Saturday, October 24, 2015

New Orleans, Louisiana: World War II Museum

It's tough to know what picture to use when writing about the World War II Museum in New Orleans. I opted to go with this one from the US Freedom Pavilion, in which a few airplanes hang from the high ceiling to greet visitors in the lobby. There are four viewing levels, and I believe this was taken from the fourth. It's pretty impressive to be so close to a WW2 aircraft.

In fact, the entire museum is impressive. A D-Day Museum first came to the area, as an important boat that was very useful to Allied forces was built here. Then came the idea, apparently, to pay tribute to the entire war effort. Visitors enter the Louisiana Memorial Pavilion, where they briefly board a Union Pacific Train Car for the start of the journey.

Then it is on to the Solomon Victory Theater Complex. A 40-minute film, hosted by Tom Hanks, reviews the history of the War. The screen is huge, objects come into view from the darkness, and seats vibrate. The movie is educational too, although some of the veterans we saw during our visit certainly could recite the story.

The Campaigns of Courage building has a nice recap of the European theater, with all sorts of artifacts, videos and replicas. You could spend quite a while there if you so choose. The day we were there, the Pacific theater floor was said to be "under construction." I can't say I know if this is a short-term or long term project as of October 2015, but it was disappointing to miss out on all that.

The Freedom Pavilion offers a look at the aviation side of the war; give Boeing credit for being the title sponsor. A movie on the submarine experience is also available. Visitors return to the Solomon Complex for food and the gift shop.

I'm not sure I'd rate this as one of the world's great museums without the Pacific portion being open. But it still is quite a complex and worth the price of admission. It will even keep the kids entertained while they learn some history along the way.

Here's a discussion from two guys that know something about the place:



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