Defining Museums Continued....

In previous posts, I discussed some museums I've visited that are redefining the traditional interpretation of the word "museum." Museums are now breaking outside the walls of buildings and sometimes the museum is the walls of the building. In my post about Dinosaur Ridge, I wrote about the outdoor self-guided tour I took where the fossils were not displayed in glass cases but rather embedded in the side of a mountain. In my last post, I discussed The Lower East Side Tenement Museum, an old tenement that doesn't have historical artifacts in a building but instead the building itself is the artifact.

Another "alternative museum" I'd like to discuss is the Hiwan Homestead Museum which I visited on my trip to Colorado. Similar to the Lower East Side Tenement Museum the Hiwan Homestead Museum is about the building itself. Its a series of log homes that were once inhabited by different families and now have been opened to the public as a museum. It was also built in the late 1800s like the Tenement Museum but the similarities end there.

In 1893, Hiwan began as a simple, one-room structure which was converted into a summer home for a Civil War widow Mary Neosho Williams and her daughter Josepha, who earned the name Dr. Jo when she became one of the first women to earn a medical degree in Colorado. They hired Jock Spence to build the first cabin on the property which they dubbed "Camp Neosho." By 1918 Jock built many additions and finished construction on what is now a 17 room log home.

When Dr. Jo died in 1938, the property was sold to Darst Buchanan, a wealthy oilman from Tulsa, Oklahoma. He and his family renamed it the Hiwan Ranch, an Anglo-Saxon term meaning "members of a family household."

Jefferson County Open Space and the Jefferson County Historical Society purchased the structures in 1974 and they were placed on the National Register of Historic Places. The museum opened in 1975.

A tour guide will take you through the rooms which have been restored to their appearance from the period of 1915-1930 to reveal the stories of each family and Hiwan's rich history.

You can walk around on your own outside the main building and visit the rest of the ranch, walk the nature trail, and go inside the tents or other cabins. The guided tour is free and despite the fact I got there when they were closed the very nice tour guide happily stayed late to give one more tour.

The Hiwan Homestead is another great space that is changing peoples perception of what a museum is. I say good riddance to the stuffy buildings with their exhibits in glass cases and signs that say "Don't touch!" Museums are breaking outside their boundaries and I welcome the new interpretation of what a museum is. A museum can be a log cabin or an old tenement or it might not be in a building at all. It can be outdoors with fossils that are encased in the side of a mountain. The most important change in the role of museums is that they are no longer formal spaces where visitors are passively looking at art or objects. I think the best museums are the informal and non-conventional ones which are inviting their visitors to become a part of the exhibit thereby creating a much more rich and valuable experience.

On the Road in Mexico!

After 8 days in Ohio, I made a pit-stop in New York for less than 48 hours before heading off to Mexico. This gave me just enough time to pay my rent (for the apartment I never see) and other bills (for utilities I don't use) and change the water in the bucket that my plant is sitting in. I came home with one less shoe and a brand new suitcase. After 9 flights in 3 weeks, my old suitcase couldn't go on any longer and is resting in peace in the dumpster behind the Columbus Best Western.

So I packed my new suitcase and was off to Mexico. The first stop was Mexico City. The climate was a moderate and comfortable low-70's. Everyone there seemed to think it was cold because they were all bundled up in winter coats and scarves unless they were protesting something, in which case they were standing in the street naked. The city was crowded with people and traffic (about 10 times more than NYC) but really colorful with beautiful views of mountains and volcanoes. I especially liked that all of the streets were lined with benches that were each a unique sculpture. I was only in Mexico City for a few days before flying off to Veracruz so I didn't get to see any museums but I did take a tour of the Pyramids. The tour stops at several churches and archaeological sites on the way but the most interesting stop was the Maguey shop. We got to watch how the artisans make things out of obsidian which comes from the volcanic lava and how the silversmith turns the silver into jewelry but the most intriguing demonstration was where they showed us all the ways they use the agave plant. First, they peeled the skin of one of the leaves to create paper. You can write on it with a pen and the ink won't smudge. Then if you rub the leaf it will create a film that is used for antiseptic. Break off the tip of the leaf and the sharp point is used for a needle. Attached to it are long strands that are used as thread. Lastly, inside the plant itself, they stir the pulp to create the liquid that is fermented to make tequila. This part of the demonstration involved getting us drunk off of pure agave juice, mescal, and tequila. This was great but probably would have been better after the climb to the top of two pyramids!

After that, we went to the Pyramids of the Teotihuacan. I climbed to the top of both the Pyramid of the Sun and the Moon. The climb up was pretty treacherous and steep. It's helpful to have really long legs (which I don't) because the stairs are very high but once you get to the top the view is worth the effort. There were butterflies flying all around me. I felt like they followed me on my journey across the U.S. and we all migrated together from North America to get to this place! They only added to the surreal feeling of being someplace so ancient that so many others throughout history have climbed before me. If you've never climbed to the top of a pyramid then I highly recommend putting it on your to-do list because it was an absolutely amazing experience.

The next day I flew to Veracruz. I don't have much to report about this trip because I was advised by my local site contact to stay close to my hotel due to the unsafe conditions in the area. This

part of Mexico was not a tourist destination but this was the real Mexico that most tourists never see. People were living in extreme poverty (mostly Third-world conditions) and scavenging what was supposed to be a beach but looked more like a garbage dump.

It was about 20 degrees warmer than Mexico City... approximately 90 sticky degrees every day.

Now I'm in Montreal, Canada and it feels like it's been a year rather than a week since I was in Mexico. Probably because I flew out Summer and straight into Winter! The leaves here have already changed to yellow and orange and from what I've seen of Montreal so far it looks like a beautiful city. My brain is having a bit of a meltdown though. I'm finally remembering my room number and floor but now have to remember to speak in French rather than Spanish. It also would have been useful information to know that there are 5 Marriott hotels here. Two are on the same street. Luckily, I found mine on the second try.

It's been almost 9 weeks and I've been in about 15 different cities and on 15 flights with one more flight to go (back home to New York!). This will be my last trip for a while and I'm hoping to see some great museums while I'm here so check back next week for the last of the "On the Road" blogs.