California Academy of Sciences

The newly renovated California Academy of Sciences is finally open! Well, actually it opened at the end of last September, so I guess that first sentence should say something more like this: We finally visited the newly renovated California Academy of Sciences. You may remember that we used to visit the Academy with Caden and Jace over six years ago, and also made a stop at its temporary location just two years ago. But this new and improved Academy is A.MA.ZING. So, why did it take us so long to go? Well, don't think we haven't tried. The Academy is so incredibly popular that lines stretch all around Golden Gate Park with thousands and thousands of people waiting to enter. Seriously, thousands. And don't even get me started on parking. Parking is simply a joke and we have never actually gotten out of our car in an attempt to enter the building since we don't want to have to walk miles and miles to then just stand in line. So, today we made a plan. Before we left we purchased our tickets that also made it so we didn't have to stand in the general admission line, got lucky and found a close parking spot, and ended up arriving 15 minutes before the doors opened. While waiting in line we asked the employees what to do first and how to navigate the Academy. So, when the doors finally opened, we knew to follow the mad rush of people to get tickets to the Planetarium. After we secured our tickets, we headed to the aquarium. Jack was in fishy heaven. He walked from tank to tank, pointing at all the fish and making fishy noises. And he loved the touch tide pool. He went right for the sea urchin and picked it right up. We spent just enough time at the aquarium when it was time to get in line for the planetarium show. We were a little nervous about the 30 minute show since it is not recommended for children under 6, but both boys sat the entire time mesmerized. In fact, the "moon show" was Max's favorite part. He kept yelling out things like, "There's the sun!" "That's Earth!" And I didn't get motion sick at all. Success.

By now it was time for lunch, but we couldn't leave without seeing the famous penguins. Those little guys are so active and so much fun to watch. The Academy has so much that we didn't get to see--a rain forest, living roof, Early Explorer's play area, and much, much more. We can't wait to go back!