A Ship to Remember

photo by vox3000

In honor of the 101st anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic, I decided to share my obsession with my faithful readers.  My fascination with the Titanic started when I was just a little kid.  We had big piles of National Geographic magazines, and I spent hours reading them.  Most kids would probably be drawn to the animal articles, but my favorite was always the archaeology.  Especially the one about Pompeii, but we'll talk about that later.  We had two magazines that featured the Titanic, and I remember staring at the pictures, thinking about that beautiful ship on the bottom of the ocean, frozen in time.

photo by jtedesco

 Sometimes I would wonder what it would have been like to be on it, to experience the whole thing.  Would I have lived or died?

So considering all of that, it was like a dream come true when I visited the Titanic Museum in Branson, Missouri.  It was incredible, I recommend it to anyone who has the slightest interest in the Titanic or even just loved the movie.  Just don't take small children (my four year old son spend the whole time asking if we could go home yet).  The only problem I had was that they won't let you take pictures inside.  

Titanic Branson

It was extra special because it was the 100th anniversary of the sinking.  The attention to detail was fantastic, they even recreated the grand staircase, and they let you walk up it to the second floor.  One of my favorite parts was where they made it like you were walking out on the deck at night with stars everywhere and you could actually feel the chill in the air.  I swear you could smell the ice.  They also have recordings of survivors telling their stories that you listen to as you're walking through the museum.  There were many times that I was brought to tears.  Whole entire families were lost, others were separated forever.  Heroes were born that night as people gave up their spots in the lifeboats so that women could be with their children.  Fans of the movie would be happy to know that there was actually a J. Dawson on the ship, a fact that James Cameron didn't know until he had written the script.

photo by danielkoehlersfotos

Some other things the movie got right:  the band actually did play on, until the water was over their feet.  There was a party in third class that night.  A man named Eugene Daly, an Irish mechanic, played the bagpipes.  And of course, the captain did go down with the ship.  His reported last words were "Be British boys, be British!"

Capt. E.J. Smith
photo by Mr. History

I personally loved the movie, although I disagree with a few plot points. (Come on, two people could totally have fit on that raft!)  And what is a trip to the Titanic Museum without a few souvenirs?

A coffee cup, because I collect them

A couple of magnets

And my personal favorite, they take your picture and add the grand staircase behind you

So now my goal is to visit the Mystic Aquarium in Connecticut, home of oceanographer Robert Ballard, who discovered the Titanic's final resting place.  They have an exhibit about the ship that looks absolutely awesome.  And they have hands-on stuff!  

And of course, my other goal is to travel on the Titanic II, which some people think is a bad idea, but I think would be completely amazing!  Yes, some Australian billionaire is actually recreating the ship.  (And I thought I was obsessed!)

One final note:  years ago, I bought a PC game about the Titanic.  You played it like you were a passenger trying to solve a mystery (and in my mind, possibly prevent the ship from sinking.)  It is a great game, I don't know if you could possibly find it anywhere now, but if you do run across it, give it a try.

Titanic: Adventure Out of Time