After trying not to trip over the tourists crowding around the rosetta stone or biding our time looking at the Assyrians hunting down the last of the native lion population in the Middle East, it was finally time to enter the Agatha Christie archaeology special exhibit according to our timed tickets. While the rest of the museum is free to the public (donations requested), the special exhibits, which last only a few months, have ticket prices for 7 or 8 pounds for students and more for adults.

Although the exhibit is "temporary," this is not obvious from the entrance (nor the entire exhibit) given the high quality of the presentation. The exhibit combines artifacts with a variety of other media including, photographs, text from journal entries or news clipping, and film/video where available.

The Agatha Christie archaelogy exhibit was organized chronologically beginning with her first trip to the Middle East and ending with the death of her and her archeologist (2nd) husband. The exhibit begins with actual film advertisement for the Orient Express and some of Christie's luggage that she took with her. I hadn't realized before how long it took people to travel just 50+ years ago. I flew to Venice in 1.5 hours from London, but it took her several weeks(!) on the train to get there. Then it's another long trip to get from Venice to Cairo to other interesting places in Mesopotamia.

After that eye-opener, the story progressed with artifacts from mesopotamia, pictures, journal entries, photos, home video of her at the archaeological sites. Because of her fame already as a detective novelist, Christie was invited by the wife of the head archaeologist, a big fan, to visit the site. This is where Christie met her 2nd husband and how her archaeological journies continued. For fans of her books, they even trace the history and origins of several of her books that were written while she was there.

Where this special exhibit excelled, and I assume others do as well, was bringing to life a whole other side of a what we thought to be a well known subject. Using their excellent research abilities, and huge collections of artifacts, the curators of this exhibit took us to a different time and place making the familiar unfamiliar and the unfamiliar familiar. The exhibit took about 2 hours to go through (at least) and our only complaint was sore feet. A wheel chair would be great as the whole exhibit is quite accessible. Reservations (can be done over the web--be sure to bring the print out receipt!!!! or they won't give you the tickets--huge glitch in the system) are highly recommended. Many people avoid the exhibit for the cost, but in this case if you have the time to go, book ahead and enjoy--the special exhibits are definitely worth it.

Special note: This particular exhibit is over now, but check out the website to see what the current special exhibit is.

Walk in through the main entrance at Great Russell Street to the glass covered Great Court and spend a moment marvelling at the wonderful view. It's even better at night, with the court empty of people and the night sky beyond the glass.

This majestic place can't be seen in just one day, so try taking a highlights audio tour, which will take you around the whole museum in a bit more than an hour. It costs $3.50 when I did it, and was enjoyable even if some of the artifacts were hard to find. After you're done, you can go back to revisit the spots that fascinated you most.

Their website is chock full of essential information. It's a great planning tool before you go. Peruse the site here.

In my opinion, British Museum is the greatest historic museum in the world. Parliament was inspired to found first public museum in 1753, after acquiring the extensive natural history and antiquities collection of Sir Hans Sloane. After adding Rosetta Stone and Parthenon sculptures Robert Smirke was commissioned to build this monumental building. The ground floor is the most impressive in the museum, featuring treasures from Greece, Rome, and western Asia. My favorites here are Two Winged Lions with Human Heads (Egypt, 870 BC).

With very limited time in London, and a number of people with a passion to see the British Museum, we investigated the web and found that on a number of nights of the week (particularly Thursday and Friday), certain galleries remain open to the public till 9pm. This was a magic time to go, and we were lucky enough for the Assyrian and Egyptian galleries to be open the night we went. The entry dome at night is magic and gives you a feeling of immense space; this was accentuated, as the normal crowds were non-existent. One gift gallery at the entrance is still open and the reading room and restaurant are also open. We arrived at 5pm and stayed until closing, then caught a taxi back to Mayfair and picked up quick tea from one of the Marks and Spencer takeaway shops. We took this back to our hotel room so we could collapse, having been on the go since early morning after a 21-hour flight the day before.

The museum’s collection would probably need at least a week to do it justice, but the night viewings allow one to see the selected galleries in a much shorter time, due to the lack of crowds. They change which galleries are open on a regular basis, so it’s best to check the museum website for the schedule openings for the month you are planning to travel.

Entry was free. I can’t remember whether it was with our Great Britain Heritage card – I seem to remember that a lot of the public museums are free for viewing standard collections in England, except for special exhibitions. The website will tell you

The British Museum has to be one of the most extraordinary collections of historical artifacts in the world. As many know, the British had issues with Imperialism and tried to stake claim to almost anything foreign they came upon. This meant taking a lot of artifacts and displaying them in this massive house on Russell Street. I really don't encourage you to do the museum in one day, mainly because I think it's impossible! It took me 2 hours just to see the first floor, which holds their most spectacular artifacts in the Egyptian rooms and the Ancient Greek rooms. The King’s Library is quite interesting.

The main reason people go in the masses to the British Museum is to see the Rosetta Stone, the beautiful mummy cases, and basically the most important part of the Parthenon, The whole top of the Parthenon was a wonderful carved story that Lord Elgin basically stole from the Acropolis when he discovered it. I went to Athens to see the acropolis, and I must admit, it was anti-climatic seeing that the better part of the Parthenon was in the British Museum in London, but that's besides the point.

The crowds in these most popular parts of the museum, especially around the Rosetta Stone, never go away, so you just have to bear the hoards of students and tour groups and move on. I also enjoyed The King’s Library, as it has the most fascinating collection of first-edition books and stuffed extinct birds, reptiles, and even fish. There are also many interesting inventions, including different timepieces, a variety of measuring instruments, and much more.

Please don't miss the other parts of the museum. They have a wonderful display of Korean artifacts, things that you cannot find at any museum in America. They also follow the trail of the Silk Road trade industry, which is really quite fascinating. I really encourage you to take the British Museum in snippets. If you're in London for a week, maybe you could visit the museum in 2-hour increments two or three times that week. If you try it in one day, it could be quite overwhelming because there's such a great deal to see.

And after you've seen enough ceramic vases and ancient coins to last you a lifetime, go out and buy those famous sausages topped with grilled onions from the illegal vendors outside of the museum gates, have a seat on the steps of the museum, and take it all in. You really won't be disappointed.