Manhattan’s Must-See Museums: Multimedia Project

I could probably live in New York City my entire life and still not see everything to see. The Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn, Staten Island and Manhattan, make up the five boroughs of New York City with an unlimited amount of places to see and explore. There is so much to learn about in New York, and the best way to do that is to visit the variety of museums. As a part of the New York Program, we live in Lower Manhattan, so these are just four of the museums I visited close to home. But if you feel like getting out of the neighborhood, I included one of my favorite museums while I’ve been here—Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in Times Square. Get a feel for each museum with a little information about each and then take A Walk Through Manhattan’s Museums. Either sit back and watch the slideshow or click through the pictures to read captions containing interesting facts about the photos.

American Indian Museum

The Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian features exhibits all year round to display and teach about the lifestyles, cultures and religions of Native people. The current exhibit is Infinity of Nations, which shows the path and history of Native people. You can learn about almost every aspect of their lives, from tools they used to the types of clothing they wore. Outside the exhibit is a collection of boards that establish the 500-year connection between Native Americans and African Americans by addressing their shared questions of identity and heritage and their struggle to gain legal and social acceptance.

Jewish Holocaust Museum

I have been to a few Holocaust museums, but this one was an interesting new angle. Its main focus is the life of Jewish people before, during and after the Holocaust with a floor dedicated to each phase. While I learned some new facts about the Holocaust, I learned a lot more about the lifestyles of the Jews who were a part of it. More than 900 Jews from Germany boarded the St. Louis heading to Cuba. They had applied for U.S. visas and were going to head there after they reached Cuba; however, the ship was forced to go back to Europe, taking the passengers. They took refuge in other European countries, but they still ran into trouble when Germany invaded those countries. With little knowledge of Jewish life before visiting the museum, it definitely presented a new angle to the Holocaust.

The Skyscraper Museum

The name of the museum says it all. This museum, which is ironically only one floor, is all about the start up and evolution of New York’s skyscrapers. It details everything starting with the first skyscrapers in the textile business as New York grew to become the fashion capital of the world. It continues the timeline all the way up to today with pictures and plans for the new World Trade Center buildings and the memorial. And here’s a bonus! It’s right across the street from the Jewish Holocaust Museum, so you can just hit both in one day like I did! Learn interesting facts about how they’re built and check out pictures of famous skyscrapers around the world.

The Museum of American Finance

When thinking of interesting museums to visit, the Museum of American Finance might not be on the top of your list, but it should be. This museum is not just facts and figures of our country’s debt. It actually tells the entire financial history of how our country was built, and how it has grown and changed since that time. You can start by meeting Alexander Hamilton, J.P. Morgan and Andrew Carnegie and then move along to see how the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg Business came into the scene. It’s more of a history lesson than a budget lesson, so its definitely worth the time.

Madame Tussauds Wax Museum

Ok, here’s your break from the educational type of museums. There is nothing to learn here—just relax, walk around and enjoy the  unnervingly realistic wax figurines. Take pictures with your favorite celebrities like I did, enjoy the miniature haunted house (or should I say haunted room?) and embarrass yourself by mistaking one of the figurines for a real person (not like that happened to me or anything…). It’s a little pricey, but it’s definitely worth the money and the time spent inside.

Adventure Point: Broadway show!

A few weeks ago, one of my friends came to visit from Mizzou. We did a lot in one day, but the best part was the show we went to see which was Chicago. 

It wasn’t really what I expected. I thought it was a show about like dancing or theatre, but it was about a murder and the desire to become known as a famous murderer just purely for the fame itself. Anyway, it was great!

I also didn’t know that you could purchase discounted tickets for matinee times at the TKTS in Times Square. Our tickets were about $70 each, but that was at about 50 percent off, so it was a great deal.

It has been a while since I have been to other Broadway shows, like Wicked and the Tale of Two Cities, so it was really fun to go again, especially with a friend from home!

When my mom visits this weekend, we are going to try to see The Book of Mormon, and I have heard really great reviews about it. I wish I could’ve seen more while I was here!

Adventure Point: Housing Works

A couple weeks ago, Ashley and I went to Queens to go to the Housing Works warehouse that was mentioned in class. It was crazy! There were people everywhere stepping over mounds of clothing that were in bins, on the floor, spread over tables, and really just everywhere.

When we walked in and saw that, I didn’t think I would find anything because of the chaos, but I did! I actually found a lot. I bought two coats, two blazers, two dresses and some other random items. The best part was that it cost $25 for one medium-sized brown bag, which is such a great deal.

Some of the things I got were from places like Zara or Banana Republic, where everything is at least $25 each. Ashley found a lot more than I did, but it was fun going through all the stuff we bought and seeing what a great deal we got for all of it.

Adventure Point: 9/11 Memorial

Even though the 9/11 memorial is just a couple blocks away, I finally found the time to go see it last week. It was obviously really sad thinking about what actually happened at that very site, but it was also great to see that so many people visit and support the memorial.

