When video games are becoming more and more realistic, is there any fun in playing on an old, classical pinball machine? Collectors and fans would surely say so, as there is a large portion of the public which, both due to amusement and the nostalgia would never abandon the oldschool pinball machine. And in the gambling capital of American you can visit a large museum dedicated to the pinball phenomenon. It is not the only such museum in the world, but those who are passionate about it say that it is the best one. You can find here a large sellection of pinball machines, over 200, ranging from the 1940s models to modern ones. And most of them still work. According to the owner of the museum there are over 1000 different pinball machines in storage, many in need of serious work, so the permanent exhibition could end up several times larger. And with a dime or a quarter you can even play a game.
Zippo Museum, Bradford, Pennsylvania, USA
When it comes to lighters, Zippo is surely the best brand ever, or at the very least the most famous one. So it was normal for the town where these lighters are produced to have it's own Zippo Museum. So those who come here can buy a new Zippo lighter from the small store inside the museum, admire the rich selection of lighter models, many crazy expensive for world wide collectors, as well as the small manufacture where lighters are being repaired. Free of charge. As long as they are Zippo lighters.
Sugar Museum, Berlin, Germany
Such a sweet museum, if one may say so. You could easily go on once you hear about it, as it doesn't seem to be very interesting. But the Sugar Museum in Berlin presents a fascinating history of this commodity both in Europe and Germany over the centuries, and there is also a large portion of the exhibition dedicated to using sugar in day to day life, both yesterday and today. And another question for which the museum tries to offer an answer - what would the world today look without sugar?
The Potato Museum, O'Leary, Canada
It might seem boring at first, but those who have visited it were simply surprised by how well the curators had presented such an uninteresting subject. The number of exhibits is simply impressing - it is the world's largest collection of artefacts about the potato - ranging from machines and equipment used over the centuries to photographs, books, documents and legends about growing and selling the simple and useful potato. Besides the permanent exhibition about the potato, there is also a separate section of the museum dedicated to the history of everyday's life, with pieces of furniture, medical and industrial exhibits, weapons and military paraphernalia, and many of them more than a century old. So two for the price of one.
Photo: pinballmuseum.org
