Milwaukee Public Museum

Last week I flew to Milwaukee, Wisconsin for business.  It was definitely a rude awakening for me when I stepped off the plane.  Going from 40+ degrees outside to -11 degrees outside within a time span of a few hours was not my idea of a good time, and it definitely put a damper on my willingness to go out and explore the city on foot.  However, one place that I really wanted to visit was the Milwaukee Public Museum.

Unfortunately, the only day I could visit was a public holiday - when every parent within a 100 mile radius and brought their kids.  Even worse? It was a day when residence of Milwaukee County could go to the museum for free.  Actually, I thought that was pretty cool but I wish the day didn't happen to coincide with the day I was visiting.  It made for very crowded conditions.

But I loved my visit to the museum.  They covered all sorts of things... from the evolution of man...

To Native Americans... Like in this example of a long house.

And they had dinosaur skeletons!  As many friends and family will attest, I am a nerd who loves me some dinosaurs.  And while the museum didn't have anything I haven't already seen, I still loved seeing it.

But the truly cool part was their butterfly enclosure.  They had a room, complete with subtropical conditions, teeming with plants and butterflies.  After following the appropriate protocols, the museum patron could enter and stay for as long as they chose.  Unfortunately, the humidity began to make my shutter stick, so I didn't stick around for too long.

But there were plenty of butterfly displays which educated patrons on the varieties of butterflies out there in the world.

But back to the Native American displays... There was a lot of Native American exhibits - capturing as many regions as possible.  Displays included ceremonial, baskets, beading, jewelry, and...

Life-size displays like this pueblo exhibit showing the daily life of a pueblo Indian.

Then there were these early version dominoes.  I loved this display because it reminded me of my Grams.  Growing up, my Grams and her brothers and sisters would sit around the dining room table and play dominoes or pinochle.  Sometimes she would let me play a tile or choose which card to lay down, and sometimes she would let me take her place at the table while she went to serve the desserts.  I was the only grandkid who got to play at the table with the adults.

But look at this!! Isn't it amazing?!?! This is beading for a ceremonial vest.  The quality... the color is amazing.

I have to say, I was impressed with my visit to the Milwaukee Public Museum.  Unfortunately, I didn't have time to see the entire museum because I had to dash off to meet up with the client.  But that is okay... It just means I'll have to make a return visit.  Only this time, I plan on bringing the family with me.