Museums
« Previous EntriesSoviet statues and a zoo you can eat
By rocky | August 14, 2008
After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the fall of the Soviet control of much of Eastern Europe many of the huge monuments to the rule were removed and in many cases destroyed. But many in Lithuania were later retrieved and restored and are now on display at Grtas park, near Druskininkai in Southern Lithuania which opened in 2001. The park has become a family amusement park, and has a very odd list of attractions, there are over 80 of huge statues of just about every leader to rule the East, including Lenin and Stalin. There’s a few wooden huts with over a million pieces of memorabilia from this period and even a zoo, well a pretty crappy one in more ways than one. Don’t expect any exotic animals unless you are counting the chickens, pigs and the odd ostrich or pheasant- if you like the look of them, head down to the restaurant, they have a few of their zoo exhibits on the menu.. tasty. There’s plenty of market stalls where you can buy your very own Soviet era treasure or even some dodgy beer brewed on the premises. It may not be Disneyland but you will certainly be amazed, although in different ways. if you know what we mean.
Topics: Animals, Europe, Kitsch Stuff, Museums, fun parks | No Comments »
New Acropolis museum opens for wrong Olympics
By rocky | July 17, 2008
You might remember four years ago the panic in getting all the Olympic venues finished for the Athens Olympics, well it was hoped the New Acropolis Museum would open be ready for the thousands visiting for the games, well the Greeks were running a bit late on this project, infact four years late, and it is expected it will open in September just missing the Beijing Olympics, but there is still a chance of delays which might even push the opening date out to early next year. The museum will feature three levels and 25,000 square metres of exhibition space and house some of Greece’s greatest treasures and one day they hope to have on display the Elgin or Parthenon Marbles which are controversially held by the British Museum in London. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Europe, Museums | No Comments »
The Pope pops in to Darling Harbour
By rocky | July 15, 2008
This week His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI and thousands of visitors from all around the world have flocked to Sydney to be part of the World Youth Day celebrations and one of the major locations for the celebrations was Barangroo on the Northern edge of Darling Harbour, offering spectacular views of one of the world’s most scenic cites. Over the coming years Barangroo will be come an extension to the growing city and the Darling Harbour leisure precinct. Darling Harbour is a huge recreational precinct stretching nearly the whole length of the city. Packed with restaurants, shopping, hotels and apartments the area has many of Sydney’s premier attractions including the Star City Casino, The IMAX, Sydney Aquarium, National Maritime Museum and the magnificent Powerhouse Museum, plus many conference and convention centres like the Sydney Exhibition Centre, Convention Centre and Sydney Entertainment Centre. The Precinct is also the gateway to Sydney’s vibrant Chinatown, Australia’s largest. Darling Harbour is linked to the city with a monorail, a light rail system and plenty of watercraft which travel to all parts of Sydney’s magnificent harbour. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Australia, Festivals / Events, Museums | No Comments »
Who opened their lunchbox?
By rocky | July 8, 2008
There are museums for just about everything and here’s another unusual one- the Lunchbox Museum in Columbus USA. Allen Woodall who started the museum started collecting lunchboxes late 1980’s and today has over a thousand of all shapes and sizes. There’s some fascinating boxes on display including hundreds of rare metal cases dating back to the 50’s and beyond. Many of them feature American pop culture of the time with musicians of the day like Elvis, the Osmonds or TV stars like Flipper and Bonanza. Now lunchboxes are made of plastic or cardboard and don’t have the same nostalgia as the old metal cases but there are some great ones on display including a huge Star Wars collection. The collection is so unique it is even recognised by the Smithsonian.
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Topics: Kitsch Stuff, Museums, USA | No Comments »
This place is full of clowns!
By rocky | July 6, 2008
Wisconsin State Fair Park in Milwaukee USA is home to the International Clown Hall of Fame. Here the art of clowning is celebrated in a fantastic and fun display showing plenty of clown memorabilia and is a extensive research facility for clown history. The hall of fame started in 1987 with the first induction in 1989, and since then over 60 clowns have been added to the award, with clowns from all around the world. In addition to the hall of fame the there is also an annual “Lifetime of Laughter Achievement Award handed out to clowns. The hall of fame is a living museum of clowning. There are clown performances, special events, seminars, community oriented programs, classes and this museum maintains a vast archive of clown artefacts and library and fun for all ages, a must for anyone after a bit of a laugh when in Milwaukee.
