Bring Toilet Paper

If you have a cell phone, make sure it's fully charged and bring along a device that lets you recharge. Cell lines may be overloaded during parts of the day, but you should still be able to send text messages. Just in case, bring along some change for pay phones and write down important phone numbers on a piece of paper. Also, sign up for Alert DC, which will send you official text messages about any emergency situations occurring in D.C. A free-to-download iPhone app will also help you figure out where you are and what amenities are nearby.

Pack a personal emergency kit with first-aid supplies such as Band-Aids, antiseptic wipes, aspirin, toilet paper, medications, snacks, a small flashlight and some extra cash.

Create a "what-if" plan with your travel group. Agree on what you'll do if anyone gets lost. It could be as simple as having a brightly colored bandana to wave above your head if you get separated in a crowd, or something more complicated, such as an edge-of-town meeting time and place you'll all gather should the day's events go awry.

Haven't made plans to be in D.C. but still want to go?

If you are 18 or older and can act and write fast, you can enter a contest sponsored by the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC). The prize: free plane tickets for you and a guest, plus free hotel rooms, and tickets to the swearing-in ceremony, the parade and one of the official balls.

To enter you'll need to write an essay about what the inauguration means to you. Submissions must be in by 11:59 p.m. EST January 8th. Ten winners will be chosen and notified by or before January 16th. Although the site invites you to make a donation to the overall cost of the inauguration festivities when you enter the contest, this link brings you to a page where you can enter the contest without making a contribution.

Good luck!

© 2009