British Museum

Our first excursion to The British Museum took place soon after my arrival in London. I was anxious and excited to take one of my first trips on the tube and to witness my first London museum. After a long night out, our trip to the museum was not everything I had hoped it would be. As I looked around at my friends and fellow students I was struck by how exhausted everyone looked. The night before had been one of the students twenty-first birthdays and the sleep deprivation and nausea was apparent in everyone's expressions.

This first trip was led by Brit, our beloved tour guide for our frequent pound trips. The museum was massive and the impressive architecture and the extensive exhibits left me in awe. We toured through room after room, with Brit going off on lengthy tangents about the collections and artifacts. Our first room led us to the Rosetta Stone, where I can say I learned more about the Rosetta Stone than I ever wanted to in my life. Then we were able to witness the statues and artifacts from the Parthenon, something that I didn't quite appreciate at the time but anticipated on my journey back.

Throughout our journey from room to room Brit rambled on and on with her impressive audio guide. She talked so long about everything we were seeing that I was left feeling restless and distracted. I looked around and noticed that many of my fellow students had similar feelings. Students were talking amongst themselves and wandering around distractedly. I also noticed intruders wandering around and listening to our guide which left me more interested in watching what they were doing that Brit. It's not that Brit is a bad or boring tour guide, it's just that not every single artifact in the museum required a ten minute description. The fact that I was too exhausted and lacked my typical attention span that morning aided in the fact that I was not able to appreciate The British Museum on the level that it deserves.

On my second trip back to the museum, I looked forward to viewing the museum artifacts at my own speed and to read the captions and descriptions by myself so that I could be informed of the museum without being bored with it. This second trip was much more memorable and successful. I was able to appreciate the beauty and history of the artifacts without thinking how much I would rather be in bed. I journied through new rooms and exhibits, such as the China and Southeast Asia exhibit and was intrigued by all of the religious artifacts surrounding the room. My favorite exhibit, from both of my trips to the museum, is the mummy exhibit. I have always been fascinated by ancient Egyptian history and stories and ever since I was a kid, I've wanted to see a mummy. The beautiful coffins and portraits left me struck with how beautiful the ancient Egyptians wanted to make death out to be.

What I learned from my two trips to The British Museum is that a guided tour is not my style when visiting a museum. I need to experience a museum at my own level and be able to view items of my own interest instead of listening to lengthy descriptions of artifacts that I do not find intriguing. I appreciate Brit for her extensive knowledge in the material at the museum, but the tour left me feeling bored and anxious to leave. When I visited the museum again on my own I was able to get much more out of it and view many more exhibits. My second visit to The British Museum has left me anxious to return to the museum with my family and sisters and show them the beauty and amazing history that I have discovered there on my own.