your Congressional representative. Don't know who that is? Type in your ZIP code at www.house.gov to get contact information.

Once you reach the right staff person, you'll be put on the list for your chosen date, which should be within the next six months. About a month before, you'll get in touch again to confirm that tickets are available. (Peak season is April through Labor Day.) You'll need to provide full names and Social Security numbers for everyone in your group when you confirm.

Allow an hour for the tour and travel light on the day of your visit. You can't even bring a purse, camera or umbrella past security. Leave your gear in the hotel and put essentials -- wallet, keys -- in your pockets. You must also bring a photo I.D.

It was raining the day we visited, and as we approached, a National Park Service officer called out, "You going on the White House tour?" We were amazed she had picked us out from other tourists, until she explained that our lack of backpacks and umbrellas in the downpour was the giveaway.

The tour itself was memorable but not what I expected. I had made what in retrospect was an idiotic assumption -- that we would glimpse areas of the White House where the president and his aides work, or at the very least get to see some important desk where a famous document was signed. But the public doesn't go to the offices depicted on "The West Wing," where the business of running the country takes place. Instead, the tour takes you to public state rooms where first ladies serve tea and diplomatic dinners are held.

Not that there isn't history here -- there's plenty, and it's plenty interesting. As you enter, you'll see the only portrait in the White House in which the subject is black -- a painting of Martin Luther King -- near a guard's desk. Portraits of every president and first lady also grace the walls. Some are unforgettable -- like the posthumously drawn image of a pensive John F. Kennedy, his head down, arms folded -- in stark contrast to the other presidents who look straight at the viewer or are shown in lit-up profiles.

But the portraits of first ladies seemed to convey more personality than the portraits of presidents -- which, aside from Kennedy's, tend to be similar in style and conservatively executed. Mamie Eisenhower is pretty in pink, her dress, purse and over-the-elbow gloves perfectly matched in a picture of 1950s femininity. Hillary Rodham Clinton wears the stylish but businesslike black pantsuit that was her uniform during her successful Senate campaign as the only first lady to ever run for office. Dolley Madison, renowned as a hostess and for her pluck -- her quick thinking saved a portrait of George Washington when the White House was burned by the British -- looks fetching in a creamy low-cut gown.

The spaciously grand East Room, with its tall windows and imposing chandeliers, is used for receptions ranging from weddings to wakes; seven presidents have lain in state here, including Lincoln and Kennedy. The room was also reputedly used by Teddy Roosevelt's children as a roller-skating rink.

The State Dining room is also cavernous, with a table that stretches forever and straight-back chairs; you can imagine the clinking of crystal and stiff laughter of a diplomatic dinner. But other rooms on the tour are intimate -- like the Green Room, not much bigger than a regular living room. You'll also get a look at the Blue Room and Red Room; the colors in the rooms' names refer to the dominant hue of the walls, drapes and decorating scheme. Many of the smaller rooms have been refurbished in early 19th century styles; antique-lovers will be in heaven looking at the ornate mantels, lamps, carved furniture and fussy patterns.

So will art-lovers, whether they are fans of Cezanne, Georgia O'Keefe or Gilbert Stuart, who painted famous portraits of George Washington and several other early inhabitants of the White House. The art collection includes not just portraits of presidents and their wives, but also paintings of everyday scenes and breathtaking landscapes, from Niagara Falls to New Mexico. My favorite was "Farmyard in Winter," by George Durrie, a peaceful, snow-covered rural scene hanging in the Green Room.

Photographs of famous visitors and events at the White House are also displayed; the picture of John Travolta cutting the rug with Princess Diana is not to be missed. Photos of first families and their pets include Teddy Roosevelt's son with a macaw.

For those whose schedules preclude a trip in person, a virtual room-by-room tour is available at www.whitehouse.gov/history/whtour. Portraits of presidents and first ladies can be viewed at the Web site for the White House Historical Association, www.whitehousehistory.org, where you can also watch a video of each room on the tour, as well as a video of what's not on the tour -- the real West Wing.