Up and at it and on the move by about 6:30... With Janie and the kids hitting breakfast by 7:20. We kept a close eye on the news, as New England got spanked pretty good overnight with as high as 20" of snow. We had decided to use the 12:00 PM check out to let us fit another attraction into our plans while waiting for the snow to be removed in the states to the north of DC.

At about 8:15 we began a brisk walk down 6th to Pennsylvania the nearest Bank of America (we use this bank when stateside as it is an affiliate of ScotiaBank and charges no extra fees). Then to our pick of morning attraction, the Newseum. We skirted this attraction during our 2010 visit, but thought it an excellent decision for this chilly Friday morning. We were first in, and early in the tour had most exhibits to ourselves. This is indeed a very well thought out and interesting space. From presentation to customer service, everything was top notch. Further, I think the 2 1/2 hours spent here only touched the surface.

Although too numerous to mention, we found the six floors (yes I said six) of exhibits outstanding. The building does an excellent treatment of the role mass media and news played out during Kennedy era, from the early days of Camelot to the Cuban Missile Crisis and eventual Dallas assassination. It is both sensitive and informative. For visitors alive during this time frame it would be a must stop. We particularly liked the exhibit that examined the FBI and media stories surrounding some of the most fascinating investigations, including the Lindbergh Kidnapping, the Una-Bomber, the Oklahoma Federal Building Explosion, and of course, 9/11. Excellently done with actual artifacts and supporting video or text.

Other exhibits include front pages of newspapers from around the globe, a whole exhibit of front pages from dailies of important events, from the American Civil War to the death of Marilyn Monroe, the outbreak of WWI to the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr, Elvis' death... It went on for hundreds of feet. Quite a room. Beyond that, the telecommunications beacon from The World Trade Centre is among the artifacts. A floor is dedicated to fun and the movie "Anchorman", where interactive exhibits allow for visitors to create / record their own news casts and take pictures. Also, a massive 4d cinema rests on the lower floor. We had an excellent visit!

Shortly after 11:00 am we hustled back up a frigid 6th Street to check out. All was well, and our car arrived unscathed and free of snow... We were on the road in minutes and navigated a very smooth trip out of DC via New York Avenue and the Washington-Baltimore Parkway. We had reached out to Steve and Jen the night before to measure whether they'd be in Fairfield Friday evening. They invited us to stay so we braced ourselves for roughly a 6 hour driving time and headed north. We almost always bypass NYC unless purposefully visiting, and this trip was no exception. Seeing that some snow had fallen, but with clear highways, we proceeded through Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania to Allentown, then New Jersey, New York and Connecticut via the Tappan Zee Bridge. We arrived 6:30 PM at Steve and Jen's in Fairfield, CT.

For the evening we enjoyed what will be our last visit to this space, as Steve and Jen are most likely on the move to lodging nearer to Steve's work. We enjoyed beers, catch up conversation, touching base with Annie and Meg, a fine Nauti Dog Pizza, game of Tri-bond and the two retrievers standing guard when we arrived (not). It was respite on a very cold January evening in New England. We were ready for a little piece of home and really appreciated the stop, leaving far more relaxed on Saturday morning.