treacle abroad: Natural History Museum

I really do love going to museums, aquariums, observatories and the like. I remember my dad taking me to the Power House Museum as a little kid and patiently waiting (only as a father could) while I played and examined every single little thing in sight. I'm sure he also has not forgotten times when I insisted that we go to the Sydney Observatory at some horridly late (or early) hour of the night (or morning) to see a passing comet.

Nowadays I still love a trip to the museum (and the like), for all the same reasons as before and more. Every visit invokes sentiments which I find comforting when away from home.

The National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno, Tokyo was a-maz-ing. I wish I had taken photos and blogged about it when we were there but better late than never. The exhibits were very well dressed and lit. The taxidermy so incredibly life like that I would freeze on the spot looking at a deer looking at me, afraid that if I moved, I would scare it away. As with just about everything in Tokyo, the museum was immaculate and technological. Kids (big and little) could use these cards in the museum to collect information about exhibits they visited. It worked by placing the card on a terminal next to exhibit which then saves the information to it. The info could then be accessed from a PC at home or school or where ever. Neat huh?!

The Natural History Museum of London didn't quite compare to the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, but I never expected it to. It was however just as warm, inviting and nostalgic as I'd hoped.

A few snaps I took of our visit:

Dinosaurs are a necessity, naturally.

Grr there are 2 grizzlies in this photo, can you spot them?

This crazy prehistoric fish was thought to be extinct but has been found in schools deep in the pacific ocean. It's also pretty special as it's believed to be a link between fish and land animals. See those 2 horizontal fins above and below its tail? Possibly an early sign of 2 legs!