Saturday was Dino Day at the Newark Museum! As a lifelong fan of dinosaurs (they are the gateway drug to monster-loving, don’t you know) I couldn’t resist. Alexa and I went and had a great time!
There was a live birds of prey show, fossils (some of which you could touch), a “sluicing for minerals” exhibit that was a big hit because you got to keep the minerals you pulled out of the water, lots of arts and crafts activities for the kids, and best of all…a live T. Rex from Field Station Dinosaurs!
The T.Rex was puppeteered from within (you can sort of see the puppeteer’s legs in black under the dino) and had two “handlers” dressed like zoo keepers. Its eyes blinked. It whipped its tail over the crowd’s heads whenever it turned around. It roared, growled, and even purred when you pet its snout. Provided you were brave enough to get that close. Kids were screaming their heads off from the second it appeared, responding to some ancient, hard-wired instinct to get the hell away from that thing. Parents tried to bring their little ones forward to meet the dino only to have their kids shake their heads vehemently and try to run away. It ended with a roaring contest between the dino and the crowd. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life and I’ll never forget it.
Click here to see more photos from Dino Day, including more of the amazing T. Rex!
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