Sunday, September 30th, 2012…the Pirate game was going on, the Great Race had just ended, and part of Route 28 was closed due to construction. All in all, this was THE best day to go out and do something. All that was missing from our journey was a sticker on the side of my car that read, “S. S. Minnow.” (Watch your Gilligan’s Island, kids)
My mom, her husband Karl, my brother David, his girlfriend Jennifer, and Rich (a family friend) joined us on this “three-hour tour.” Most of us had never been to the museums, so it was safe to say that we were looking forward to our trip. We figured we’d start off with a quick trip to Wendy’s to fill our growling bellies…what I didn’t know was that Route 28 was under construction and had us detour off of it completely. A half hour of traffic later in what should have been a five minute trip, we pulled into Wendy’s.
Despite my objections, mom insisted on paying (thank you for that). It was for the most part uneventful, until a cute brunette from the Great Race walked in wearing running shorts that are probably illegal in half a dozen countries. Heaven forbid my eyes wonder…I guess I don’t hide these things well. The adults in the group all began picking on me, rather loudly, until my face had turned as red as the ketchup that was in those dispensable cups…and apparently as red as the shorts this brunette had on. I got reminded of that too.
After a good laugh at my expense, we were on our way and made it to the museums…the staff was very friendly and my son even got a fist pump from the greeter who was well into his sixties. So…despite a rough morning, it looked like things were turning around.
Then we got stuck in the elevator. Just our group of ten…I guess we should have held off on Wendy’s until after the trip. The elevator reached the floor we wanted, but the doors kept opening and closing quickly and we kept dipping up and down. Being in an elevator with two claustrophobic women didn’t bode well. I eventually got sick of waiting for the staff to do something and I pried the doors open…everyone managed to get out without a problem. Score one for nerd muscles.
We visited the Art Museum first. I was never big on art, but some of it was pretty cool. It was interesting to see all of the different art forms, though one of them could only be described as “the porn room.” My son just kept repeating…”oh my god…oh my…” *laugh* *giggle* “OH MY!” I guess I’ll need to have “the talk” with him sooner rather than later. The kids had fun trying out some sort of checkers exhibit where they acted like checker pieces that were kings and tried to jump each other.
We then took a trip through the Museum of Natural History, which was made up of many different things. We saw things from Ancient Egypt, the American Indians, Polar World, Ancient Greece and their marble sculptures…oh yeah, and Dinosaurs. I have to say that the staff was incredibly friendly and helpful throughout, except for when they made us delete the pictures we took in the Jewelery Exhibit. I guess it was on the list of rules I got when we first walked in…maybe I should start reading those pamphlets.
All in all, it was a pretty good experience…one best shared with family and younger kids. If you live in the Pittsburgh area and haven’t checked out the The Carnegie Museums of Art & Natural History yet, I suggest you do so. I included some pictures we took below, I have more on my Facebook page. Enjoy!
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