Showing posts with label museums. Show all posts
Showing posts with label museums. Show all posts

WW: Harry Potter - A History of Magic Exhibition

Helloooo, Harry Potter lovers!
Raise your hands if you think  you should be back to Hogwards and live among the Boy who lives, Hermione, Ron and the gank.
Or remember all those handy charms and spells like Wingardium Laviousa or Lumos or Accio or even the lethal one, avada kadabra?

Join me then!

I just came to Harry Potter - A History of Magic Exhibition in the Big Apple :)



I literally sneaked out of my meeting in order to get the ticket of the last entry of the day at 5.15 PM.
Considering the traffic from UN Headquarters in Midtown Manhattan to New York Historical Society in Central park West, I asked permission to go at 4.45.
I arrived just in time and had less than an hour to actually see and enjoy the exhibition.
Well, it's better than  nothing at all, right?

The exhibition is quite compact and not too crowded when I went there.
But for sure, it's interesting and as the exhibition of conducted in collaboration with the famous British Library as well as Harry Potter Wizarding World.
That's why I couldn't miss it for the world!
Too bad we can not take pictures of the exhibition itself but I took some from the public display outside.
Here are a few photos from Harry Potter - A History of Magic Exhibition is held in New York Historical Society. 
Will be back with more story for sure, so just stick around!




do you like my new glasses?

the cute postcard with Fawkes, Dumbledore's Phoenix :)


Do you like Harry Potter as well?
Which house do you think you will be? Gryffindor, Slyterin, Ravenclaw or Hupplepuff?

Join us on (almost) Wonderful Wednesday and link up for more fun

Romantika Jakarta: National Museum


So I'm heading back to Jakarta at the end of summer and I just can't wait!
Nothing beats the comfy feeling of home obviously.
I love NYC for sure but my homeland is calling and I know we will be having great years ahead as we enjoyed our time in Jakarta for 3 years after finishing my assignment in Geneva, Switzerland. 



And as part of the warming up, I would love to take my dearest blogger friends to some little trip to Jakarta through my posts. A little walk down the memory lane and I know Jakarta has a lot to offer.





So, I would like to start it with the Museum!
Yes, the museum indeed, one of my favorite places to visit, wherever I am residing or traveling. As NYC is packed with great museums, so is Jakarta!

Do you know how many museums are there in Jakarta?
Okay, I have to admit that I don't know the answer to that question until I google it LOL.
There are 47 museums in our lovely capital city!
And 47 is not a small number so I sincerely hope I can visit most if not all of them.

Perhaps, visiting museums is not your cup of tea.
Well, at least for some Indonesians, or Jakartans to be exact. There are so many huge shopping malls here packed with entertainment centers, shops and food courts that might be more interesting for some of us.





If I said I was going to visit museums here in Jakarta, some friends might give me the what-are-going-to-do-there look.

But for me and my family, a day trip to a museum will always be fascinating!

We learn  lot and have fun at the same time. Well, it depends on the museums we visited of course but wherever we go, we always try to visit one. 




As Bo and Obi are growing up, my hubby and I decided to have educational-yet-fun trip to several museums in Jakarta before we headed to NYC at that time. The kids were not that enthusiastic in the beginning but they did enjoy the trip at the end of the day.






So, this story and photos are a little throwback from our trip in 2014. So now, let's start our journey from the National Museum of Indonesia. In Bahasa Indonesia, we call it Museum National Indonesia. some might call it Museum Gajah or the Elephant Museum, because we have that little elephant statue in front of the Museum's building.



National Museum of Indonesia was originally started from Bataviaasch Genootschap van Kunsten en Wetenschappen. It was  established in 24 April 1778, so it is more than 300 years now! As we were colonized by the Dutch for about 350 years, it's not surprising that many institutions, including this museum, was founded by them. 





What I like most about this Museum is the spacious place it has with various precious collections to enjoy.


The National Museum is located at Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat no. 12, Jakarta Pusat.

It has several floors displaying different collections ranging from archeology, ethnography, geography, ceramics, prehistorical items and more.
The Museum is open from 8 - 4 PM on Tuesday to Friday, and 8 - 5 on Saturday and Sunday. It is close on Monday and holidays.

As you step into the Museum, the lovely ambiance and the high ceilings make the Museum feels grandeur. 






You can also enjoy some relics and statues from different temples and historic sites in Indonesia, particularly from Java. Some of them are placed on the alleys and open spaces.

The collections are nicely displayed  and well maintained as well, making it a pleasant place to visit for all ages, including the kids.



kain kapal from Lampung


Back in 2014, we only had to pay Rp 5.000,- (appr. 60 cent) for adults and Rp 2.000, (less than 30 cent ) for kids, while for foreign tourists, the ticket is Rp 10.000,- or approximately 80 cent. Very cheap, right! Up until now, the price is still the same.


If you want to know more about Indonesia, come to the ethnography segment.

Some of the highlights of traditional and cultural heritage of Indonesia are displayed there.
You can enjoy lovely, unique fabrics and traditional items used daily by hundreds of tribes  from different parts of Indonesia.



