thit_cho

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061024/...opia_fossil_dc

I don't believe the real "Lucy" is even exhibited in Addis -- I think they display a replica. This should be an amazing exhibit.

Chris_GA_Atl

I had heard about this about six months ago and then wondered what became of it. We are going to Ethiopia as part of our upcoming trip, so we plan to go to see the "Lucy" display at the Ethiopian Museum in Addis. The information about the display of a replica at that museum is consistent with what I've read elsewhere. The same could probably be said of many dinosaur skeletons on exhibit in various museums -- I would guess that few (if any) of those are actual fossils. To have that exhibit come to the US should be excellent.
Thanks for posting this.
Chris

thit_cho

If you want to see real dinosaurs, you need to visit the American Museum of Natural History in NY -- very few of the fossils are replicas (some filler and a few missing bones).

There are a few national museums around the world that display replicas of their prized possession. I am visiting Kazakhstan next year (on a trip through the five 'Stans), and they have a golden suit (but only a replica is on display).

Chris_GA_Atl

A trip to the 5 'stans puts you in a very high category for adventure, Michael! That sounds intriguing.

thit_cho

Next year should be pretty adventurous:

May: five 'Stans
July: Alaska

and I literally just booked trip for next August to Guyana, Suriname and French Guiana (including trip to Devil's Island, or more accurately, the islands next to Devil's Island since its difficult for tourists to land on Devil's Island).

sundowner

Speaking of natural history museums and dinosaur bones reminded me of the movie preview I saw last night, "Night at the Museum". The beginning of the preview scared the kids but by the end, they decided they do want to see it.

The film's cast is comprised largely of comedic geniuses -- Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke, Mickey Rooney and Ricky Gervais (star of the original BBC 'Office').

What the Movie Is About: When the exhibits at a natural history museum start coming to life -- including warmongering Roman gladiators and a nasty T-rex skeleton -- the graveyard-shift security guard (Stiller) teams up with a wax figurine of Teddy Roosevelt (Williams) to save the museum. With warring cowboys, pillaging Huns and a CGI Tyrannosaurus skeleton, this should be pretty funny.

Chris_GA_Atl

I thought that gorilla trekking in Rwanda/Uganda, Ethiopia and some of our past trips like swimming with whales in Tonga were adventurous, but now I feel like an amateur!
Aren't you a lawyer? How can you take so many trips, it's not fair! I can only do one "big trip" a year ...
Chris

thit_cho

I prefer several one-week trips instead of a lengthier trip. I have a tremendous amount of frequent flier miles, so I don't mind the several plane tickets a year.

So, I will visit the 'Stans over a 10 day period (around Memorial Day to gain an extra day), will visit Alaska for five full days on the ground (around July 4) and will spend one week in the Guianas (around Labor Day to gain an extra day).

Chris_GA_Atl

OK, that explains it. We usually do one trip and make it for almost 3 weeks. My firm has always been good about that, so I am lucky in that regard.

Mediatorr

Check out the Museum of Natural History in Mongolia for dinosaur exhibits, including eggs and two fighting dinosaurs that were found still locked in battle. Of course, Mongolia's Flaming Cliffs is where Roy Chapman Andrews found the skeletons which are now in New York's Museum.
BTW, I'm a lawyer, too. The trick is to keep out of court and be your own boss; then, you can schedule your clients around your travels!

Mediatorr

Oops, I forgot to mention in the post I just sent off, that if you are interested in early fossils, the Cradle of Humankind outside of Joburg can be extremely fascinating. We just returned from our trip and I plan to write about the Cradle in my Trip Report once I am caught up after the trip.