let the tours begin.
as a proper tourist i definitely wanted to visit the three branches of government: supreme court (above), congress, and president. that is, i wanted to walk in their respective buildings.
turns out, i started with the easiest to access. just walk into the supreme court and line up for one of the frequently held talks trough out the day. no tickets required, just a bit of waiting in line when it comes closer to tour time.
the roughly one hour talk is held in the actual courtroom. but no photos are allowed inside, thus my picture below is a sneak peek from the door. small but definitely in the background are the elevated black authoritative leather chairs in which the judges of last resort sit three times a week, when in session from october to june, to hear two cases per day.
the seating order starts with, of course, with the chief justice occupying the middle chair, and then zigzags according to seniority from his right neighbor to his left neighbor, to the second neighbor on his right, and so forth.
architecturally, the self-supporting, elliptical piral stair case is the most interesting feature in the otherwise pretty puristic marble interior. it's unclear if the architect cass gilbert (1859-1934) constructed it for practical or decorative purposes. but he had experience with the design as he had used it before in the minnesota state house, as an explanatory sign tells.
a glimpse into the supreme court café, gift shop, and contemplating some gilded big elevator doors, busts, and glossy photos of other fancy rooms in the building such as the library, offices, and conference room completed my visit. time to move on.
visit the other branches with me:
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