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The stunning glass, steel and marble interior of the Milwaukee Art Museum creates a very sci-fi feeling. -- Photo by Phil Raby

What do you think of when you hear the name Milwaukee? Cheese, beer and maybe the theme song to Laverne and Shirley? This may not exactly conjure up pictures of family attractions. But these blue-collar stereotypes are just that. Milwaukee is a pretty city with class and graciousness. It also happens to be home to some pretty cool museums.

On the shores of Lake Michigan sits the city's pièce de résistance, the Milwaukee Art Museum. After undergoing a $100-million expansion, this architectural marvel has emerged as a moving piece of art.

Part of the expansion work included the Quadracci Pavilion, featuring a white vaulted hall, evocative of a scene out of Space Odyssey 2001. Light streaming through glass reflects on the shiny, marble flooring, creating an illusion of walking on air. Underneath lies six miles of PVC tubing through which hot water runs in the winter for heating and cool water runs in the summer for cooling, creating a radiant floor.

Sitting on top of the pavilion is the Burke Brise Soleil, a moveable wing-shaped structure which opens and closes like a huge, ivory butterfly hovering just above the lake.

And how do you get kids interested in looking at art? The Milwaukee Art Museum offers an audio tour that provides descriptions of 50 works of art by using character voices and sound effects. As well, the museum gives out a "game" to visiting families that's actually a self-guided tour that gets everyone to look for great works of art throughout the collection.

There's another unique Milwaukee museum, but it has a strict rule: no adults allowed. But you can get around that directive if you happen to know a kid who's amenable to getting you into the Betty Brinn Children's Museum, the only museum in Milwaukee dedicated to children age ten and under.

Once inside, special exhibits, such as My Body Works, allow visitors to crawl through a human heart and make a stomach grumble in the digestion tunnel. There's also a television studio to transform kids into pint-sized news anchors, a make-believe post office and a special area for toddlers called Betty's Busy Backyard.

The museum offers interactive displays that foster the growth of children's fundamental skills through hands-on play. Named in honor of the late Betty Brinn, a local businesswoman who fought for the rights of children and spent a childhood of despair in 15 foster homes, the museum's mission is to provide a fun environment for learning.

Where can a family walk among butterflies, see the world's largest-known dinosaur skull or watch a 19th century grave robber rummaging through a pharaoh's tomb? This can all be experienced under one roof at the Milwaukee Public Museum, which boasts 150,000 square feet of exhibit space and 17 permanent exhibits.

The Puelicher Butterfly Wing harbours hundreds of butterflies which dwell in a small oasis in the middle of the city. It's not hard to imagine being in a tropical rain forest as you stroll through the airy, glass atrium among exotic flowers and a tumbling waterfall, as the delicate butterflies fly around.

The Temples, Tells and Tombs exhibit displays almost 600 ancient artifacts in realistic settings. Through a window, visitors can watch an archaeologist at work in a temple or see a life-size replica of a Greek Hoplite warrior.

The Third Planet captures the exciting time when dinosaurs reigned the world with its life-sized models, the most terrifying being that of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

Milwaukee's beer history can be learned at the Pabst Mansion Museum, once owned by beer magnate Captain Frederick Pabst. Completed in 1892, the Flemish renaissance revival mansion, with its stunning interiors, elegant original furnishings, intricate ironwork, brilliant stained glass and rare art, was the jewel of grand homes in Milwaukee. It was also one of the first homes in the area to be wired for electricity, although the energy source was a relatively new invention.

Unfortunately, Captain Pabst didn't enjoy the exceptional grandeur for very long. He died in 1904. And in 1906, after the passing of his wife, the Pabst heirs sold the mansion to the Archdiocese of Milwaukee which, after 67 years, put it on the selling block.

A toddler explores Betty's Busy Backyard at the Betty Brinn Children's Museum. -- Photo by Phil Raby

Despite its historical importance, it was bought by a company who had the intention of demolishing it to make way for a parking lot. Fortunately, an angelic area businessman stepped in with the funds to acquire the property until Wisconsin Heritages had the money to take over. After many years of restoration, the mansion is almost at the point of its former glory.

IF YOU GO:

Milwaukee Art Museum: mam.org

Betty Brinn Children's Museum: bbcmkids.org

Milwaukee Public Museum: mpm.edu

Dinosaur hunter and prey, one of the lifelike displays at the Milwaukee Public Museum. -- Photo by Phil Raby

Pabst Mansion Museum: pabstmansion.com

The Hilton Milwaukee City Center is a great place for families to stay when visiting Milwaukee. Located in the center of the city's business, entertainment and cultural districts, this hotel is very close to all of the museums in this story. As well, it is home to Paradise Landing, an urban indoor water park with a variety of slides for kids of all ages. hiltonmilwaukee.com

For other information:

Greater Milwaukee Convention and Visitor's Bureau: milwaukee.org

Travel writer A.P. Rodrigues can be contacted through R + R Creative

The wing-like structure of the Milwaukee Art Museum actually opens and closes to the amazement of visitors. -- Photo by Phil Raby