A Royal BC Museum Adventure | July 2017
⨠The Grand Plan
Back in July 2017, I had Big Main Character Energy. I was visiting the Royal British Columbia Museum in Victoria, BC, and I was fully prepared to emerge from the Egyptian exhibit with enough notes to write an academic paper. Maybe even a new career path? Kristen: Amateur Egyptologist. It had a nice ring to it.
My intention?
- Take insightful notes
- Absorb ancient wisdom
- Channel Evie from The Mummy
My reality?
- Take 7,000 pictures
- Read nothing
- Forget everything except how cool it all looked
đˇ The Exhibit Was That Good
Let me be clear: this wasnât a failure of willpower â this was a failure of awe. From the moment I stepped into the exhibit, it was dimly lit and beautifully curated. Golden sarcophagi glowed in dark corners. Sculptures of gods stared out with perfect eyeliner and thousand-year-old judgment. Stone tablets were covered in hieroglyphs that whispered âyou are not worthy.â
I vaguely remember signs talking about:
- The journey to the afterlife
- The symbolism of scarab beetles
- Mummified animals (yes, even a cat!)
- Ancient jewelry I would 100% wear today
But did I write any of that down? No. I took blurry photos of the signs instead, planning to âread them later.â You already know how that turned out.
đ¤ˇââď¸ So⌠What Did I Actually Learn?
Letâs just say I didnât walk out with a new specialization in ancient religions. But I did leave:
- In awe of the craftsmanship of a civilization 5,000 years old
- Deeply obsessed with eyeliner wings sharp enough to kill a man
- With an iCloud album full of unhelpful closeups titled âEGYPT STUFF đâ
Somewhere in there is a blurry plaque I was definitely going to read. One day. Probably.
â¤ď¸ Final Thoughts: Experience > Expertise
Do I regret not taking more notes? Maybe a little. But also? I kind of love that I was too dazzled to be productive. Sometimes the point of museum visits isnât to walk away as an expert. Itâs to stand in the middle of something ancient and feel your jaw drop.
So no, I didnât become an Egyptologist that day.
But I did have an unforgettable moment with history.
And Iâll take that.
đ TL;DR
- Visited the Royal BC Museum in July 2017
- Was supposed to take notes â took photos instead
- Egyptian exhibit was mesmerizing
- Remembered the vibes, forgot the facts
- 10/10 would get overwhelmed by ancient artifacts again
đHave you ever completely flubbed your research goals because something was just too cool to focus? Drop your museum fails in the comments or tag me on Instagram â we can start a support group called People Who Meant to Take Notes But Got Distracted by Shiny Things.
*This is a rewrite of a previous post
