Tag Archives: mariners museum

Mariners’ Museum 5…. toys, a submarine, weapons, an Enigma and a 3D coral reef.

February 8, 2020 Rivergirl 25 Comments

I realize this is the 5th post of our trip to the museum, but fear not…. it will also be the last.

Oh, stop being so dramatic and admit you learned something. Even if it was just how to use seashell toilet paper.

We’d spent all day roaming these halls and closing time was approaching before we were even a quarter of the way through.

So we literally trotted from exhibit to exhibit.

Vintage naval toys?

Check!

The hull of the Oracle that won the 33rd America’s Cup in 2010?

A ginormous check!

Submarine cutout?

Got it.

WWII memorabilia?

Yup. Tons…

They even had an Enigma!

How cool is that?

If you haven’t seen The Imitation Game about the life of Alan Turing, the man who broke the unbreakable code and then tragically took his own life… with an apple?

You should.

Teddy Roosevelt was there…

As was this precious little sword wielding cherub.

Because yeah…. what could go wrong with that?

There was too much to see…

And too little time.

Look… interesting, not to mention decorative, ways to kill people!

And I didn’t have a chance to read all the details.

And that.

What was that?

I don’t know!

Because the husband was bound and determined to watch the 3D movie about the coral reef before they closed. So we ran to the theater, put on our plastic glasses and found a good spot to watch and take pictures.

Until this woman moved seats and put her head in front of my lens.

Rude. Very rude.

The Great Barrier coral reef?

Beautiful.

The Great Barrier coral reef in 3D after I moved away from the back of that woman’s head?

Stunning.

It looked like all these little things were reaching out for you….

And I swear the husband jumped a foot when he thought this fellow was right beside him.

Beautiful. No two ways about it.

So that was it.

We spent 8 full hours in the museum that day….

And were too tired to go out to eat.

Oh, stop screaming.

We got Chinese take out and went back to the condo.

The absolute worst Chinese takeout I think I’ve ever had… but there.

Still a food picture.

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Mariners’ Museum 4…. in miniature.

February 7, 2020 Rivergirl 17 Comments

The next section of the museum was fascinating if you’ve ever been a fan of model ships.

Growing up I had a friend whose father had a passion for it, and while his were lovely….

There were nothing like the ones on display here.

Case after case of fabulous ships.

Even the most famous ship of all.

Complete with icebergs…

There was even a model of a ……

Yeah, I had no clue what it was either.

Anyway you look at it, they were all impressive. But when the docent asked us if we’d been in the masterclass room yet…

I realized there was a whole other level of craftsmanship.

These models?

Were simply works of art.

The detail was almost unbelievable.

I’d never heard of Mr. Crabtree….

But my proverbial hat was off to him.

I can’t even imagine the patience it took to create these beauties.

They were exquisite.

And if that doesn’t knock your socks off?

Oh, come on.

That’s crazy!

Bravo August.

You certainly did that…

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Mariners’ Museum 3…. some sweetness and a little toilet humor.

February 6, 2020 Rivergirl 28 Comments

Yes, we’re still at the museum. But this post should make everyone smile.

Done with the Civil War Ironclad section….

Oh, stop. You learned something… and that’s never a bad thing.

We saw a large board filled with children’s drawings.

Every child that visits is encouraged to add one and some of them were wonderful.

We saw it too, and yes…. it was.

This one melted my heart for obvious reasons.

And this one made me laugh. They love the water, but have a ship marked with a big red X so the circling sharks can find them.

Nicely done little Peter Benchley.

And then, because I teased it on yesterday’s post…. some toilet humor.

Since we’d spent half the day exploring the museum, I had need of the ladies room where I found this on the inside of my stall door.

How great is this?

Not the latrine duty, that had to suck… but reading historic toilet facts while you’re on the toilet? Pretty great.

You don’t often find that kind of symmetry in life.

It must be celebrated when you do.

So you know I had to go stall to stall and photograph them all.

(Apologies to the woman in the last stall. I wasn’t stalking you… really. I just needed a picture.)

Ouch indeed.

Now that’s historical trivia at it’s best. Impress your friends the next time you play Jeopardy.

You’re welcome.

There you have it.

Proof positive museums can be fun.

Or at the very least, museum restrooms can.

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Mariners’ Museum 2… the movies, the Monitor and the turret.

February 5, 2020 Rivergirl 18 Comments

So class, yesterday we learned about the CSS Virginia and how most people call her by the incorrect name of…..?

The Merrimack.

Sure you do… you just haven’t realized it yet.

It’s okay. I’ll wait.

Today, we’re going to the movies.

In a surround sound theater that promised an ‘edge of your seat exciting’ depiction of the Ironclad battle.

“You’ll feel like you’re right there!” exclaimed the docent.

Yeah.

About that…

It was a cartoon.

An informative cartoon, I grant you…

But a cartoon all the same. And even with the rolling smoke that issued from the walls and floor…. I didn’t feel any more there than I did watching Bugs Bunny as a child.

Oh well, there were better things ahead.

Like the USS Monitor… famous for her spinning gun turret.

Is it me, or does that thing look like a drunken owl?

She was built in 100 days, which was an amazing accomplishment for the time.

And the museum faithfully recreated what the officer’s quarters looked like upon completion.

Not too shabby.

If a wee bit small.

There were lots of interesting artifacts to examine.

As well as photos of the men who served aboard her.

Of course, being me…. you know I had to find some reference to alcoholic refreshment.

And then, in the next section of the museum….

A replica of the recovered Monitor’s turret.

The original is currently on site and being slowly and painstakingly preserved. Read about it’s discovery and journey to Newport News here.

This was basically what it looked like on the ocean floor.

All that rusty metal! You know my other half was thrilled….

But one of the most impressive aspects of this museum’s exhibit?

A life size USS Monitor right outside.

Of course it was raining and they advised you not to walk on her slippery deck….

So that’s exactly what we did.

Stand on the bow of an Ironclad?

Uh… yes. I will!

Husband even rung the turret’s bell for good measure.

Cool beans!

And if that wasn’t awesome enough? Back inside and down a flight stairs….

Took you inside the turret.

And literally inside the ship itself.

Admittedly the engines and engineering diagrams were above my pay grade.

But the display really gave you a feel for the ship.

And my inner history nerd was sighing with satisfaction.

We did climb up to the observation landing to peer into the lab where the original pieces of the ship are being restored, but it was just giant vats of seawater with electrical current running through them.

Not very photo worthy, so I’ll spare you the shots.