In an age of technology, museums provide a look at the past

By ALEX CLEGG

With roughly 80 museums in the District of Columbia, how could one possibly see all that is offered? Museums range from art exhibits, to presidential houses available for tours, to buildings and monuments and everything in between.

You can read the reviews and listen to the jargon about which is the best to see, but in the end it all comes down to personal preference and priorities. I’ve come up with a list of my favorite museums and why. Take it as it is, but feel free to form your own opinions.

The International Spy Museum is quite possibly one of the most fun museums in all the land. Upon arrival and after paying your $22 entrance fee, you will be handed an alternate, spy identification and set off on a journey through the life of an alter ego. Your character will guide you through the museum, placing you in different regions of the world and different scenarios. Tasks include completing a mission, and then participants are rewarded toward the end of the tour.

Although it is one of the few that cost money to visit, the International Spy Museum is well worth the cost. Anytime I have family members in town, it is the first place I take them.

The Holocaust Museum is not the first place I would take someone, but I once made the mistake of bringing a date there; I hope you do not.

As one enters the building, engulfed by the massive amount of artifacts and exhibits, one realizes how much is being offered.

You are able to take a tour through the life of a child during World War II, or you can visit gas chambers and a crematorium. I would not say it is a fun museum, due to the horrific history it captures, but it is an incredibly moving museum to visit.

The Newseum is one where you could spend an entire day, from opening to close, and still not see everything that it has to offer.

It covers all things journalism, with special exhibits on certain incidents, including the fall of the Berlin Wall and Hurricane Katrina. While at the Newseum, you are also given the opportunity to test your reporting skills with an extensive green screen area. It is definitely is worth the $23 that it costs to get in.

Along with the special exhibits, there is an entire floor dedicated to previous newspapers, some of which could be more than 100 years old. Looking for the front page of the New York Times on your birthday? They probably have it.

Museums are all about preference. Find the one that fits you, and go.