Traditional hat from West Kalimantan.



Old and traditional utensils and homewares are ammonite the items being displayed. It is interesting to see the development of those items and the differences of their use in many parts of the country.

Then see the famous story of Pithecantrophus Palaeojavanicus (I hope I got it right :D) and more pre-historic as well as archeological items.


Not to mention fabulous statues, relics, inscriptions and so many more.


If you haven't got a chance to travel around Indonesia, or planning to do so, a visit here will be a good warm-up indeed!

relics from one of our temples.....
I know that those displayed here are just a tiny fragment of the original collections, so you can imagine what we really have out there.



Obi, my daughter, with speda onthel...

I love the jewelleries collections on the fourth floor as well. 

Those fascinating designs, very meticulous! 
And thinking that they were made centuries ago.

Here's the map of the exact place of this Museum.



 



Well, all in all, we all truly enjoyed our visits and would love to go back there.

Make sure you don't miss the National Museum of Indonesia in Jakarta when you are around.

A Visit to Guggenheim Museum NYC

I just can't get enough with NYC fantastic museums!
So many places to see, so many fantastic artworks to enjoy in the Big Apple.
Including a visit to Guggenheim Museum NYC.


Picasso's brilliant work.

One of our most recent visits to the world-class museums in NYC is the Solomon R. Guggenheim museum. 





There are 4 Guggenheim museums in the world, which are located in New York City, Venice, Abu Dhabi and Bilboa.
Committed to support the vibrant world of contemporary arts, Solomon R. Guggenheim has been well known for his incredible collections and art exhibitions.

the building from outside

I took Bo et Obi with me to Guggenheim Museum in NYC in one cold winter day.
And of course, visiting museum during sub zero temperature day sounds like a brilliant idea!

So, there we were. 

Being awed by the architecture of the museum even before laying our eyes on its extensive collections. As soon as we stepped into the foyer lobby, we all looked up and were amazed by its incredible ceiling. Of course I have heard this famous ceiling before but looking at it myself gives you a different sensation. And the kids agreed with me as well.



By the time we arrived and got our ticket, we picked up our free audio guide. The staff here was very friendly and she showed my daughter how to operate the gadget and show her some interesting menus. For sure Obi enjoyed it so much and she was engrossed with the story about the architectures of the museum.


The audio guide

I have to admit that our attention went directly to the ceiling.
Look up and you have some magnificent view of the building up to its roof.
The architect of this building, Frank Lloyd Wright, has brilliantly designed one-of-a-kind spiral ramp that goes directly to the domed skylight.It took him sometimes to build this building before the Museum was officially opened in 1959. And as we read on its website, Mr. Wright already passed away for 6 months by the time this incredible building was inaugurated.





When we visited the museum, they were working on the preparation of the next exhibition from the artist Dahn Vo, so some floors were unfortunately closed.
Nevertheless, we still can see some permanent collections and get the reduced fare for the entrance ticket. So, not bad at all and more manageable for me and my kids.
The ticket was USD 15 per person for adults with the reduced fare, where the normal price is USD 25 for adults, USD 18 for students and seniors (65 year old up), and free for kids under 12. You can also become a member for USD 75 and get free entrance.

We went directly to see Picasso's works here.
The famous women with yellow hair, women ironing and Fernande with a Black mantilla, and more,
Here are some of the photos of them.








We also managed to enjoy other beautiful paintings from Franz Marc, Yellow Cow, which was made in 1911.



Other incredible works of art we enjoyed include Edgar Degas' Dancers in Green and Yellow,  Eduard Manet's Before the Mirror (Devant la glace), and Édouard Vuillard's Place Vintimille.


Dancers in green and yellow


Before the mirror

Place Vintimille


We also saw some sculpture collections at the same floor, particularly La Muse, the famous work of Constantin Brancusi. Made in 1912 out of marble, we found this sculpture unique and cute! It's incredible to see how one can capture the emotion in a peace of marble.


The Muse

The next sculpture my kids really like is Constantin Brancusi's The Miracle (Seal). 
You can certainly tell it reminds you of seal.


Our favorite Seal!

There was another exhibition that we visited as well, Josef Albers in Mexico.
Interesting squares, shapes and colors!






See, perfect size for a visit with the kids.
It took us around 2 hours to see the collection, took some pictures, and discussed a few of them as well. Not to forget our shopping time at the Museum's shops!
My kids love the sculptures and Picasso's paintings. They were amazed by different features of the people portrayed on the paintings. They also learn about different genre in arts, while doing scavenger hunt in this museum. The museum also provides some kids programs where they can create something inspired by the collections here and they can take home their creations.


Guggenheim museum is located at 1071 5th Avenue, New York City, New York 10128.
So if you happen to be in town, don't miss this place.



Well, I have so many drafts about our visit to the museums that I haven't finished.
But one post at a time!
How do you like the Guggenheim Museum in NYC?
Will you visit it if you're around?

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.


Guggenheim NYC
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.

indahnuria.com
look up!

Guggenheim museum NYC

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


indah nuria savitri
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...



Madame Tussauds NYC
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.