The memorial consists of two fountains or pools, a north pool and a south pool. Each pool is a square and the names of the victims are inscribed around the border, divided into different sections. For example, the firefighters lost have their own corner of one of the pools.

One of the most interesting parts about the memorial was the Survivor Tree. It is right in the middle of the memorial and it represents the struggle but success of surviving the attacks. This tree was the only tree to survive all the chaos, and it was reduced to just a stump. After taking it to a nursery and nursing ut back to health, it now stands fully recovered in the center of the memorial site.

The museum is not yet finished, but it is scheduled to open in 2012. For now, there is a visitor center where you can learn more about September 11, 2001. One of my favorite parts was the timeline that went around the room by the ceiling. It showed minute-by-minute events of the attacks and the response. It amazed me that it only took 14 minutes for the Fire Department and Police Department to be prepared and arrive on the scene. I also learned more about the fourth plane that crashed into a field in Pennsylvania because the brave passengers stopped the attempts of the hijacker.

The memorial is free to visit, so it is definitely worth spending a few hours one day to go see it.

Adventure point: NY Baseball!

It’s summer, so you know what that means. Baseball! Ok, so I’m not the biggest sports fan in the world, especially when it comes to baseball, but when in New York, you’ve got to see some New York sports.

The first week we were here, a group of us went to the Mets game, since they were playing the Padres, Zach’s favorite team. It was great because we got $10 tickets—gotta love student prices. It was also the first time I had ever had a Nathan’s hot dog, which I had just learned were apparently famous. I can see why—it was delicious. The actual game was pretty slow. There wasn’t much action and I think the score ended up being like 2-0 or something, but it was still a fun experience.

Then a couple weeks ago, I went to a Yankees game with some friends from Glamour. It was really fun! Unfortunately, we had to stand the whole game, but that wasn’t really a problem. I bought a Yankees hat, despite the criticism my Cardinals-loving friends offered.

When I was here in March, I got to see the Penguins play the Rangers at Madison Square Garden, but I always wanted to see a Yankees game. Now I can cross visits to MSG, Yankee Stadium and CitiField off my New York bucket list.

You Knew What You Signed Up For

I love my internship in New York so far at Glamour. I get to write the articles I like to read, I work in a nice big office right in the middle of Times Square, and I just love seeing those glossy pink GLAMOUR letters mounted on the wall when I walk in. Livin’ the dream. Well, almost. The only problem with this summer is that I’m living a New York life on a non-existent salary. That’s perfectly okay by me—I knew what I signed up for, and I’m just grateful and excited for the experience I’ll have when it’s all over. But some interns just don’t feel the same way.

Xuedan Wang, 28, is suing Hearst Corporation claiming that she worked more than 40 hours a week unpaid at Harper’s Bazaar which violates labor laws. Now, her lawyers are asking for other previous Hearst interns to join Wang in the class-action lawsuit.

According to the Fair Labor Standards Act, companies are allowed to provide internships without pay to college students as long as the internship benefits the student—meaning the student gained some type of valuable experience during that time.

So what does this mean? I do think unpaid internships are fair. You know what you’re signing up for, and if you don’t like it, then find a (rare) paid internship, or don’t intern. It’s pretty simple. I have learned a lot at my internship this summer. But ever since this case came about, I have been hearing rumors that if Wang wins, unpaid internships may become a thing of the past. I don’t know if this is all true, but I do think that would be terrible. If all internships must be paid, then magazines and other media outlets will not be able to afford to hire interns, or at least not as many. The direct consequence, of course, would be that the number of internships would decrease, making them even more competitive. I applied to so many places for an internship for the summer. I got some offers, some interviews, but then I never even heard back from some places—it is already really competitive to get the “dream” internship! It will be interesting to see what happens, but in my opinion, Wang knew what she signed up for before she even walked through the doors of the Hearst building.

Think Before You Tweet

Okay everyone knows that social media has a pretty powerful influence on our lives. It’s hard to go a day without getting on Facebook and you can connect to anyone, including celebrities. Well, that’s great, but sometimes, social media can be a much bigger problem. People sometimes don’t realize the consequences of their actions when they post a status or tweet inappropriate things, and it just seems to be happening a little more frequently lately.

For example, Greek athlete Voula Papachristou was immediately expelled from the Olympics after this tweet: “With so many Africans in Greece…A least the West Nile mosquitos will eat home made food!!!” Um…what?! That’s not okay. She should’ve known that by being an Olympic athlete, she is very open to the public eye. I don’t feel sorry for her at all.

And the problems just keep happening with Twitter. Playboy Model Tricia Evans tweeted this about the Aurora shooting: “I heard the new Batman movie is really “to die for”! Too soon?” Um, duh, that’s too soon! That just happened! Once again, it was pretty stupid for her to say that when she’s in the public sphere, but then again, she’s a playboy bunny, so maybe I should lower my expectations of her intelligence (if they can go any lower).

