Believe Us! Go to Ripley's Believe It or Not!

by Waverly W. and Dylan D., 9 years old, Manhattan

Waverly here! Would you believe me if I told you that right here in NYC, you can see a REAL two-trunked elephant, a giant gorilla made of tires, a train made of matchsticks, art on pencil tips that’s so tiny you have to see it with a microscope, and a REAL albino giraffe? And what if I told you that you can see these things all in one amazing and unbelievable place? Don’t believe it? Well, you should, because believe it or not, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square has all of these things…and SO much more!

I have been asking my mom to check out Ripley’s for like a million years, and finally the day came when we got to go check it out! I was so excited just walking into the lobby, where we met Kevin, who told us that this museum is different than lots of others because here, you’re allowed to actually get up close to things and touch them! Speaking of the lobby – this is the world’s best, most fun lobby! That’s where you can just walk right in and see the authentic two-trunked elephant – and way more, before you even go in! Check him out:Seeing all the cool things in the lobby – like the elephant and also a really huge spinning water vortex, plus more, of course, that you can see for yourself – will make you want to go inside and see the rest. So that’s exactly what we did…and (believe it or not) it was even MORE awesome than I ever imagined it would be! Every single place you looked had something really interesting and cool. Not only did I never see anything like what they had, but for most of it, I never even imagined that stuff even existed! But it does, and it’s all right there for you to see, too.

Huge portrait of Obama – made out of gumballs? Check. Don’t believe me? Well, chew on THIS!Dylan here! How about getting really close to some HUGE cockroaches, without actually touching them? Someone had to be brave enough to do it, and it wasn’t going to be Waverly! (Waverly here! Cockroaches = MY WORST ENEMY! No way was I sticking my head in there! Good thing Dylan was there….if you’re scared of bugs, don’t look t the next picture!!)Or, you can see how you “measure up” to the world’s tallest man, Robert Wadlow. Looks like we have a long way to go!
Wave here again! Room after room after room, there are so many amazing things to see! It is impossible to tell you about them all. They have a room where you can ring in the new year while you stand right next to (and can touch!) the actual New Year’s Eve Centennial Ball made of Waterford Crystals that dropped in Times Square. It’s so beautiful and it was amazing to be right there next to it. You can even kiss the podium just like Lady Gaga (and I) did!

Happy New Year!!!! Do you see Lady Gaga in the background below? This is the same podium!

Right next to that room is a room where I got to turn Dylan into a 3-headed creature (actually he had many more heads than that but you can only see 3 in this picture. Poor Dylan, first the bugs, now this! Reporting can be tough…lol. Note to his mom: He did not get hurt at all! 🙂

Do you see yet what we’re talking about? Ripley’s Believe It of Not! is SO FUN!! You really don’t know what is coming up next as you walk through all of the rooms (and there are a lot of them)! There are things that people have created that I guarantee you, you have never even thought about….like art made of dog hair, a huge Buddha made of a million dollars, all shredded up, or the entire Spanish Armada (lots and lots of ships – I had to look it up after seeing it under my feet) made out of matchsticks! You really will not believe what you see there, but when you go, you will see it’s all true! They even have the largest collection of actual, real, authentic (get the point?) shrunken heads! Real. Shrunken. Heads. (Note from The Mom: They were fascinating! The room is incredible and there was so much to see and learn. I just felt bad taking pictures of them….)

Hungry yet? Here’s another one – there is even a Cheetos museum inside Ripley’s! The walls are made out of Cheetos (plain and spicy) and the exhibits are Cheetos that are shaped like real-life stuff!

Take a look, but don’t take a bite! And next time you open up your own bag, make sure you look before you eat, because your cheeto might make it into the museum! Here I am with Chester, and, yep, he’s made out out of Cheetos!

By far my favorite room was the Medieval Torture room, it’s kind of scary but very cool! Do you believe they used to sell vampire killing kits?

You can learn all about how people were punished a long time ago, and for doing things that weren’t even that bad! Good thing these things aren’t around anymore:

What we’ve shown you is not even close to half of what they have there, but now it’s time for a bathroom break. You guessed it, these are not normal, boring bathrooms. Here’s a hint:

You will push that button many times! (And now we know that November 19th is a very special day!) OK, done with the bathroom break…time for a dance break? Ripley’s has that covered! There’s a room that you enter after going through a secret doorway. Yes, they even have a secret doorway- will you find it? If you do…you will love the room that it leads to! Music is playing and there is a big screen in front of you that shows you dancing in all these cool colors! I could have stayed there all day! We had to be dragged out. That’s us dancing!

Dylan here again! I had so much fun dancing and the songs they played were really cool too!

Back to Wave! So do you see that at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square, there’s not only things to look at…but lots of things to DO also! Like LaseRace, where we had t0 make it across the room without having a laser touch us. Just like the dancing, you won’t want to leave that room! But don’t worry – that’s not all! You will LOVE the Black Hole Experience!! I can’t describe it, you definitely have to experience it for yourself!If all that isn’t enough for you for a day of unbelievable fun – how about climbing the Empire State Building?

Believe it or not, Ripley’s Believe It or Not! is definitely something you have to do when you’re in Times Square – whether you’re visiting NYC or if you live here, like I do! We promise you will love it and be amazed at everything you see and do! We were very lucky to get a personal tour from their Marketing Coordinator Gaby Penaherrera, who spent lots of time with us walking us through and explaining each exhibit. She’s the best!! Unfortunately she was eaten by a giant dinosaur towards the end of our tour….

Now THAT is something you should NOT believe! Gaby is fine and was not harmed at all during the tour – except maybe she got a headache from hanging around with kids all day! Thank you, Gaby!! (But don’t think you need a personal tour guide to get up close to all this cool stuff like we did – anyone can do it! You will have all these cool pictures and more.)

The Mom here again! By now you may be wondering, who is this Ripley guy who started all of this? He was a cartoonist who was born around 1890 who went all around the world looking for and collecting unusual and interesting things. He wrote books about them and even had a television show. After he died, the first “Odditorium” was opened in Florida and now they are all around the world. Including, of course, Times Square. I can personally guarantee that whoever you are, whatever your age and interests, you will love Ripley’s. It is perfect for kids, but not just for kids! I loved being there and the feeling it gave me of being in a faraway, long ago carnival. All the old photographs and artifacts were so fascinating! This is truly a special and unique place – a museum, but so much more. Tons of fun, but more than that, too….you’ll see – and believe – what I mean when you go there yourself. Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square invites guests of all ages to experience the unbelievable mysteries of our world. Home to rare artifacts and thrilling interactive exhibits, our one-of-a-kind attraction in NYC is perfect for those who want to immerse themselves in the unusual, the unexpected and the unbelievable. Only at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Times Square will families rediscover wonder around every corner. (Waverly here again-like we always say here at Kids’ News NYC – there’s news on every corner, and that’s DEFINITELY true at Ripley’s. See ya there!)