OH Guide: The Exploratorium @ the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco
When we said we'd be relocating from LA to San Francisco everyone we knew--who has either lived or visited the city--told us it was imperative we visit the Exploratorium. Nestled inside the beautiful Palace of Fine Arts in the Marina district, it truly is an extraordinary place. Noted American physicist and educator Dr. Frank Oppenheimer founded the museum in 1969 with the idea that people, young and old, learn best about the world around them through exploration and discovery. According to the official site, "The Exploratorium stands in the vanguard of the movement of the "museum as educational center.""
On a recent Tuesday we decided to see what all the fuss was about, whether this hands-on artistic/high-tech/sci-fi museum could live up to it's reputation. My 3 year old daughter, 9 year old son and I, along with some family friends, walked inside the massive building and into a day filled with tactile experiences. Five hours later we emerged from the museum--and we'd only seen half of the place.
Every time we'd attempt to progress further inside the museum, another crazy contraption would catch our eye and we'd stop and try it out. That's kind of the way it works. We peddled to power a radio and generated electrical currents with a hand-crank... made magnet clouds in a tube of water and learned about the magnetic properties of black sand... created ginormous bubble frames... experimented with pulleys and pushes and pendulums... observed staff members dissecting a cow's eye and constructed a double helix... watched water turn into ice and heat-sensitive paper change right in front of our eyes... hesitated before sipping from a toilet-shaped drinking fountain... played a vibrating rod and theremin and experimented with sound delay... and that's only in the permanent collection.
The current exhibit, Reflections, was equally mind-blowing. Crafted by visiting artist Daniel Rozin, it's hands-on/interactive, and challenges visitors to experiment with image and visual perception, paradoxes and optical illusions. My son and his friend loved tricking us with a tea cup that wasn't really there while I tripped out over color-sensitivity experiments and making mirrors move with only my reflection. My daughter was thrilled by seeing what her insides look like and watching snow pixels falling to reveal her image... It was nothing short of awesome.
A few things to keep in mind when visiting:
1. Buy your tickets early. You'll avoid the long ticket line and secure a time if you're planning to see the Tactile Dome. General admission tickets online and are Adult (18-64) $14.00, Student (18+ with ID), Youth (ages 13-17), Children (ages 4-12) $9.00, Children (3 and under) free. The Tactile Dome tickets cannot be purchased online and you'll need to call (415) 561-0362. These tickets sell out fast. The tickets include general admission to the rest of the museum and are $17.00 per person 7 years of age and up.
2. The parking is free. Yay!
3. Arrive early. The museum was swarming with school groups and camps by 12pm the day we went. Luckily we arrived early and our kids had a chance to really explore the exhibits before they felt they had to muscle other kids from pushing in before they were finished with certain exhibits.
4. Don't expect or even try to see everything. We kept the day open and allowed the kids to move through the museum at their own pace in the order they chose... Even when it meant spending 30 minutes at the gravity well watching my 3 year old daughter and her friend uncontrollably giggling at the balls they sent rolling round and round the hyperbolic funnel before descending into the center hole.
5. Bring a picnic lunch. As seems to be the case with most museum cafeterias, the cafe inside the museum is pricey. My suggestion is you pack a picnic that will fit inside a backpack. Go trash free.
6. Eat your picnic outside the museum. The park surrounding the Palace of Fine Arts is tranquil with tons of grassy areas and a duck-filled lagoon. It's a nice break from the crowded, noisy museum swarming with amped kids.
7. Bring bread for the ducks and money for ice cream. As mentioned, there are ducks in the lagoon as well as three swans (one of which my daughter aptly named Princess Odette) -- and lots of rowdy seagulls. Even my 9 year old son got a thrill tossing bread pieces to the hungry birds. Feeding frenzy! There's an ice cream cart outside the museum that's about $2 a treat. Save the ice cream for after the museum.
8. There's a special infant/toddler fenced in area situated in front of the two huge creepy female statues. I wish I'd discovered this sooner. It's a nice place to camp out with the toddler that's within the museum while the older kid explores a few exhibits within your view. Let the knee-high museum-goer make you a wooden sandwich or two while you take a load off on one of the comfy sofas.
9. Save time for the upstairs level. You could spend an entire visit on the first floor but upstairs there even more hands-on fun to be had and shouldn't be missed.
10. Get in on the fun. It's easy to sit back and watch the kids have all the fun, but avoid this. I learned a few things myself playing along with the kids (and was super-thrilled to finally play a theremin).
11. Extend the hands-on learning and fun by checking out the museums website for ideas. They've done an excellent job posting activities and experiments for you to do at home along with loads of other scientific goodies.
San Francisco's Exploratorium has this whole museum thing down to a science. Pun intended, of course. Prepare to have your minds blown, kiddos!
