I have a few highlights to share about my experience at what I consider to be the most beautiful museum in Scotland, one which makes me want to stay every time I enter the Grand Gallery.
It’s been over two months since I first came to Edinburgh to start my internship with National Museums Scotland. On my first day I visited the National Museum of Scotland on Chambers Street, and when I first entered the Grand Gallery I was so amazed by the astonishing building that I had to sit down for a while. I watched as the sunlight shone through the glass roof, leaving beautiful patterns on the floor. I was really excited when I heard about the roof terrace and soon made my way up there. It was at this point, standing looking out over Edinburgh, that I decided I was going to have a great time in this city and at the museum…
This wasn’t my only visit to the museum though, and over the next few months I attended two highlight tours and two themed tours. I learned about Mary, Queen of Scots, the Lewis Chessmen and many more great objects. I was visiting Scotland from a country where you would have to pay to visit a museum. Therefore, I absolutely loved not only my visits to the museum, but also seeing how busy the National Museum of Scotland can get (especially during school holidays!) and how diverse the range of visitors are.
There is one other great experience I would like to share: during my internship I got to work on an audience development project for the National Museum of Rural Life. After meeting with museum staff, I got the chance to have a look around the farm. The weather was wonderful and I enjoyed the quietness and the beautiful landscape on my walk up to the farmhouse. If only I had known what awaited me, I would have walked a lot faster! It was the time of year when you can see the little lambs and before I knew it I was standing next to a number of families, whose small children were adoring the baby animals that had just been born that morning. There are no words to describe the cuteness of these lambs, so I recommend you just have a look at this picture.
Besides the lambs, there are many more beautiful animals to see and you shouldn’t miss the tour around the farmhouse. You can learn the story of the 6 ft 10 inch tall farmer (the last person to live there) and don’t forget to look at the size of his bed!
I had a colleague in Berlin who told me I was really lucky to work for the most beautiful museum in the world, and I think she is quite right.