I dare you to not be interested in touring the first nuclear powered submarine to travel to the North Pole — complete with mannequins in bunks, operating machinery and plotting maps. A surprising delight, the US Navy Submarine Force Museum, in Groton, Connecticut, is the home of the USS Nautilus (SSN 571). It’s also got real periscopes you can operate, models of subs, bombs and knowledgeable veteran submarine docents who were able to answer all of my lingering childhood submarine questions: like the rumor that nuclear submarine artificial oxygen generators created oxygen that was “horribly smelly” (not true). Here’s the kicker: admission is free.
This IS a fascinating place–I’m glad someone else appreciates it as much as I do. So many rich metaphors…