No Tickets Left

I got the kids out of bed extra early this morning and convinced Kenton to bring us downtown – this was a little before 7 am. I wanted to be in line at the Ellipse Visitor Pavilion at 7:30 am when tickets would begin to be passed out for the White House Easter Egg Roll. We arrived at the Pavilion, and Kenton dropped me off while he and the boys looked for a parking space. I was shocked to see that there literally were thousands of people waiting – it seemed like I and several others wanting tickets walked a mile to get to the back of the line.

At the end of the line were two National Park Rangers telling people that there was no use to wait in line. They had counted the people and the tickets available were accounted for. The rangers said that they had been turning people away since 10 pm the night before. I couldn’t believe it - what?! In order to get tickets to the White House Easter Egg Roll, people had to camp overnight in line – so much for getting up early to get tickets. As I walked back to find Kenton and the boys, I noticed that the people in line had sleeping bags and blankets rolled-up, folding chairs, carry-ons, and even folded up tents. It must have been one large camping line last night, in the close-to-freezing temperatures too.

The rangers had said that a small amount of tickets would be available on the day of the Egg Roll, again at 7:30 am. I’m afraid it will be the same scenario of people arriving the evening before. I don’t know if our boys will ever get tickets to a White House Easter Egg Roll - but one of these years, it might be a fun adventure to camp in line together overnight. We have five more years of eligibility, as the requirements are that at least one child in your family is seven years old or under.

Instead of heading back home, I decided to cross the street and walk to the Washington Monument to try and get tickets to go inside. There were already a couple hundred of people lined up at the ticket kiosk, and I joined in. The next hour was spent standing and chatting with those in front and behind me in line. It seemed like every one was visiting from out of state and on vacation.

The line moved closer and closer to the ticket kiosk, and when there were about 40 people left in front of me, the announcement was made – ‘Tickets have all been given out for the day.’ Again, I couldn’t believe it! This was our third attempt in 24 hours to get tickets to three different places - Bureau of Engraving and Printing, White House Easter Egg Roll, and the Washington Monument – and the result each time was ‘No Tickets Left.'