My Visit to the White House
What it looks like when you get the most famous house all to yourself for one extraordinary afternoon
Here I am in the White House Press Briefing Room trying to get a word in edgewise…
The silence was deafening. ☺️
Seriously, I never dreamed that I would one day get to experience the West Wing up close and in person. This was truly one of best surprise birthday presents I received from our DC-based daughter (and Alyssa, her friend on the inside who made it possible).
All those iconic spaces we’ve seen hundreds of times on TV — from the Rose Garden to the Oval Office, the Cabinet Room, and the Press Briefing Room — became very real on a recent crisp November Sunday afternoon. For such a famous house that has been at the epicenter of every major world event, I was struck by how small, and welcoming, and unpretentious it was.
Don’t ask me how, but somehow we managed to get these hallowed halls all to ourselves, which made our wandering through them even more dreamlike and surreal.
I thought today you all might enjoy a small taste of what we saw. With cameras off limits for part of our visit, there were two areas I was able to capture in colorful detail: the Press Briefing Room and the Eisenhower Executive Offices — the White House staff building across the street that no one ever talks about. Built between 1871 and 1888, it is a huge, commanding space. The staircases alone, which go on forever, will take your breath away.
The Press Briefing Room
In brief…
The Eisenhower Building
In spacious splendor…
Secretary of War Suite video clip….
For a little historical context: young JFK, Jr in 1963, with the Eisenhower Building in the background and the West Wing on the far right.
And that’s a wrap!
What’s an experience you’ve had that surpasses your wildest imaginings?
Ahhh 🏡✌🏼
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I just love your photos, Stephanie. Especially the staircases!!
My husband and I took a trip to England and we got to go through high clere Castle which is the castle they used to film the show. Downton Abbey, it was amazing. It was a trip of a lifetime