After a nice shower, I looked at my saved locations. Oh, there is a museum I had wanted to visit. Not too far away.
Back in 1997, I went to my favorite theater, the Enzian, in Orlando. On this occasion, I saw a film starring Jeremy Irons, Dominique Swain, Melanie Griffith, and Frank Langella, called “Lolita.” It was originally a book by Russian author Vladimir Nabokov.
There happens to be a museum dedicated just to him, in the very house where he was born.
I enter and step up to a small desk with a computer on it. After a minute a lady comes out and points to a QR code, I use my iPad camera and open the link, but it is all in Russian. What I do gather is it is a way to purchase a ticket online with card.
I can’t (and don’t want to) use a card. I use translator to ask if I can pay cash. Apparently nyet, but she has me write down my name and email and takes the payment in cash, then she says she will pay online for me. Weird, just take my money and let me in. I don’t even care if the museum gets it.
She then asks if I would like to see a film about Nabokov, in English. Sure why not.
It is a interview from the BBC, 1962, called “30 minutes with Vladimir Nabokov.” I didn’t intend on watching a half hour, but it was somewhat interesting, so I watched. He stated he had color synesthesia (not in that term, maybe it wasn’t used in ’62), which is a condition where one perceives colors associated with numbers and/or letters.
I then browsed through the rest of the museum’s items, mostly photos of him and his family. There were also many games shown, he really liked playing chess, Scrabble, and other “thinking” games.
He was also an amateur lepidopterist, a collector of butterflies. Most of his specimens are on display.
There were many, many copies of his books, English, Russian, French, etc. He actually lived most of his life in USA, and wrote most of his books in English. He self translated Lolita into Russian. I had thought it was Russian to start.
As I said, I saw the 1997 film, but I also saw a Stanley Kubrick version from 1962, starring James Mason, Shelley Winters, Peter Sellers and Sue Lyon. With Sellers, I guess they thought the film needed some comic relief due to the theme.
I also found an unopened audiobook version at a yard sale, so I bought it. It was quite good.
After, I made another look at the map and there was another museum near, the Kunstkamera. I knew it as the oddity museum.
The majority of the collection is just anthropological items from ancient Inuits, American indians, Chinese, Koreans and Africans. But as this building was once home to the science society, it also now includes science and medical tools, along side human and animal specimens. It includes some medical curiosities, like a two-headed pig, which you can now view the skeleton.
Across the river was the Hermitage Museum, founded by Catherine the Great to house many of her artworks. Yes, nothing like having so much art, you are forced to have a huge mansion built just for them. The problems of the elite, I feel your pain sister.
Like the Louvre, I don’t think anyone can see the whole thing in one trip. There are rooms off of other rooms, halls that have expanse. Even with a map, I’m sure you’d still miss some rooms.
There are many Roman pieces, including busts of several Emperors. Also Egyptian works, not Tut’s or other pyramid stuff, more Roman and pre-Roman time periods.
There is a table with a lapis lazuli top, if you could find a piece that big today, it would run you tens of millions. Another had multi-stone inlays making a image. Certainly took time to produce.
Many marble “bowls” that are taller than me. I have to presume they were bird baths that you’d have in your garden and look down at them from your balcony.
Three items on my list and three successes. Hurray!
Hunger was getting to me, so I searched for restaurants. My eye immediately landed on Cafe Rasputin, I had to go.
I had a house specialty salad and a traditional meat soup. Both were good.
