Adventure Science Center, Nashville TN

Adventure Science Center, Nashville TN

We should have stayed an extra day in Huntsville, Al, but we shot down the road toward Tullahoma Tn to the Hands on Science Center. We arrived later in the day and the place was closed. The building was so small, it looked like a community center. We didn't want to try to find a room nearby, So we kept on going to Nashville, TN. Of course every time we pass a Goodwill, Mason sings out and we have to stop to shop. This trip we found a Caddyshack Singing Gopher and a Snow Flake Spinning Frosty Snowwoman. The Adventure Science Center in Nashville, TN, is a tremendous, new building in the middle of nowhere. It has fabulous, large scale, inside physically-challenging activities. A parent friendly sized McD style play place, Aeronautic space walk wall and a realistic flight simulator that can really shake things loose. What a great day it was.

U. S. Space and Rocket Center Museum

U. S. Space and Rocket Center Museum

Huntsville, Alabama or Rocket City is the birthplace of our nations space program. The U. S. Space and Rocket Center Museum located here is a place I would return to again. Engaging, informative displays on the origin and developing space program wind through the cavernous building. Rocket Shot and G Force rides are outside and rock climbing wall and flight simulator are inside.

Homeschooling on the Road in North Alabama

Museums in Gadsden and Anniston, Alabama

Up in the mountains above Birmingham are the towns of Gadsden and Anniston. The Mary G Harden Center for Cultural Arts in Gadsden and Museum of Natural History in Anniston are small yet diverse and worth a look see. The cultural arts center offered a special display called Ink and Blood, the history of the Bible in print featuring a Guttenberg printing press. There was also a Festival of Trees and an Imagination Place. Max had a great time playing with the local kids attending birthday parties there.

The Anniston Museum is a real surprise. It has a large and one of the oldest collection in US of stuffed birds in natural settings. This collection was originally shown on the Atlantic City Boardwalk. The rocks and minerals display and the reptile displays were worthy of a large museum. Outside were oak leaf strewn paths over the hillside. We strolled around and enjoyed the cool air.

McWane Science Center, Birmingham AL

McWane Science Center, Birmingham AL

McWane Science Center in Birmingham is immense, diverse and community involved. Over 400 school children and homeshcool families were there when we arrived and the place did not seem crowded, just busy, chaotic and fun. The aquarium in the basement had individual coral reef ecosystems from the Pacific to the Gulf of Mexico and an area on Fish Anatomy and Alabama waterways. The Main floor contained many interesting displays from the illusional to the scientific. The hurricane simulator and riding the high wire bike was a big hit with the boys. The top floor had engaging musical involvements and several topography HO scale train tracks and towns displays.

The IMAX Dome played WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE. It is about anger management, fear of change and the enduring bond of families in an out of control world. Violent and emotional way beyond the child’s story book.

Mobile to Birmingham

Hills and valleys are a nice change from flat Florida. Driving north from Mobile the rise in elevation is barley discernible until the descent into the valley where Birmingham is situated. What a nice surprise. The whole drive north was on a smooth and spacious road. The evening light was reflected on the yellow, orange and red leaves of the hardwoods as we reached the crest of the last hill and then descended into the evening darkness on a narrowed, curving highway and, oh yes, Birmingham, bumper to bumper rush hour traffic.

Of interesting note, Hyundais are built in Montgomery AL.

The inner cities of Mobile and Birmingham are very different in appearance. Mobile has a broad, ancient oak tree lined Government Street that is bordered by intricate large renovated old homes that leads to it from the west. The east side is a wild tunnel ride under Mobile bay. Either routes are fun. Downtown Mobile is on the waterfront. There’s a new convention center and they offer a free bus to tour downtown. Free attended parking was available. City hall is shaped like a 10 story boat. It looks like it is made of glass. A monument to someone’s grandeur. Birmingham has a older freeway lined with mining quarries and train tracks. Downtown is a place where new skyscrapers meet decayed, boarded up main street USA.

USS Alabama and USS Drum

MOBILE BAY BATTLESHIP

Even though the battleship USS Alabama and submarine USS Drum have set in Mobile Bay for 40 years, their sense of history is still immense. A tour inside, outside and through the 1940’s ship and sub are awe inspiring. The airplane hanger contains impressive war and spy planes. It reminds one there has and, as history tends to repeat itself, are foreign countries that want to conquer a free people. The diligence of our armed forces is appreciated.

Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center

Gulf Coast Exploreum Science Center

Mobile’s Exploreum is a first class hands on science museum. The building is expansive, light, bright and airy. The Health Exhibition is extensive, well thought out and high tech. The shopping game teaches food label reading, Captain Insulin and the Diabetes shootout, robotic surgery, MRI anatomy and the list goes on. A BOB THE BUILDER room featuring a costumed BOB and all the BOB vignettes. The Science Lab area is first rate, a home school class was being offered in biology including frog dissection and the list goes on again.

Sarasota, Florida is a beautiful place with laid back attitude, lots of stuff to do and of course, Siesta Key, one of my favorite beaches. Today we came to visit Mote Aquarium and GWIZ. Smiling, informative, helpful volunteers were abundant at both places. At Mote panning for shark teeth was a fun activity, the preserved giant squid was creepy pale and a Manatee skeleton showed the five finger like digits hidden under their fins. At GWIZ the kids explored controlling moving, multilevel contraptions, launched paper airplanes from a cannon and worked at mind boggling science puzzles.

Life after Disney retrospect: We were held captive by our annual passes for Disney World. Magic Kingdom, Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, Epcot, Disney Quest, Blizzard Beach, Typhoon Lagoon and Summer Winterland Mini Golf. We walked, explored and tried it all. It seemed like a good idea at the time. The allure of undeniable make believe in guilded safety. Highlights were the mind swirling sights and sounds of Virtual Games at Disney Quest, the body jolting of Star Tours and the feel of a block party at Million Lights last Holiday Season at Hollywood Studios. Swimming with sharks at Typhoon Lagoon was quietly cool. Disney was easy. You know what to expect. You learn where to go. The last ride of the last day, Max broke his arm. Watch that last step. I think we were just Disneyed out. Eight weeks recuperation and he is a little wiser to take care. Now I have to think and plan more about where to go, see and do. But museums, parks, zoo and botanical gardens await. So away we go.

It is a cool, overcast day. Highland Hammock Park is lush, green and has the feel of pristine Florida. Walking through the calm dense underbrush we look up and see the the tall waving tree tops blown about by the wind. Intriguing encounters along the cypress strewn paths are delicate black winged, deep blue-green bodied damsel flies, dancing water bugs reflecting clear oval bubbles on the dark waters and a small armadillo shuffling through the crunchy leaves. An entertaining cormorant trying to eat a fish too fat for its thin neck is spotted while we balance on a narrow, one side railed boardwalk. Twisted Oak trees 1000 years old grow here.
Human impact on this park is limited. Next to the nature trails we saw a citrus rimmed clearing an early pioneer made to build his homesite; the wooden structures of the Civilian Conservation Core from the 1930s and 40s and a lovely playground.