7 plus hours in the Israel Museum Later

Tuesday Eitan and I had a LONG day out. On Sunday there was a notice on the front gate of our building that the electricity would be out from 9am to 3pm and being in this house that long without fans (okay and internet) is not okay. So I got to brainstorming. So other then going to Ami's shipping container office on a construction site, another trip to the Israel Museum seemed like a good fit. And bonus, it  was the annual Kite Festival over there so there was additional fun kids activities. Deal.

Because our last visit to the museum was less then 3 months ago, admission was half off (Eitan's free until 3, so that's cool). We got there a little after 10 and left at almost 5 so I'd say we got our money's worth!

Unlike our last visit, this trip we spent a lot of time in the children's wing and in the sculpture garden. Partially because I'd seen the other stuff already and partially because it's harder to keep a toddler entertained and contained with one parent then two.

In the children's wing we revisited the "Goodnight Moon" room. This time, it was lit softly (mimicking the book) rather then bright and they let us actually go IN rather then just peek our heads in and see. Which was a good thing, because Eitan immediately recognized it, said "animal duce", ran in, and was just totally enthralled. He touched EVERYTHING. It was pretty much the coolest thing to watch. Still not a  perfect copy, (no red balloon! no kittens!), but it was great. And kept him busy for a good long time going from the toy house to the clocks to the bed, to the book itself.

After some more time in the children's wing we ventured outside. A big hit was Claus Oldenberg's apple core. Which made me happy as a New Yorker, and happy for Eitan as no one was enforcing the "please do not climb" sign. Sorry Claus.

We also went to see this sculpture below. Eitan called it the big mirror. I have no idea who made it, but it reminds me of the bean in Millennium Park in Chicago. So maybe the same person? Either way you spot us upside down below. And I can flip over the image so we're forwards, but that's cheating the art. So you can see us as we saw us. 

After some more running around outside, and figuring out how to push his own stroller, we headed inside to scope out a semi quiet place for me to put Eitan down for a nap. And yes, I came prepared with a light blanket to cover the stroller with to block out the light, and my kindle loaded with entertainment (and headphones). I found a great spot (third floor, lots of big leather chairs, not much art, and a small coffee stand/shop for some reason), rocked Eitan to bed and settled into a chair with a large latte and a couple episodes of Veep (it's funny!).  I also took sleeping Eitan in his stroller to the new fabulous exhibit about Hasidic Jews. It was great- lots of videos, images, clothing. With all of the strife between the sects here, hopefully it will inform the general population about the "other" side. I hear there are also separate women and men hours sometimes to be more welcoming to Hasidic visitors. Here's some news I dug up on it if you want to see for yourself.  Well done Israel Museum.

 

When he woke up from his nap and after a lunch break, we continued to explore the museum as there was still an hour or so until the actual Kite festivities began. This one room had this giant statue. I promise when we walked into the room, Eitan said "daddy" and pointed. Really. I can't make this stuff up. Seriously. Check out the scale of this guy. Most people were about up to his knees.

 Before we knew it, Kite fun time. For some reason it was kite festival/Japanese festival, but we enjoyed it all.

There was a dragon, drummers, Kabuki dancers, it was lovely. Eitan was OBSESSED with the dragon. He followed the guy, and would run  up right in front of them. And the face below- it was like that for 15 minutes straight. Really!

 

The kites were great. There were workshops all day where kids could make their own, and some people brought with. The truth is, we left around 5 and tons of people were filing in- so it seems the most kite action was after our departure, but after a few minutes Eitan was way more into playing with and throwing the gravel rocks on the ground then watching kites anyways. He threw them everywhere. Like down his back. We found some in his diaper even which takes special skill for Eitan because he was wearing a onesie shirt, so I guess they went down his back?

Anyways, the pictures I took of the kites just look like dots in the sky, so I'll spare you! But it was great and fun, and if you're in town, you should go next year.