WW: Guggenheim Museum NYC

Here's a glimpse of great collection from Guggenheim Museum NYC.

We visited this great museum last weekends, with Bo et Obi tagging along.

Love Pablo Picasso's works? 

Some of the famous ones are here, including the Moulin de la Galette, woman with yellow hair, and more.

Picasso's work..Le Moulin de la Galette.

Women with yellow hair, Pablo Picasso

Fernande with black Mantilla

Some other collections, including the sculptures, are also interesting to see.

the Miracle..or Seal by Constantin Brancusi

And the architecture of the building is also the feast to our eyes.

look up!

        Complete story is coming, as usual, as I was really enjoying the visit to this museum :)

so, what's next :)

Join us on (almost) Wordless Wednesday and have fun with the linky party.

Meeting #FamousFun at Madame Tussaud NYC

"Oh ma, look...it's Kong! The Mighty Kong" exclaimed Obi as we lined up for our ticket at Madame Tussaud Museum NYC.
We have been passing this place so many times but we haven't really checked it out.
And we finally went there in one super cold Saturday at the big Apple.
So, we decided to go meeting #FamousFun at Madame Tussaud NYC!

I personally have visited 2 other Madame Tussaud so far, the ones in Amsterdam and London.
It was way back in the early 2000 and I was wondering where those photos I took that time!
I recalled how I enjoyed those visits.
Well, not everyday you can take pictures with James Bond or the Queen of England or Van Gogh :).

Anyway, we took the subway to Times Square as that's where Madame Tussaud Wax Museum is located. One of the reason we went out on that coldy Saturday was because the museum is fun and it was so easy to get there. Out of the subway station and there we were, walking one block only to get to the Museum.

We lined up for about 10 minutes and by the time I reached the cashier, I asked for the special NYC resident tickets (I checked it online already) and she said that I could only get it online, not on the spot. They have different varieties of tickets as well, as they have Kong, Ghostbusters experience, and Marvel Super Heroes 4 D.

So I went online and got the tickets for the three of us, including the souvenir book. We got the tickets right away, showed them to the guards and got in.

As soon as we got here, the first thing I have in mind is selfie!
We would take a lot of selfies!
And we did LOL.

We were ushered to the elevator and the guy on the elevator said the same thing, enjoy the tour and don't forget to take tons of selfie! Based on the book I have, we would enjoy A-list party,- all those celebrities, film and TV personalities, arts and cultures, history and world leaders, pop culture, sports and music zone, and more. That's a lot!

We started from the highest floor.
The A-list party.
We were directly welcomed by the stunning statue of Adriana Lima, wearing brilliant red Victoria's Secret red matching undies.
And there we saw Scarlett Johansen, Kim Kardashian, Robert Patkinson, Carrie Underwood, Susan Sarandon, Alicia Keys, Patrick Steward, Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Whitney Houston, and soooo many more.

And I have to say the details are amazing!

The tattoos, the wrinkles on their face, the gray hair!

Let alone the costumes, the shoes, accessories, and more.

And as I read on the book, the process of making one wax statue is tremendous works

It takes approximately 350 hours to work on one statue, involving many special skilled personnel to work on various parts of the body from sitting the sculpture or measuring the real person to finalizing the make up and costume.

And guess how much it costs.

One statue is worth USD 300.000,-!

With all those incredible details and nearly-real-human look, no wonder Madame Tussauds' wax figures has attracted people's attention since 1800s.

Let's take a look at some of those works!

looks real, doesn't it!

the hands!

the curls and make-up!

Love her outfit!

I had so much fun at those celebrities parts as many of them are so familiar to me (think about Whitney Houston, Bruce Willis and Katnis Abeerdeen or J-Law), while my kids love the VIP persons showing all those US Presidents and Very Important People in the history of the US and the world. Just like what they have learned in Social Studies or TV :). 

ET!

When I got so excited to see the stars of my time and asked my kids to take pictures of me with them or in front of the famous ET and try to be as sexy as Marilyn Monroe, my kids kept asking me who they were! Talking about generation gap :).

My kids know Alicia Keys from the Voice :)

I was surprised to see that the Museum even has some famous movie starts from India!
Say hi to Amitabh Bachchan and Sarukh Khan.

Then my kids got super excited when they saw Albert Einstein, Abraham Lincoln and the US Presidents! Well, well... 

We the peoples...

Here we saw more personalities that we could only see on headlines news on TV or newspaper. It was fun to read their short descriptions.
We also saw many famous athletes at the sport section and great individuals from the art and culture world. I got to see Salvador Dali's incredible mustache :).

Madame Tussauds NYC surely has an extensive collection of statues.

Our guest tonight...

Meet the Royal Family..

After exploring the world's celebrities and meet those #FamousFun. we also enjoyed the Kong exhibition and Ghostbusters Experience!

Just like in the real movie!

We really had fun at the Ghostbusters Experience as it was super creepy yet entertaining.
Just like the movie indeed.

Add caption

So, so much fun, right!
It took us around 2 hours to see all the exhibition and take tons of pictures of it.
It worth a visit if you are around.

