i thought this would be a wonderful way to explore the city together with your children. i had heard of geocaching before but letterboxing appears to be an older form of this kind of "treasure hunting." however, unlike geocaching, you don't take and leave a trinket once you find the location. instead, you stamp your letterboxing notebook with a personal stamp.
there are websites that list clues to find letterboxes in your area. i think this is the quaint part of letterboxing; geocachers use a gps and geographic coordinates to find their treasures, but letterboxing relies on clues written by the person who hid the letterbox. some people go all out and write their clues in cute poem form.
you can read more and find clues at letterboxing north america and atlas quest. this is also a unique way to explore other cities you may be visiting. the nice thing is that there are letterboxes all over the world.
Showing posts with label excursions. Show all posts
Showing posts with label excursions. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
kids off the couch
i read about this website in the la times a couple weeks back. two moms started kids off the couch to get their kids out of the house. what better way to introduce them to cultural attractions and life lessons than through movies? each week they introduce a movie and a related outing. some of the movies (like this week's paper moon) are not appropriate for younger children but in their archives they introduce a wide variety of movies and outings that would be appropriate for children of many age groups. one warning: most kids wouldn't be able to handle both the movie and the outing on the same day; plan for a weekend viewing and excursion.
they currently offer outings in the los angeles area, but they're expanding to nyc and the rest of the us soon. once it's up and running this would be a great resource if you're planning a vacation to other us cities.
they currently offer outings in the los angeles area, but they're expanding to nyc and the rest of the us soon. once it's up and running this would be a great resource if you're planning a vacation to other us cities.
Saturday, June 24, 2006
star eco station
review by yucaree
if you're looking to see some wild animals locally (in a safe environment), the eco station may be a fun excursion for your little one. hidden in a warehouse-y building on jefferson boulevard, the eco station takes care of rescued wild animals and strives to educate children and parents on the proper way to treat animals and the environment, and the improrieties of keeping wild animals as pets and the dangers posed by humans on endangered animals.
the animals are only viewable by guided tour, which leaves the lobby every half hour. the tour lasts about an hour to an hour and a half. the guide will take you around to see the fish, wild cats, reptiles and birds, and the kids are allowed to touch some of the reptiles while being supervised by the guide.
Cost: $7 adult, $5 children, infants in strollers free
Strollers: there is ample room to manuever your stroller through the facility. you may also consider taking your baby in a carrier so he/she can see the animals.
Diaper changing: to be honest i didn't check the bathrooms to see if there was a changing table. i'm sure if you call they can tell you. there are conference/party rooms throughout the tour that you could stop to change your baby's diaper either on the floor or in their stroller.
Breastfeeding: because it's a tour there's really no place to stop and breastfeed. the lobby is tiny and has no adult-size chairs where you can breastfeed inconspicuously.
Parking: the lot behind the building has very limited parking. many of the spots are for nearby businesses and they specifically say not to park there if you're visiting the eco station. there are two metered spots on jefferson in front of the building (the entrance to the building is in the back). we parked two blocks away at culver city park for free.
some things i noticed: it's quite warm inside the building (i don't know if it's for the animals but it seems there is no a/c) so you may want to dress down your children. also, the last room is the bird room and it is loud! the birds' squawking is extremely loud, especially if more than one bird is "talking." please cover your baby's ears. my personal opinion is that, although interesting, this may be the kind of place that you visit once or twice. unlike a zoo, where you can watch the animals at your own pace, the guided tour (which, at times, can feel like being lectured at, to be honest) would be repetitive and restrictive if you visited often.
lastly, if you're interested in getting a turtle, they adopt out red-eared slider turtles that have been left at the eco station. (and here's something i learned: it's illegal to get a red-eared slider turtle that's less than four inches long.)
STAR ECO STATION
10101 Jefferson Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232
310-842-8060
if you're looking to see some wild animals locally (in a safe environment), the eco station may be a fun excursion for your little one. hidden in a warehouse-y building on jefferson boulevard, the eco station takes care of rescued wild animals and strives to educate children and parents on the proper way to treat animals and the environment, and the improrieties of keeping wild animals as pets and the dangers posed by humans on endangered animals.
the animals are only viewable by guided tour, which leaves the lobby every half hour. the tour lasts about an hour to an hour and a half. the guide will take you around to see the fish, wild cats, reptiles and birds, and the kids are allowed to touch some of the reptiles while being supervised by the guide.
Cost: $7 adult, $5 children, infants in strollers free
Strollers: there is ample room to manuever your stroller through the facility. you may also consider taking your baby in a carrier so he/she can see the animals.
Diaper changing: to be honest i didn't check the bathrooms to see if there was a changing table. i'm sure if you call they can tell you. there are conference/party rooms throughout the tour that you could stop to change your baby's diaper either on the floor or in their stroller.
Breastfeeding: because it's a tour there's really no place to stop and breastfeed. the lobby is tiny and has no adult-size chairs where you can breastfeed inconspicuously.
Parking: the lot behind the building has very limited parking. many of the spots are for nearby businesses and they specifically say not to park there if you're visiting the eco station. there are two metered spots on jefferson in front of the building (the entrance to the building is in the back). we parked two blocks away at culver city park for free.
some things i noticed: it's quite warm inside the building (i don't know if it's for the animals but it seems there is no a/c) so you may want to dress down your children. also, the last room is the bird room and it is loud! the birds' squawking is extremely loud, especially if more than one bird is "talking." please cover your baby's ears. my personal opinion is that, although interesting, this may be the kind of place that you visit once or twice. unlike a zoo, where you can watch the animals at your own pace, the guided tour (which, at times, can feel like being lectured at, to be honest) would be repetitive and restrictive if you visited often.
lastly, if you're interested in getting a turtle, they adopt out red-eared slider turtles that have been left at the eco station. (and here's something i learned: it's illegal to get a red-eared slider turtle that's less than four inches long.)
STAR ECO STATION
10101 Jefferson Boulevard
Culver City, CA 90232
310-842-8060
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