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After much anticipation, the new wing at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences is open after a 24-hour celebration last Friday and Saturday. Attendees and the media are still buzzing about everything there is to see and do. We're sharing a few of our images from the weekend in the gallery above plus a few of the comments we're hearing:

"I was impressed that the attendees I met at the 24-hour opening were excited and engaged with the street festival activities and vendors. The general mood was 'how cool is this?!'"

"I heard several comments that reflected great pride in the community overall–that they have the good fortune to live in an area that has so much to offer and where projects like the NRC (Nature Research Center) can become a reality."

"The highlight for me was the Skype session on Saturday morning with Jane Goodall, who is famous for her work with primates. She was in Washington D.C. that morning, promoting the new movie about chimpanzees and couldn't actually be there, but she took questions from the audience and told us about her work; it was great!"

"I was there for the opening ceremony on Friday night (and the parade). I was impressed by the excitement in the air, the colors and festive feeling of the event and the diversity of cultures represented in the parade (and the crowd). I was proud to be from Raleigh and I really want to invite my out-of-town friends and family to see the new wing. Oh, and the globe after dark…gorgeous!"

What did you think? Were you there? Pass along your comments below and we may pass them forward!