Inside Mar-a-Lago for 48 hours critical to the Russia investigation

Washington (CNN)The answer to one of the most critical questions at the heart of the Russia investigation may well lie in the grand hallways of Mar-a-Lago.

Did President Donald Trump know Michael Flynn talked about sanctions during his conversations a year ago with the former Russian ambassador? Or did the President's small circle of advisers keep it from him?

A look back at a pivotal 48-hour period -- inside the President's Palm Beach estate -- offers a fresh window into some of the early thinking and actions of the new Trump team, the consequences of which are now front-and-center in the investigation into Russian meddling in the 2016 election.

Flynn pleads guilty to lying to FBI, is cooperating with Mueller

When Trump strode into Mar-a-Lago's Grand Ballroom last December 29, neither he nor his aides could imagine that day would come to haunt his presidency. But the decisions made during that period, as the President basked in the comfort of his retreat, still resonate a year later.

It's now clear that Flynn's lies to the FBI were rooted in his telephone call that day to the former Russian ambassador and his subsequent call to Trump advisers at Mar-a-Lago.

The answers may ultimately come from special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation, but the questions begin during that critical period in Florida.

Here's a look back at what is known -- and what's still to be determined -- about what transpired Mar-a-Lago on December 28 and 29 last year:

• Wednesday, December 28

• TRUMP

  Working from Mar-a-Lago

  Then-President-elect Donald Trump received a flurry of visitors to his Palm Beach, Florida, club as he neared his Inauguration Day. Top aides — including Kellyanne Conway, Steve Bannon, Reince Priebus, Stephen Miller and Hope Hicks — were seen at the club coming and going from sessions with the incoming president.

  

  Over the course of the day, Trump met with businessman David Rubenstein; a group of health care CEOs that included the chiefs of the Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins and the Cleveland Clinic; and presidential historian Douglas Brinkley, who discussed past presidents' inaugural addresses. Brinkley was joined by Christopher Ruddy, CEO of Newsmax Media and a friend of Trump's, and Bloomberg View columnist Margaret Carlson. Emerging from the club, Carlson said they had cake for dessert.

• TRUMP

  Phone call from Obama

  In between meetings with health care CEOs, presidential historians and longtime friends, Trump took a call from sitting President Barack Obama, who was on vacation in Hawaii. The two men had spoken on the phone periodically since Trump was elected, but their relationship was beginning to fray after Trump tweeted about "roadblocks" to a successful transition

• News Courtesy: www.cnn.com