Topics: Museums, USA | No Comments »
A yummy French Fries Museum
By rocky | July 5, 2008
We have featured some weird museums on Tripandom, like the parasite museum, the ramen noodle museum and the Bangkok forensic museum and we have found another, the French Fries Museum or Friet Museum as the Belgium’s like to call it. Located in Brugge in Belgium only 200 metres from the Grand Palace of Bruges the Friet Museum offers hours of entertainment for the visitor. You can learn about the history of fries, visit a mock fries shop, On the ground floor you can learn about the fascinating history of the potato which originated in Peru more than 10,000 years ago. On the first floor, the visitor can discover the history of the fries and how they came to Belgium and in the basement of the building, in the medieval cellars, it is even possible to sample some. The museum claims to be the only museum dedicated to potato fries in the world, it’s just hard to imagine no one else has thought of this great idea. The questions most frequently asked by visitors are: “Where does the potato come from?”, “Was the fry invented in Belgium?” and “What is the secret of making good fries?” -well you will have to visit the museum to find out the answers! and I wonder what they goodies they sell in the gift shop? Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Europe, Food, Museums, fun parks | No Comments »
Cold War Museum proposed for Checkpoint Charlie
By wattsy | June 29, 2008
Berlin’s Checkpoint Charlie was the main crossing point for foreigners into East Berlin during the Cold War and has become the symbol of the war, with thousands of tourists flocking to the area to see the replica of the allied checkpoint building and the nearby privately run Checkpoint Charlie Museum (Haus am Checkpoint Charlie museum). according to this USAToday story a former East German minister is proposing a cold war museum be built an a vacant block of land near Checkpoint Charlie. The vacant lot near the checkpoint was where the East German checkpoint watchtower once stood but was torn down in 2000 to make way for new development that ultimately never happened. The watchtower was the last original part of the checkpoint that stood at the site. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Europe, Museums | No Comments »
South Street Seaport
By rocky | April 29, 2008
Situated in the historic area of Manhattan where Fulton Street meets the East River you will find the South Street Seaport Museum. The seaport is a collection of beautifully restored 19th century commercial building, restored sailing ships and plenty of tourist malls with food, shopping and good night life and one of the best views of the majestic Brooklyn Bridge. One of the more popular vessels to visit is the Peking a Flying P Liner which was a sailing ship of the German F Laeising shipping company which originated in Hamburg. Built in 1911 the ship was made famous by Irving Johnston who filmed onboard the ship as it rounded Cape Horn back in 1929. The ship has been on display at South Street since 1975. Other interesting vessels include the Wavetree which is a 1885 fully rigged cargo ship and the W.O Decker a 1930’s tugboat which sometimes gives the public a chance to board it for strips around New York’s waterways. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Americas, Museums, Ships / Boats | No Comments »
The Liberace experience
By rocky | April 28, 2008
Liberace was one of the pioneers of entertainment in Las Vegas, he brought a new type of glitz and glamour to the strip with the most over the top and lavish stage shows ever seen. He arrived on stage in jewel encrusted vehicles and had rhinestone covered pianos and his costumes were the most amazing and outrageous with sequins, jewels and diamonds. Stripped away from all the flamboyance Liberace was one of the world’s greatest performers and his classical piano playing was second to none, but it was the glitz and glamour for what this mega celebrity will be remembered for. Today Liberace is no longer with us but his legend lives on in Vegas with a huge collection of his pianos and vehicles including a mirror tiled Rolls Royce and rhinestone laden roadster are on display with many of his costumes, the amazing jewelry and the entire story of his performing life. The museum itself is larger than life just like the superstar with huge neon piano on the roof. There’s a great gift shop and the trust which runs the museum puts the money into the Liberace Foundation which invests in performing arts scholarships for the young, a cause Liberace was so deeply involved in. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Kitsch Stuff, Museums, Must see, USA | 1 Comment »
The Meguro Parasite Museum
By rocky | April 27, 2008
Japan has some of the world’s more interesting museums, there the noodle museums, sewerage museums, salt museum…you get the drift but now we have found one which is even weirder…The Kiseichuu Hakubutsukan or Meguro Parasite Museum. Here you can see jars and jars of interesting parasites in all shapes and sizes. The star attraction of the museum in their 45000 item collection is a 8.8 meter long tape worm which once happily lived in a woman. There are all sorts of worms and wriggly things enough to turn you off your lunch and probably tomorrows as well. The museum like all museums features a gift shop at the end of the tour, and yes you can buy your very own parasites one of the best sellers is a parasite key chain- beats that Hello Kitty one they are selling down the street and for only Y210 its a real bargain. The Meguro Parasite Museum is located Shimomeguro, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, and only a few minutes walk from Meguro Station. - Just a word of warning no eating is allowed whilst veiwing the parasite collection. Read the rest of this entry »
Topics: Animals, Asia, Museums | No Comments »