The Clinton Presidential Library

Our first rainy day. We are so grateful that we had no weather problems before now. It started raining shortly after we left Elk City and came down wall-to-wall all day. The sad part is that it removed the dirt from our Kaibob forest drive.

Our only stop today was at the Clinton Presidential Library in Little Rock, Arkansas. This was an easy one to find. It was well marked and the drive through Little Rock was pleasant. We liked the town with the river running through it and light traffic.

We were greeted as soon as we entered. The greeter explained what we were about to see and then directed us to security. Being old folks, they let both of us in for only ten dollars. We went the extra three dollars for the audio tour apparatus—I recommend it. Before going upstairs, President Clinton’s limo is on display in a mocked up street seen.

At the next level we were again greeted and advised to start the tour with an introductory movie. It was good. Narrated by President Clinton, it quickly covers his early life, meeting Hillary, politics in Arkansas and then the presidency. He tells of the dreams he had for the country at the beginning of his presidency and then goes on to describe the highlights. Quite good and a lot packed into just twelve minutes.

The walls of the outside of the theater are covered with photos from both campaigns. As always, it’s surprising to see how young everyone looks. The photos were well selected to capture the emotions at the high and low points.

There are mock-ups of both the Cabinet Room and the Oval Office. We were able to sit at the Cabinet Room table with an interactive terminal at each seat. The terminal provides a guided tour through his critical decisions and how they were made. The Oval office can only be viewed from the doorways but is impressive and sobering.

Also on this level are a row of panels in the center of a hall presenting video and pictorial summaries of each year of his presidency. Behind these panels are letter written to and by the President. My favorite was from one of my heroes, Mother Theresa. The outside walls surrounding the panels are lined with topical achievements: Science, Health, etc.

We moved up to the top level and saw various exhibits. One contained memorabilia from throughout his life. These were gifts, like a bike from Lance Armstrong, and personal items like his saxophones. There is also an exhibit of his current ongoing work. This level also includes a changing exhibit. The current one is of western film stars and events. These brought back many memories.

It was an enjoyable experience. I hope to visit other presidential libraries.

We then moved on and were rained out of our Memphis agenda. With rain and predicted rain, we decided not to wait. We’re spending the night in Cookeville, Tennessee.