During our travels through Washington D.C we were invited to swing by and check out the latest exhibit at the National Building Museum. D.C is home to many museums and while most of them don’t have any entry fees, two museums do. The National Building Museum is one of them and truth be told, the idea of pretending to be at the beach in a museum, didn’t sound like fun when a friend first told me about it. I mean come on…you can jump into a beach made of balls. Surely it would be similar to those ball pits at IKEA and McDonalds – right? O how wrong was I! I’m so glad we decided to swing by and check it out. Our biggest regret is not giving ourselves more time at the exhibit.
The BEACH exhibit was on display at the National Building Museum all summer long from July 4 to September 7. We visited a day before they shutdown and was surprised by how much fun families were having there. On arrival we went through a quick security check (they allowed our double stroller filled with bags, snacks and drinks), picked up our tickets (first come first served) and then stood there soaking in the magnificent scene in front of us. Golden pillars and high ceilings gave the Museum’s Great Hall a Roman Bath feel and I just couldn’t help but take a bazzilion pictures. Baby Boy was napping and the exhibit was going to close in an hour so the hubs grabbed Little Monkey and dove right in. There was ample space for stroller parking and it was right by the BEACH so we were able to keep our eye on sleeping Baby Boy.
Spanning across the Museum’s Great Hall, the BEACH covered 10,000 square feet and included an “ocean” of nearly one million recyclable translucent plastic balls. Visitors were welcomed to “swim” in the ocean, or spend an afternoon at the “shore’s” edge reading a good book, play beach-related activities such as paddleball, grab a refreshing drink at the snack bar, or dangle their feet in the ocean off the pier. Little Monkey loved floating through the balls as did the hubs. The video will give you an idea of what we got up to. I was a bit concerned about the sanitary conditions of the balls (we’ve all heard horror stories about the ball pits) but was told that the balls were coated with an anti-microbial surface, and were routinely treated with anti-microbial cleanser.Phew!
Initially I was too busy taking pictures but I soon tossed the phone back into my purse and then joined Little Monkey and the hubs. Of course I was very concerned about Little Monkey “drowning” under the balls because it was a deep pit (3.5 feet at the deepest point), but the hubs had full control. I decided to focus on keeping myself afloat and enjoy the moment!
The exhibit is no longer on display but I really do hope that more venues and museums will adapt the idea and bring the BEACH to other cities around the world. I spotted so many families and adults of all ages having fun that I know it would be a huge success!
