The White House Tour

Along with New York’s Statue of Liberty， the White House shares the equivalent fame worldwide as one of the few iconic[象征性的] American landmarks. When you hear the address： 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue， District of Columbia， you know it refers to the one-and-only White House， where Presidents of the United States live and work.

Every day tens of thousands of visitors take photos outside this famous building. And a small number of them are fortunate enough to tour the inside after signing up for the White House public tour at least a month in advance！

I was one of the lucky visitors. In fact， I’ve been to the White House twice—the first time was only for the Rose Garden tour in the spring； the second time was the interior public tour. Both occasions were impressive， and I was thrilled to set foot on the ground where the First Family lives. Many visitors felt the same way. We took pictures outside like maniacs[瘋子]！ （My tour happened just weeks before the White House lifted a camera and photo ban on public tours.）

The garden of the White House is open to the public twice a year， spring and fall. Tickets are free but they are handed out on a first-come-first-serve basis. To avoid waiting in a long line， it’s wise to get to the site fairly early. I was among one of the early birds， so I saw things that not many people did—for instance， the famous “First Dog” Bo. He’s a Portuguese Water Dog with furry black hair on his back and white hair on his chest and front legs. Bo was probably finishing his first romp[嬉戲] and poop[排便] of the day. His handler was leading him away from the crowd.

From its gorgeous garden to the colorful rooms on the second floor， everything at the White House is well-tended and in exquisite detail. The building itself is small compared to the palaces where dignitaries[顯要人物] and royals usually live. I bet even China’s Zhongnanhai is much larger than the White House. But what surprised me was how vigilant[警惕的] and yet friendly the White House staff are to ordinary folks. They answered questions from the visitors with great pleasure.

Indeed， not many heads of state will open the doors of their residence to the public. And the public tour of the White House made me feel up close and personal with the Obamas.