Have you seen some of the very instagram-able photos from the National Museum for Natural History? So did we! Decided one November weekend to bring the little curious girl over to see the spectacle and we weren't disappointed.
Getting there was fairly uncomplicated on a weekend, a trike ride to Marcos hiway, a jeepney ride to the LRT2 station at Santolan and 2 train rides after we alighted at the UN station. Lots of transfer but again, painless. We arrived around 11 am.
The building itself is easy to find even for someone like me who hasn't been to Luneta for a good 15years. Armed with the reviews I read prior to our visit, we came with just a small bag and we arrived prepared to line up with the rest of the crowd, game face and all.
There are 2 lines going in, first you have to get through the metal detector and bag checker. If you came with a bag bigger than a regular bond paper then you go through the second line inside for the baggage counter. We spent a good 15 minutes on the first line which wasn't too bad because we can already feel the air conditioner by then which gave solace to the noontime heat. By the way, there's actually someone at the door guiding the visitors to the baggage area with a laminated bond paper, comparing the size of your bag, best to do the test at home if you want to cut your time lining by half.
You'd be greeted by a cheery and bright atrium with the "tree of life" in the middle also being used as the elevator. It was meant to be used to ferry the visitors at the very top floor and to experience the exhibits floor by floor going down. It was not working at the time we went there to we started at the basement going up.
The exhibits are well curated, seamlessly flowing from one world to the next. Fauna and flora are covered. The biodiversity that can be found in the country. I won't give too much information so you can experience it yourself.
One thing is for sure, having experienced museums and exhibits in other Asian countries and Europe, this is a great start for the Philippines. Kudos to the team who worked on it and more importantly, for making it available to the public for free!
My only wish is that the visitors would care for the place and I hope they understand we deserve this, we deserve a great museum and we need to care and preserve it.
We'd be coming back to visit the other 2 National Museums, the National Museum for Anthropology which sits right across the Natural History museum and the National Museum for Fine Arts. You should too!
Disclaimer: Please note I am not in any way connected with this brand, the online store or the delivery partner of the store and I have not received any form of payment for this review. I am a regular consumer and bought these products and services for my own personal use.
