I needed to come up with a thread topic (per assignment), but I couldn't think of where to put it. I love museums, but I recognize that it's generally geeky, so there ya go.

Anyway, I love visiting museums. I prefer history or science museums, but I've enjoyed art museums in Detroit and Chicago. As a matter of fact, one of my friends runs the studio and event planning departments at the Detroit Institute of Art. Hands down my favorite museum complex is the Henry Ford five minutes from my office. It has the Henry Ford Museum, full of all kinds of historical artifacts, including the chair Lincoln was sitting in when he was assasinated (creepy), the Rosa Parks bus (inspiring), and the R. Buckminster Fuller Dymaxion House (fascinating). I prefer Greenfield Village, though, because I can visit sheep on a working 19th century farm, ride in a Model T, stand in the shadows of what is most likely the oldest windmill in the United States, watch some glass blowing, and tour Edison's Menlo Park complex and Noah Webster's house, and have tea in the garden of a 17th century Cotswold cottage, all in the same day. If I get bored with too much history, I could go watch Batman Begins on Imax. They've even got a library there.

Last summer, I was visiting either the Museum or the Village every weekend I was in town. I was hooked.

So, any other museum geeks out there?

Yeah, I was indoctrinated into the ways of museums as a child, and still don't feel quite like I've been on vacation unless I visit one. My most recent museum visit was the Seattle Art Museum, which was frankly only okay, though there were some gorgeous Native American and Chinese works there--some of the jade was particularly impressive, and would have been even if it hadn't been carved in 200 AD.

Ooooh, yes! I've even gone back to uni for it...

I kept wondering whether or not to start one on the topic, and somehow never got round to it.

One of the really good things about the course I've just completed was getting to visit lots of musuems and heritage sites.

Of course, some of it was to see how they were doing what they were doing (displaying/storing artifacts, developing outreach programmes etc), but I've still visited quite a number in the last few years.

One of my favourites is the Lady Lever Art Gallery, which has a fantastic collection, including some wonderful Preraphaelite, and a wonderful building to display them. It's certainly one of the favourites I've visited.

Tyntesfieldwas an interesting building to visit, and it'll be interesting to see how the interpretation will work in years to come (one of our course lecturers is working on that).

Chatsworth is a great place to visit, athough both times I've found I've prefered the grounds to house. BJC and Pandrea will back me up on how awe-inspiring the drive through the grounds is.

I've loved the time I've spent at both Galleries of Justice and Big Pit

Big Pit, as a record of a rapidly disappearing history is so evocative (if a wee bit wet in march), and getting to see some of the large,machinery was pretty cool. The main collections centre had some great stuff - buses, and trams, and, although I didn't see it, Gareth Edwards no7 shirt from the time (before this year), Wales won the Grand Slam.

The Galleries has some great stuff, both out on display, and in the stores, and I feel lucky to get to see both. Even if a lot of them are somewhat grusome in nature, like the last Gibbets used in the Uk, or the last gallows.

The Midlands has got some bloody good museums, and I was particuarly chuffed this year, whrn the Castle managed to get the Delaware's 'Waking dreams' pre-raph exhibition.

There was some amazing stuff there.

I think I'm more gallery-oriented than museums. Just today I went to an exhibition with some friends of Cartier-Bresson's photographs (he was one of the founders of the Magnum agency, I'm fascinated with their stuff). The exhibition could have been better arranged, with more context, though there were some amazing images.

Among my favourite galleries or museums are MoMA in NY, the Picasso in Barcelona (fascinating to see his early, very traditional paintings), the British Museum (can't be beat, especially the awesome Assyrian statues) and the Pergamon in Berlin (the beautiful Ishtar Gate). I also love my local Kelvingrove Museum & Art Gallery.

I've not yet been to the British Museum, although I'd love to go. So much in one place!

The Science Musum in London, and the Natural History one, I remember being fun and full of interesting stuff when I visted as a kid.

After watching various things on Trafalgar tonight, I think I'd like to go visit the Maritime Museum as well.

