Hohhotian Museum of History

Today, rather than my usual English class, I took my college-age students out on a field trip. Or, more accurately, they took me on a field trip to Hohhot's newer history museum.

The museum is only a few years old, and gigantic. It's a must see if you are interested in the history of Inner Mongolia. But, the best part is that the museum gives away 3,000 free entries each day. All you have to do is walk up to the counter and ask for an admission ticket. Who can beat that?

The three floors attempt to cover all the history of Inner Mongolia. It's a little overwhelming at first. Although it takes a minute to wrap your head around the arrangements of the exhibitions, once you realize that they are pretty much in chronological order from the beginning of time (left to right) it's a little easier. The lobby has an illustrated time line that is really amazing. I love that they start with the dinosaurs and then lead into the people.

The first floor has an incredible dinosaur exhibit. Inner Mongolia has some fantastic dinosaur finds, thus a large collection in the museum. The focal point, and most dramatic example, has to be the giant Brontosaurus skeleton. It fills most of the second floor. An awesome sight. My students and I stood gaping at the sight for a few seconds. The museum is huge, but standing outside you would never guess that there was a full dinosaur skeleton inside.

We went on to learn about the geology and animal life of modern Inner Mongolia, and then began out cultural studies.

The second floor began with an introduction of the first people in Inner Mongolia, and their transition over time to modern Inner Mongolia. The wax figures were fantastically done, and photographed quite well. There was even one of Marco Polo! It was cool to see the clothing change over time; from hides to woven clothing. We covered 10,000 years of history in 200 feet of space. Also, the tools and other artifacts were part of a large collection. We had a good idea of what life was like. Who ever put the museum together did a good job.

The third floor was all about Inner Mongolia after 1900. It seemed a little political (or a lot). Most things praised the Communist party, and it's leaders. And discussed the attempted invasion by the Japanese. It was interesting, although I feel like I need to do a little more reading on the subject. They had a great display of the important communist leaders. And most of the major points were translated into English.

We were quickly herded out of the museum promptly at 5:30pm, because the museum was closing, which means we missed a few rooms. Apparently, 2.5 hours is not enough time. But over all it was a great time. I have to say that the extras that were in the museum were almost better than the exhibits themselves. There are sculptures in every exhibit that represent one important thought. They are expertly done, and beautiful. I felt a little weird taking pictures of these "extras" rather than the exhibits themselves, but I couldn't help it!

Overall it was a fun day. I'm a little sad that I'll be heading back to Beijing tomorrow night, but then I get to poke around Beijing some more! I bought a back pack today, with Caroline's help. It only cost me 45 kwai ($8) and should last me the entire trip. It's the perfect size. I can put my camera bag in the bottom, and there is still enough room for a coat, or souvenirs (lets be honest).

I'll let you know when I get to Beijing.

-Kaye

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Part of trip: The Great Chinese Internship

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