Being There

Howard and Berger, 24, met a few days before the inauguration. Before the ceremony they bar-hopped in Washington's Adams-Morgan district until 5 a.m. Yet they reached their spot on the National Mall about three hours later, excited and cheerful if not fully refreshed.

To attend the inauguration, Berger, a Bethesda, Md., native and graduate of Colorado College, delayed a two-month trip to British Columbia, where he hopes to ski and find a job in a café. During a visit to Africa last year, he said, he was amazed at how closely people in Zambia and Tanzania followed Obama's campaign.

"During the primary, people were ecstatic that there was the potential that Obama could be president," Berger said.

At about 9:30 a.m., fellow spectators began admiring Howard and Berger's vantage point and proceeded to scale a brown utility building a few feet away. About two dozen people, including children hoisted by adults, made it aloft before police officers arrived on the scene.

"It's going to be a disaster lifting people off that thing," Berger said.

With stern warnings and watchful eyes, police officers stood by as those on the rooftop eased their way back to earth. No one was injured or arrested, and Howard and Berger stayed in their tree for the ceremony.

-- Greg Vadala