Mini Train Trip, Part 3

As was our custom on this trip (and as it shall not be on Epic Train Trip!), we spent the next morning foraging for food. Fortunately, I got Dani out of bed before noon this time. We wandered down Haight to a coffee shop called The Grind (not to be confused with Riverside staple Back to the Grind) and had breakfast- french toast this time! Also, a very delicious brownie that was calling my name from in front of the cash register- damned impulse buys. We then got on the Muni and headed off to the day's premiere attraction: The California Academy of Sciences. Cal Academy is a spectacular institution, containing a large natural history museum, an aquarium, a state-of-the-art planetarium, and a fully-functioning rainforest ecosystem-in-a-dome. It is NOT to be missed. (A tip: You get $3 off the admittedly-expensive ticket price if you show your public transit ticket or pass, and this discount stacks- ie, you can get a student discounted price AND get $3 off by showing a Muni or BART ticket or transfer.)

While at CalAcademy, you can start where we did: the roof. The recently-renovated building itself is part of the museum's exhibits, and the roof showcases many of the sustainability initiatives incorporated into the structure. There's also much to be learned about the local ecology, plants and wildlife (esp. birds) up there, and you get great views of the surrounding Golden Gate Park. Here's a girl on a roof:



We visited the planetarium while there, and let me say that the facility was top-notch. Unlike traditional planetaria, which require viewers to lean back and look up at the sky, the dome at CalAcademy has the north pole rotated to about 45 degrees above the horizon- meaning you can sit much like you're watching a movie and enjoy the show. The actual show they presented was somewhat disappointing, however- it was entitled "Life: A Cosmic Story." When I go to a planetarium, I expect to be shown the stars, and told about astrophysics and the origin and function of our universe. This show is much more about the evolutionary origins of life on Earth, with a little bit of the formation of the solar system thrown in. I wanted to hear the "we are all stardust" story, but I got the "tree of life." Nothing wrong with that, it's an important lesson, but it wasn't one I was expecting in a planetarium. (For a much more out-of-this world experience, readers should visit the recently-renovated Oschin Planetarium at the Griffith Observatory in LA.)

Scattered about the museum are photogenic animals of all sorts- mostly aquatic. Meet Claude, the albino alligator:



Also, an African penguin, of whom we have plenty of blurry pictures...



And an adorable tortoise, nomming a leaf of lettuce:



The Academy also had a pretty extensive exhibit on global warming, which surprised even eco-crazy me on just how serious of a problem it is. We're already seeing changes in migratory and predatory patterns in California wildlife, which are bringing them in closer contact with people. My one issue with the exhibit was their "take action" pitch to visitors. In each category- food, transportation, housing, etc.- they had small actions, medium actions and large ones. For instance, in terms of household energy, a small action was to replace light bulbs with CFLs, a medium was to have a home energy audit, and a large one was to install solar or wind generating capacity. In transportation, the small action was to drive less, the medium one was to bike or use public transport, and the large one was... you guessed it... buy a hybrid. Of course, switching to bicycling and public transport over driving at all would be much better for the planet, but saying such a thing would be heresy in our car-centric culture, so it goes unsaid.

The only other issue with our visit to Cal Academy was our timing. Saturday appears to be "take-your-kids-to-the-museum day" in Golden Gate Park, and Cal Academy was swarming with children. Not such a big deal to begin with, but by 15:00 or so they were starting to get cranky and loud. In the planetarium, at least one kid was still afraid of the dark, and he said so- "The dome scares me!" His parents were considerate enough to take him out when it became clear that he wasn't going to stay quiet. I mean, I'm glad that parents are teaching their kids about science- maybe they'll grow up to be more knowledgeable and conscientious citizens- but I know there was a point there where Dani and I just had to leave. Keep that in mind when scheduling your visit.

After Cal Academy, Dani and I met up with one of her friends from Facebook who lives in the area. The first question she asked us about our trip was "Did you drive or fly?" Heh. We hung out with her until a friend of hers from high school came by to drop off Girl Scout cookies- sadly, no Caramel Delights. Her friend ended up tagging along with us. We went out to a local Chinese restaurant, which was extraordinarily delicious. (Carol was also nice enough to treat- Thanks Carol!) Even Dani ate quite a bit of it, and this is particularly uncharacteristic of Dani. Perhaps there is hope for her yet! Afterwards, we went for ice cream at the Toy Boat ice cream parlour, which was quite an experience. Besides being delicious, it was entirely covered in retro toys and decor (all in the typical futuristic style of the early Atomic Age). All-in-all, it was a nice evening out.

Around 9, Dani and I caught the Muni back to the hotel, and I embarked upon one of the many Epic Train Trip exercises that I had planned for the week: laundry. Dressed in my swim trunks and leather jacket (they were the only things not to be washed), I walked everything down to the hotel's laundry room and washed them. It went without incident, though I did get a very strange look from the front desk guy. Sadly, I don't have photos of my ridiculous getup.

We left The City the next morning, and I realized I'd forgotten to mail my postcards. (One to a friend, the other to myself- because I keep the cancellations.) I figured it'd be simple enough to find a mailbox on Market St. near the Embarcadero. I figured wrong. In a mad dash, I ended up dropping the cards off at the third-floor lobby of the Hyatt Embarcadero and running back to the bus stop, just in time to get aboard the AmBus to Emeryville.

Once in Emeryville, we headed out to Track 2 to board the San Joaquin heading south. The station staff ushered us across Track 1 pretty quickly, and it soon became apparent why: the westbound California Zephyr soon made an appearance on that track, not only threatening to squash any in its path but also cutting track 2 off from the station building entirely. Don't show up late for train 714 at Emeryville! After a quick announcement from the conductor- "This train does not go to Sacramento, this train will never go to Sacramento"- we were on our way back home from a pleasant weekend.