The tickets vary and you definitely save more, around 15 - 20% if you buy it online.
At this point, they have the Ghostbuster Dimensions starting from USD 59, Super Hero, including the Marvel 4D Cinema for USD 39 or the standard admission for USD 34. Kids, 13 years old or younger, pay less.  As the local NYC, New Jersey and Connecticut residents,  we can save 25% and pay USD 27.50 for adults and USD 22.50 for kids. 

If you want to visit this place, the address is 234 West 42nd st, NYC, NY, 10036

Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

Meeting #FamousFun at Madame Tussauds NYC is really FUN.

The Morgan Library and Museum, NYC

The Morgan Library and Museum, NYC.

I have been a huge fan of libraries and museums since my tender age of 10.
Taking the first trip to Museum Lampung as part of my school trip during my elementary school back home in Lampung, Indonesia.
 

At that time, I was fascinated by myriads of details and rich cultures about my beloved hometown, although the Museum itself needed much improvement. But, little Indah was already smithen to museums and all their valuable and interesting displays as well as information. Since then, I have been putting museums and libraries whenever I travel.

And New York City is indeed the home of so many fantastic and incredible world-class museums as well as libraries.

This time, let me take you to the Morgan Library and Museum located in Midtown Manhattan, New York City.
Have you been here before?
Or have you heard about it before?

Mr. Morgan

Frankly I have passed this area and this library and museums so many times but only after I stayed for more than 3 years in the Big Apple I finally have the chance to visit this lovely place.

It was one lunch break I used in my not-so-crazily-busy summer days.
I had my quick lunch with a friend here before enjoying the library and the museum.
The Morgan dining room is wonderful as well.

Afterwards, I was so ready to explore and I directly paid for the ticket.
It costs USD 20 for general entrance and to make sure you see all the highlights, make sure you have at least 2 good hours. Promise you, it worth the visit.
Personal photography is allowed here, except for certain prohibited objects which are clearly indicated. Once I stepped in, I knew I was in the oasis in the middle of the Big Apple!

I took the liberty to see the exhibition first, as there was a tour guide right on that hour.
They had Henry James and American Painting on the exhibition.

It's interesting to learn more about this famous author's circles of artists, painters, sculptors and more.

Salon de Refusés

While enjoying this exhibition, I have more to see in that section.
This tomb effigy for Elizabeth Booth Duveneck, for example, is the one I saw previously at the Met. Henry James and Frank Duveneck happened to be good friends.

Then I continued my exploration to the next exhibition, This ever New Self, Thoreau and his Journal. He was indeed very famous for his thorough observations, journals, life stories and more. Just like us keeping our virtual diary in our blog :).

On the next one, I had the chance to see the works of Poussin, Claude, and French drawing in the classical age. Although I am far for being good at drawing, but I did enjoy those displays.


Then before my battery was running out from taking so many pictures, I went back downstairs and headed straight to the Vault, to Mr. Morgan's study and library.

It was a magnificent one!

I guess I don't have enough words to express how impressed I was.
Here are some of the pictures I took in the Study.

Mr. Pierpont Morgan

Then I moved to the vault, the library itself.
I was literally dumbfounded, not yet recovered from the red velvet study, the private reading room and office of Mr. Morgan.
And here's what I saw and totally enjoyed!

One lovely corner

The library itself is located in McKim building, and I have to say, it's the most grandeur and glorious room in this complex! 
Look at those ceilings.

Magnificent ceiling, filled with beautiful paintings and frescos.

Love the details of this index!

As you stepped into the library, you will gaze upon the great mantelpiece in the middle, made of Istrian marble, depicting the style of Renaissance Era. Right on top of it, I saw on huge, intricate tapestry. And as I quote from the Morgan's website, the tapestry is called:

" The Triumph of Avarice, with a moralizing Latin inscription that translates, "As Tantalus is ever thirsty in the midst of water, so is the miser always desirous of riches." The tapestry belongs to a series depicting the Seven Deadly Sins, designed by Pieter Coecke van Aelst (1502–50), the father-in-law of Pieter Bruegel the Elder. It was produced in Brussels in 1545 by the workshop of Willem de Pannemaker (active 1535–78)."

No wonder it looks fantastic!

One huge tapestry!

At the corner of the room, I met Elizabeth.
I forgot the story of Elizabeth although I heard it on my audio guide.

And what I love about his collection is that I found the Koran.
The Holy Koran or Al-Quran, the holy book for us, Muslims.
It was put all together with the book of common prayer, bible, and other religious books.

And as they also have the exhibition Treasures from the Vault, I was lucky to see some of the rarest collection of Morgan's Library, including Mozart's Shymphony No.29 in A Major, composed in 1774 and Frédéric Chopin's Nocturne in C Minor, made in 1841!

It feels like I don't want to go out!
Even in the alley, or any void, you will find incredible piece of art purchased and collected by Mr. Morgan all those years.
I was totally planning to go back there again!

The Morgan Library and Museum, NYC
225 Madison Avenue, NYC, 10016



So, what do you think?
Do you like the Morgan Library and Museum, NYC?
Get more information on their website at www.themorgan.org and get ready to be mesmerized by the beauty and splendour ofthis place when you have the chance to visit it.

Cheers,

p.s. : All photos were taken with iPhone 7 plus and additional lenses from Ztylus :).