This one wasn’t a social media problem, but still a thoughtless celebrity making jokes just for attention. Dane Cook used the Aurora shooting to his advantage when he said the following: “So I heard that the guy came into the theater about 25 minutes into the movie. And I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie, but the movie is pretty much a piece of crap… Yeah, spoiler alert. And I know that if none of that would have happened, I’m pretty sure that somebody in that theater, about 25 minutes in, realizing it was a piece of crap, probably was like, ‘Ugh f—king shoot me.'” Why do people think this is funny?! Especially when it has been only a week since it happened. Call me sensitive or whatever since I live there, but I would still be angry about this even if I didn’t live there.

I’m not in the public sphere, but I know it’s common sense not to say things like that when so many lives were affected. And as for the Greek athlete, the Olympics is about all the countries competing and celebrating together, so why woud you think that making even a semblance of a racist comment is okay? Come on people, get your acts together.

Adventure Point: Coney Island!

Yesterday I finally got the chance to go to Coney Island. Last time I tried, it was supposed to rain all day, but yesterday was the perfect weather. My friend, Megan, and I got to Coney Island around 1 p.m. and the first thing we did was head to Nathan’s to get its famous hot dogs. Cross that one off the bucket list—get a hot dog at the home of the hot dog eating contest (too bad we didn’t get to see that).

While we were there, we spent most of the time on the beach. We met two guys, Wilson and Miguel, from the Dominican Republic, and we hung out with them for most of the time playing football and walking along the pier. Because they mostly spoke Spanish, it was a challenge at some points trying to communicate with them, but it was a good chance for us to get in a little practice.

We didn’t end up going on any rides or seeing the circus show, but Coney Island was so fun that I plan to go back at some point, so I can try the rides then. I have been looking to go to the beach all summer, so when this day came along where we were both able to, I was excited! It was a perfect summer day.

Trouble in Aurora

Ok, so most people heard about the movie theatre shooting in Aurora, Co. that happened last night. I was obviously shocked and heartbroken to hear the news this morning, since I am from Aurora. I woke up to several text messages this morning saying things along the lines of “hey, I heard about what happened and I hope your friends and family are safe.” Of course, when reading these, I jumped out of bed and immediately found the news of the Aurora shooting.

I began texting my friends back home to see what was going on and if anyone we knew had been there—and if they had been hurt. It was the worst question imaginable to ask my friends. Luckily for me, I was not directly affected. None of my friends and family were there, but I did hear about three friends of friends that were hurt in last night’s chaos. I had people texting me all day to ask how things were back home, even though I am in New York for the summer. Even though they clearly knew I was not in Colorado, I really appreciated my friends checking in about my family back home.

After our class media visit was over, I got home and immediately started texting friends and checking Facebook for any updates. Everyone I know personally is safe, but it was still awful to know that my friends were in pain from their friends who were hurt. I went out to dinner with a few friends from Glamour and afterward we had planned to see the movie. I felt a little skeptical—not because I was scared it may happen again (even though the media did warn about repeat copy attacks), but just because I wasn’t sure I would want to see the movie and have to think about what happened at the theater in my hometown just fewer than 24 hours earlier. We ended up not being able to see it anyway because it was completely sold out as somewhat expected.

I am so thankful that I was not directly affected by the shooting, but it was still disturbing to think that the town where I have spent the majority of my life experienced this awful attack. It was frightening to think that I actually had to call friends to see if everyone was safe. That is not a pleasant feeling. My love and thoughts go out to everyone in Aurora, especially those hurt or affected by the actions of the shooter.

NYC Weather

Ok so it is halfway through July and I am just now commenting on the weather in New York City. Well, it is not at all what I expected. When my editors at Glamour warned me that it would be hot, they’re weren’t exaggerating. Most days it has been about 90 degrees on average. Some days have reached 100 and we have been fortunate to have a few days in the low 80s. But I never expected New York City, or really anywhere in the Northeast, to be this humid! Moving from Colorado to Missouri, I went from completely dry air to Missouri’s lovely, sticky, sweat-inducing humid heat. Then coming to New York, it almost seems to be even more humid, making each long walk and each waiting time for a subway train seem that much longer. Many days this summer I have walked down to Wagner Park to go for a run, read, lay out in the sun, etc. On hot days like today, the heat just gets in the way. I run for about 20 minutes and I’m sweating way more than anyone should. I read a book in the sun for 20 minutes and I feel like I’m burning to a crisp. While summer is my favorite season, the heat here can be really annoying. All I wanted was a little cooler weather, possibly some rain. Well, I got my wish. As soon as I stepped out the door to head to the Holocaust museum, it started pouring, which is exactly how I ended up back inside to write this blog.