Things to do in San Francisco: The Exploratorium

The Exploratorium is a great way to spend a couple hours learning about science and how it works. It is a great place for kids and for anyone interested in natural science.

The place features hundreds of hands on exhibits to show you how things work. There are magnets, electricity, sound, motion, visual, and weather related lessons to be learned.

There are also ways to tease your brain and understand how we think. One exhibit is a toilet that is a fountain. It's full size and a real toilet. I couldn't get myself to drink from the fountain even though my husband gave it a shot. The sign next to the toilet lets us know that the toilet is brand new and has never been used and there is nothing wrong with the water. But I still could not get myself to allow me to drink from it. I was too grossed out. And I wasn't the only one. Most people there could not force themselves to do it either.

Another was the way wind and water work to shape the planet. It's really astonishing.

It took us about two and a half hours to take a complete tour. We didn't see everything, but we saw enough. Like I said before, it's a great place for kids. And they were running around all over the place. You should definitely take yours. They even have special events that kids would really get a kick out of.

If you don't have kids, maybe it's best to skip it. There wasn't anything we hadn't seen in school or on any elementary field trips.

Other then that, the place is very beautiful. In fact, there is a scene in the movie The Bachelor where the main actor is sitting in a small boat in the lake next to the building thinking about how much he loves his girlfriend and if he should marry her.

It is also great that it is right in the middle of the city. The building was built for the World's Fair that held in San Francisco in the past. If you have a few hours to kill, the Exploratorium is a nice way to spend them. Give yourself three hours to see everything that interests you. If you want to see everything and experience everything, you will need a lot more time. Maybe even a whole day.