One of my favorite parts of traveling is coming across hole-in-the-wall restaurants, quirky thrift stores and beautiful museums. Museums, the places where tangible history is collected and preserved for all to see and learn from, are my safe haven. There is something so beautiful and mysterious about museums: whether its mission is to preserve artwork, historical objects, or scientific discoveries, visitors learn so much about their world, their culture, and themselves when delving into the collections housed in museums.
This Christmas break, I would love to be waltzing through the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Lourve in Paris, or any beautiful museum that I come across on my travels. If you, like me, are landlocked in Florida this break, but still desire to surround yourself with artifacts and objects that inspire and excite you, check out these museums – all located in Florida (and Georgia) – and make some travel plans to visit these wonderful historical institutions.
Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum, Key West, FL
You probably recognize the name Ernest Hemingway from the cover of a book you read in high school English – The Old Man in the Sea, perhaps, or The Sun Also Rises. He’s a renowned American author and his life and legacy is held together in the present via the preservation of his home in Key West, Florida. This home was where Hemingway lived and wrote for over a decade. One of the best parts of this historic home? The cats. Over forty cats live on the premises, waltzing around the house, willing and ready to be catered and cared for. The museum website says that, “Hemingway named all of his cats after famous people so we follow that same tradition today.” You may bump into a Ryan Gosling, an Edna St. Vincent Millay, or a Barack Obama kitten while you walk around the grounds of the home of this honored and prized American author.
Pebble Hill Plantation, Thomasville, GA
Pebble Hill Plantation is another historic home, located in the beautiful foothills of Thomasville, Georgia, only a forty-five minute drive from Tallahassee! This is the perfect museum to visit over the break if you are here in Tallahassee, but craving an easy, close-by adventure. This house is so beautiful (especially when decorated for Christmas!) that it made Southern Living’s list of the top 12 historic homes in the South. Originally owned by the Hanna family in 1896, this house has a rich history hiding amongst its staircases, wallpapers, statues and books. There are horses that graze in their stables, there is an old schoolhouse on the property and there are lavish grounds for you to explore.
Ringling Museum, Sarasota, FL
This lovely museum is actually owned by Florida State University! They were granted direction of the museum in 2000 and have strengthened ties with the museum and cultural institution that is The Ringling since then. The name “Ringling” may ring a bell and that’s because of the circus show that is so utterly famous – many refer to the Ringling Brothers Circus as “The Greatest Show on Earth.” John Ringling began collecting art, books and sculptures as he traveled around the world, the result of such acquisition being the Ringling Museum. Go visit this museum – admission is only $5 with your student I.D. or free with your FSU I.D. – and check out the Art Museum, the Circus Museum, the sculpture garden and the various exhibitions on show!