MANILA, Philippines – If there's one thing that we miss about Halloween, it's the constant mystery that surrounds the air. And no, it doesn’t necessarily mean supernatural and scary things. We’re looking at real life here: Can I finish this candy bar in 30 seconds? Is it really possible to beat the game Five Nights at Freddy’s without getting eaten by mechanical bears? Did Juan Luna actually paint secrets about his brother in his masterpieces?
This is the kind of mystery that Ayala Museum recreated in Midnight Museum last Oct. 30. Unlike last year's interactive tour of the different galleries, this year focused on the hidden mysteries around the museum. They kicked the festivities off with Brave Story, an anime about a kid who goes into a fantasy portal to change his past.
Two hours before midnight, they opened the galleries to aspiring sleuths. Each gallery has a certain mystery to be solved. It’s like your typical escape room game (e.g. 100 doors or Stanley Parable) but you’re actually in the room doing the actual escaping.
Ironically, the easiest puzzle to crack was the one in the highest floor. The goal for Gone Gold, located at the "Gold of Ancestor" exhibition, is to find the culprit behind the missing funerary mask. Two floors below at the diorama exhibit, Traitor Among Us also looks for a certain culprit: the traitor who exposed Andres Bonifacio’s plans against the Spaniards.
For the final mystery, they transformed Ayala Museum’s newest exhibition “From Citadel to City," into Juan Luna's turf. The mystery to be solved: a freelance cartographer seeks help to figure out what the famous painter is telling him in his sleep. It was quite the Instagrammer's haven. It was surprising to see that no one took advantage of the flat-laying opportunities.
At the end of the night, Young STAR also awarded two participants in the best costume: Boylit de Guzman (as Ted from the movie Ted) and Rachel Aglipay (as a DIY stormtrooper from Star Wars). Awards were also given to the fastest group to crack the puzzles. And to those who didn't, well they have mysteries that can last them until Halloween next year.
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Follow Ayala Museum on Twitter (@ayalamuseum) for updates on future events.