White House Christmas Decorations (VLOG)

Another VLOG Episode

 

Gates to the White House

Getting Ready:

Touring the White House is always exciting.  No matter what you think of the resident at the time of your visit.  I have been living in the area for a few years now and I have visited under three different presidents.  There are couple of different tours you can take.  You may have seen an earlier post, in which it was just a garden tour.  Will this post is about the Christmas Decorations.  

You must have a ticket and go through a background check.  When you receive the invitation, be sure to read it, all of it, and the small print.  It is constantly changing, so the rules may be different than the last time you visited. 

When should I go?

My wife and I like going during the week, in the middle of the day.  Parking is always a challenge.  The Metro can get you close, and is not a bad ride.  However, recently the crime spree in DC has cautioned me to recommend the Metro Rail.  If you travel in a group, you should be fine.  But the other issue with public transportation, is there is no where to store you stuff (backpack, purses or camera bag) while you are touring.

With all of that in mind, I drove.  I paid for parking at the Willard hotel.  Just across the street from the entrance.  I did have to return to the car once prior to the tour.  This is because of the small print, I mentioned above,  My wife and her friends thought they could bring in their clutches.  But you cannot.

Christmas Tour

During the Christmas time, you can see how the "House" is decorated for the holidays.  each room is a little different.  I believe, but I am not sure, the First Lady is un charge of decorations. This year was a great a tour, as you can see from the video.  It was a great day, a little on the cool side, but clear.  Our group was able to take a few minutes before the tour and see the Williad Hotel Lobby decorations. The hotel lobby is always a breathtaking adventure.  

Plan your visit

To arrange a tour, visit the White House web site.  Follow the directions.  Make sure you read any restrictions on what can be brought into the White House.  If you drive, parking will run between $30-$50 in a garage.  I recommend spending the money on parking.  

You will have to wait outside for a 30-50 minutes, once you make it past the first line ranger checking you invitation/ticket.  Depending on how many people are visiting, you could be waiting outside the compound for close to an hour.  I would arrive in plenty of time, maybe an hour and half prior to your time slot.  They will let you in early, but I am not sure about how late (past your time slot) they will admit you.

Take a moment to view the history while you are there, not just Snap a picture and move on.  Do not be afraid to ask the staff, posted through out the tour questions.  In my experience they have all been very informative to the visitors.  

Salutations:

Thank you for visiting the site.  You will find the video is hosted on Rumble, if you don't Rumble you should try it out.  

VLOG EP31 Tronster takes a drive

 

Tronster's Tools for VLOG and Blog

Equipment Check

Background

 Here at Tronster.net, I try to provide information and entertainment.  I know your time is valuable, and I am just one choice in many to waste that time.  I greatly appreciate all of you that visit, search the site and check out my little slice of the Internet. 

Today, I wanted to let you know how it has been going.  I have recently started using Rumble to post videos.  I am not one of those creators looking to quit my job and be full time on the Internet.  For one thing, you have to have a lot of traffic to make a living (and I don't).  I enjoy the adventure part so much, the content part is not my best work.  However, I do try to improve as time goes on. I ask that you look around the page, do a search for a topic and see if I have any thoughts or adventures to share.  

Videos

I post most of my vlog videos on Rumble.  If you haven't set up a Rumble account, Tronster recommends you do.  Why?  It's up and coming, and there is a wide variety of quality videos on different subjects.  There is also a wide variety of low quality videos.  Such as mine, as I learn the techniques to produce better videos.  With an account, you do not have to post videos, but you can leave comments on videos.  Otherwise you just get to watch them.

Pictures

If you have spent anytime here are Troster.net, you will see I have taken a lot of pictures.  With different cameras in different scenarios.  I recent ly purchased a new camera, and I am still learning all the settings, features and best way to use it.  Below are links to the camera and some of the items I use.  As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

1. Adapter ring for EF Lenses

2. My Camera:  Cannon R10 

My Thoughts

I am a fan of the cannon products.  This is my fourth cannon DSLR/mirrorless camera.  I started with the Rebel line, move up to the 30D, back to a rebel, and now I am on the R10.  This cameras is lighter and smaller than the others.  I find the buttons easy to find. Both on purpose and sometimes on accident.  No piece of equipment will beat practice and understanding of what you are trying to accomplish.  So I have read the manual. (briefly) I have made some setting changes.  I have a long way to go, and hope you will continue to follow as I learn more.  

Thank you for stopping by Tronster, and I hope you will come again.

Ketchikan Alaska

 

Port Call

The port call in Ketchikan Alaska allowed Tronster and Sunshine to explore another city in the last frontier.  Ketchikan Alaska.  This little fishing village has a lot to offer.  Even if you do not visit the Misty Fjord National Monument or the Totem Bright State Historic Site.  Our landing party went for a walk through the town.  Although our ship was docked about 5 miles from the center, the bus provided by the cruise line was comfortable and entertaining.  The bus drivers tend to provide commentary from the pier to the city.

Historic Creek Street

This little board walk has many restored buildings.  Here you will find several local shops, with nick nacks and souvenirs.  This was the location of some businesses from the gold rush, that were, shall we say, of ill repute.  

Get Something to eat!

There are some great eateries in the town.  We decided on the little place seen in the video.  I had fish tacos, while Sunshine enjoyed a little crab.  

Thanks for stopping by, come back and take a look at my older posts. I promise they are easy reads, with the exception of spelling errors and bad grammar. (Occasionally)  

Episode 6: London River Cruise

Day Trip in London:

Sunshine and I had a day long layover with our recent trip to Europe.  I wanted to share some video from that day.  The cruise was a blast.  The tour guide was entertaining as well as informative.   This was part of the package with the Hop-on Hop-off bus ticket we purchased.  As I mention before, these are great deals for getting around in big cities.