Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The rest of the 4-square-block museum is nothing to sneeze at.
Founded in 1869, it houses the world's greatest natural-science collec-
tion in a group of buildings made of towers and turrets, pink granite,
and red brick. The diversity of the holdings is astounding: some 36
million specimens, ranging from microscopic organisms to the world's
largest cut gem, the Brazilian Princess Topaz (21,005 carats). Rose
Center aside, it would take you all day to see the entire museum, and
then you
still
wouldn't get to everything. You can see the best of the
best on free
highlights tours
offered daily every hour at 15 minutes
after the hour from 10:15am to 3:15pm. Free daily
spotlight tours,
thematic tours that change monthly, are also offered; stop by an infor-
mation desk for the schedule.
Audio Expeditions,
high-tech audio
tours that allow you to access narration in the order you choose, are
also available to help you make sense of it all.
If you only see one exhibit, see the
dinosaurs
, which take up
the fourth floor.
Kids 5 and up should head to the
Discovery Room,
with lots of
hands-on exhibits. The
Hall of Human Origins
in the Anne and
Bernard Spitzer Hall traces the evolution of man and offers children's
workshops where kids can compare skull casts of early humans.
The museum excels at
special exhibitions,
so check to see what
will be on while you're in town in case any advance planning is
required. The magical
Butterfly Conservatory
, a walk-in enclo-
sure housing nearly 500 free-flying tropical butterflies, has developed
into a can't-miss fixture from October through May; check to see if
it's in the house while you're in town.
Central Park West (btwn 77th and 81st sts.).
&
212/769-5100
for information, or
212/769-5200 for tickets (tickets can also be ordered online for an additional $4
charge). www.amnh.org. Suggested admission $14 adults, $11 seniors and students,
$8 children 2-12; Space Show and museum admission $22 adults, $17 seniors and
students, $13 children under 12. Additional charges for IMAX movies and some spe-
cial exhibitions. Daily 10am-5:45pm; Rose Center open 1st Fri of every month until
8:45pm. Subway: B, C to 81st St.; 1 to 79th St.
Brooklyn Bridge
Its Gothic-inspired stone pylons
and intricate steel-cable webs have moved poets like Walt Whitman
and Hart Crane to sing the praises of this great span, the first to cross
the East River and connect Manhattan to Brooklyn. Begun in 1867
and completed in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge is the city's best-known
symbol of the age of growth that seized the city during the late 19th
century. Walk across the bridge and imagine the awe that New York-
ers of that age felt at seeing two boroughs joined by this span. It's still
astounding.
Moments
