A Series of Museums: Science, British, V&A

So as a requisite part of my trip, I went to a number of museums while in London.  Each of the three I visited had their own tone and vibe, but there isn't really too much to blog about. I'll give a brief synopsis of each one in an attempt to expedite these three days.

The Science Museum: I wasn't quite sure what to expect when we went here, but it was sort of a joke to say the least. I felt like I was in Chuck E. Cheese babysitting hundreds of little gremlins running and climbing on everything.  Okay, I get it, we were dumb for going here on a Sunday afternoon. However, everything there was too interactive and kid friendly for parents to resist.  We saw a 3-D movie about underwater creatures.  It was abut 45 minutes long and narrated by Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet.... I was like, "huh?"  It was really funny because they would have awkward banter between the two about why a sea creature did something.  I was a bit tired and fell asleep for part of it.  Then we roamed around, saw a bunch of friends playing with everything, and then stumbled upon a 4-D movie.  I have never seen a 4-D movie, but it was hilarious.  It was about the first landing on the moon, and we had to get strapped in as if it were a roller coaster.  So the seat would rumble a bit, we had 3-D glasses on, and they would put smelly smoke in the room for us to "smell space"... To top it off, the finale was "the crew" landing in the ocean... So of course, they sprayed us with water.... I know what jumping in water feels like, honestly, I do. 4-D = overrated, if it's even rated.  To sum up, we had a lot of fun goofing around and having a good laugh about the museum.  I'm really glad I went because it makes every other European museum seem so illustrious.

The British Museum: We went here on a Monday afternoon (a.k.a pretty empty).  The building itself was beautiful and HUGEEE. There were too many things in there to truly appreciate in a day.  After seeing 50 "different" types of bowls that looked painfully similar, even though they were crafted 1,000 years apart half-way across the globe, we kind of sped through too many sections.  I took over 100 pictures here, so I'd say just check Facebook to see them.  It was a little uncomfortable to be here though.  Too many of the artifacts were from other places, a.k.a clearly not belonging to the UK.  They kind of pass it off as we were an imperial power, so places we conquered, we get your stuff. I don't buy in to that logic.  If they had paid for these decorative bowls, jewelery, etc, I would be fine with it.  Don't get me wrong, it was awesome to look at and see.  However, I just question how it's sitting in a museum in the UK, instead of near its place of origin.  I guess I'm too cynical. To sum up, wonderful museum and a must-see if you're in London for more than a weekend.  OH, it's free too :)

Victoria & Albert: I went here on a Thursday afternoon, but I braved this one alone.  The V&A was the best museum I've ever been too.  It is named after Prince Albert and Queen Victoria.  It houses mostly artsy designs and furnishings used/collected by the royal family.  Each room brought something new and spectacular.  The museum itself was a rectangle with a picturesque little park with a pond in the middle.  Inside were rooms filled with sculptures, golden&silver objects, decorative glass, unreal hand-crafted tapestries, marble staircases: very aesthetically pleasing.  I spent over two hours there, and I was still looking for more as I left.  My favorites were the glass room, the gold room and the silver room.  Everything within those rooms were shiny and pristine.  I really enjoyed this museum because it truly had a very royal feeling to it.  Again, I took tons of pictures here, but would recommend just checking out my Facebook to see them all.  I've attached one of my favorites at the end of this post.  To sum up, an absolute must-see. I almost didn't go because I didn't feel like having them search my huge overstuffed backpack.  I had it with me because I checked out of my B&B that day and couldn't drop it off at my friend's flat before she went to class. I am so glad I sucked it up and went. Great place.