First of all, if you're in NYC, take the subway there: the B or the C to 81st Street. Because...you will see some lovely images of animals on the tile walls--the ones still with us in bright colors, the extinct ones as gray memories.

It's a short walk to the museum entrance. It's recommended to make a ticket reservation ahead of time--and if you are a New York, Connecticut, or New Jersey resident you can pay what you wish (or what you can afford). You can also simply pay for a membership (which has a separate, generally much less crowded entrance, inclues free admission as often as you'd like, and comes with various discounts for gifts and programs, as well as a tax deduction), which is a nice way to support the museum and all it does. If you're not from the area, the price for adults is $28, students (with ID) and seniors (60+) get in for $22, and children are $16.

The place is huge. Another reason to get a membership--come back frequently to see more. But if you're just coming once, here are a few recommended highlights:

1) Dinosaurs! Everyone wants to see the dinos (even more so if you've got kids in your party). They're on the 4th floor, approximately a hundred of them. The Titanosaur is too big to fit inside its hall--you can see its neck extend through the doorway as if it were welcoming you. You also may want to see Stupendemys geographicus (the "stupendous turtle") which is suspended from the ceiling as if it were flying above.

2) The Giant Whale! I used to be a bit afraid of it as a kid, but also absolutely fascinated by its size--simply enormous. It's the largest animal on earth--of any time (yes, even bigger than those dinosaurs). It weighs 21,000 pounds and is suspended from the ceiling by a steel pipe. You can find it (really, you can't miss it) in the Hall of Ocean Life. (I admit to still being a little nervous when walking below it.)

3) The Giant Sequoia! All of the emotions for this one--it's actually really sad to see a slice of this enormous tree, which was felled in California in 1891. (Fortunately, it is now illegal to cut down these majestic trees.) But it is also absolutely amazing. It was over 1,300 years old when it came down; on display you can see historical events juxtaposed with its growth rings. Check it out in the Hall of North American Forests.

4) Butterflies! If you need some cheering up after seeing that tree, it is impossible to be in a bad mood when visiting the butterflies. (You will need a separate reservation for this special exhibit.) There are dozens of butterfly species from all over the world fluttering about. Visitors are told not to chase or touch them, but sometimes they'll land on you and stay a while. I had one hitchhiking on my shoe for a bit (glad I didn't step on the little thing) and I saw a young girl who had a delightful living hair ornament--until it flew away.

5) Giant Amethyst! The entirety of the Mignone Halls of Gems and Minerals is pretty amazing, but this giant geode is a real stunner! It's hard to believe this is a natural phenomena--but it is and it's utterly gorgeous.

6) Giant (okay, there are a lot of things that are giant here!) Meteorite! Specifically, the Willamette Meteorite, the largest one ever found in the US, made of iron, and weighing in at 15 and a half tons--it crashed to earth thousands of years ago. Appropriately enough, it can be found in the Hall of the Universe.

There's plenty more to see--but this is enough to get you started on your journey. Enjoy, marvel at the wonders of nature, and consider our place within it.

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Laura LaVelle