For Trump’s second inauguration, the atmosphere in Washington is very different

It was Saturday afternoon, and two men who had voted for Donald J. Trump were wandering the freezing streets of downtown Washington, unsure of where to go or what to do.

They had traveled far — one from Arkansas, the other from Louisiana — to attend Mr. Trump’s inauguration. Now it was being moved inside, and they didn’t know if they would be able to reach the arena where it was going to be shown next Monday.

“I’m a little disappointed, because we came all the way here for this,” said one of the men, a 76-year-old Navy retiree from Fayetteville, Ark., named Bob Jaynes. “We talked to a lady today from Australia, yesterday to people from Hawaii, and at lunch to people from New Mexico. So they must all be disappointed too. It’s a long way to go and it’s expensive to stay here.

Tom Trepaignier, a 63-year-old bail bondsman from Oklahoma City, stood in the shadow of the Washington Monument, wearing yellowed caiman leather boots. He said he planned to watch the inauguration from his hotel room. He looked up and down at all the white marbles on the National Mall and said it was still “really cool” to be there. “It’s like the Roman Empire.”

This is the moment Mr. Trump’s supporters have been waiting for four long years. Those who converged on the capital this weekend filled the bars and were transported around town aboard pedicabs to the sounds of the Village People. They made nightly visits to Georgetown, marveling at the size of the Federalist estates. They were excited.