Kelvingrove looks interesting. I shall have to visit!

It's closed at the moment for refurbishment. I'm a little nervous about what they're going to do to the building, which is beautiful. Come and see it next year.

By the way, why is this in this section - 'cause museums are geeky or something?

If they are, I'm in denial.

Although, I do belong to an LJ community entitled 'Musueum_Geeks', so maybe I'm not *that* much in denial.

I suppose they're not the 'coolest' thing to be interested in.

I recently visited the National Museum in Prague. It had a great zoological collection, pretty much every animal you could think of. There was also this interesting collection of human bones that showed the effects of different diseases but there were no English translations so I had no idea what I was looking at.

The The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY is probably my favourite and I'm looking forward to seeing more of the British museums, I've heard the V & A is quite good.

Chicago has this nice little set-up where the Field Museum (Museum of Natural History), the Shedd Aquarium; the Art Institute and Adler Planetarium are all within walking distance of each other. Chicago's Museum of Science and Industry is also one of my favorite museums, ever but that's probably because there's so much nostalgia surrounding it for me. Every year, my mother would take us to see "Christmas trees from around the world" and it was just this spectacular display. We loved it. Plus, you got to watch baby chicks hatch. What kid doesn't love that?

I probably haven't seen as many museums in Los Angeles as I should have. My favorite is the Museum of Tolerance (which, for some reason, I keep referring to as the Museum of Intolerance). It's a great museum that tests your built-in prejudices. It's been a few years since I visited but they had this great exhibit on the Los Angeles riots that really made me readjust how I viewed them.

Generally I'm more of a gallery person than a museum person, but I do enjoy a good museum. London has an embarassment of riches - The British Museum is extraordinary, you could literally spend weeks there and not see everything; The Natural History Museum for the paleantologist and geologist in us all; and last but not least the Victoria and Albert Museum which is a rabbit warren of little rooms full of... things. Beautiful little things.

And best of all, depending on when you go, they are (or were in 1997/8) all free.

Oh, and I was very young but I remember being amazed and thrilled by the Smithsonian.

I like museums, but I can only spend a certain amount of time there in one shot. Unfortunately, when I went to the British Museum I was exhausted and hungry, so I'm not sure I gave the place a real chance.

In terms of favorites I absolutely love the Orsay in Paris. I love the converted train station look and the layout of the rooms, and I love their huge collection of impressionist paintings. In liked the Bargello in Florence and the Borghese in Rome. I recently enjoyed the Philadelphia Museum of Art far more than I expected to, probably because they also had a nice impressionist collection and it's my favorite period. There's a tiny pirate museum in Provincetown on Cape Cod all about the raising of the Whydah that I found fascinating. When it comes to history museums, I tend to prioritize Jewish history, and my favorite was probably the small one in Girona, Spain which had some amazing old Jewish artifacts.

The only major museum here in NY I'm not really fond of is (sorry!) MoMA (though I haven't been to the new one) but that might be because I was forced to go there in college to check out a Jackson Pollack collection and I just don't get abstract art. The Museum of TV & Radio is, of course, quite fun. The Brooklyn Museum often has interesting exhibitions. I keep meaning to go the Frick as I'm told I would love it.

I think the only thing I actually hate about Adelaide is that we lack a decent museum and art gallery then again I'm a museum snob having grown up going to the British Museum, the Natural History Museum and the National Gallery.

Most places that overwhelmed you as a child seem smaller and less fabulous when you go back to them but if anything the British Museum was more awe inspirering when I last visited only a few months ago.

edited to add that they are all still free.

SNeaker, the Musee d'Orsay is my absolute favourite. I went there the day after visiting Giverny, and it was just magical.

I'm also a big fan of the National Museum of American History in Washington DC (it helps that it has a West Wing section). I went back there a few times when I was in DC, just to absorb more of the stuff.

My favourite Australian museum is the Powerhouse, which is a five minute walk from my home. Some of the visiting exhibitions (including the Lord of the Rings one) have been sensational. Worth a look.