Greetings readers! I apologize for the delay in this, my final entry for my trip to Nevada in May. I've had a lot going on for the month of June, so this is truly the first moment I've had to tell you about my time at the
National Atomic Testing Museum.
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| Above the ticket booth inside the museum |
This was my sister's choice for a museum outing- I personally was not interested in the atomic bomb testings or on those kooky 1950s stories about aliens and UFO crashings. However, since she picked it, we went there. It was accessible via the Deuce Bus (you'll need to transfer) and took about 20-25 minutes total in traffic to get there from the MGM. This museum is a Smithsonian Affiliate, and as I also work at a Smithsonian Affiliate institution I received a nice discount on admission (half price if I remember correctly). When you first walk in, it seems as if this place is going to be a weird homage to aliens and pie-tin flying saucer movies (as you can see from the picture above) but thankfully the entire museum wasn't like that.
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| Display case showing all of the products marketed using an atomic theme |
Essentially, the museum touched on both the scientific and cultural impact America's nuclear testing had on history. Admittedly, some of the more boring parts (to me) were the scientific areas- while it is cool to see actual bombs and replicas of the parts, reading about technical achievements weren't exactly up my alley.
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| Try and contain your enthusiasm folks... |
I did, however, learn a lot from the cultural aspects of the museum. Like the JC Penney fall out shelters (maybe those would help boost sales for them now), the economic impact the testing companies had on the region, and the tourism sparked by mushroom cloud viewings and bomb parties. Those sort of tidbits make the time seem relatable, more than a 1:18 scale model ever could.
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| Take that Walmart! We sell bomb shelters! |
There was an "Area 51" section that you have to pay extra money to enter, which we did not. Also, there was a seemingly out of place display about September 11th that had pieces of actual building in it. Upon further inspection you find out that it is dedicated to men and women from the area that have lost their lives to tragedies such as that.
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| Piece of steel from the Twin Towers after September 11th |
My only negative from my time here actually came from my sister. She picked this museum, and wasn't taking time to read or learn or interact with the exhibits. Just kinda breezing through and rushing me as if she was doing ME a favor. Folks, museums are places to immerse yourself in a particular topic, or art, or history, or whatever-- just running through everything (unless you are an expert museum goer such as myself) pretty much misses the point. She slowed down a bit once I told her we didn't have to rush or be anywhere by a certain time. It was a reminder to me that not everyone frequents museums the way I do, so some things just don't occur to them.
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A hallway in the museum designed to look like it's underground
with my sister prepping to take a picture |
Well, that (finally) wraps up Nevada. I leave for Oklahoma in just over 2 weeks, and you know I've got my itinerary ready! I can say this- I'm excited most about the food! Chicken fried steak, barbecue, and whatever the heck an onion burger is are all things I've read are must haves!
Still working on finalizing a few more travel plans for August, September, and October (Georgia, New Jersey and/or New York, and Michigan, respectively) but I really need to see what my life and wallet are looking like at that time. Also, some other things on the horizon that may hinder my blog goal- but we'll get more into those if they become an actual factor.
As always, thank you for reading my blog, and I'll see you on the next adventure!
