north america in 49 days: Balboa Park

The next day, 22nd May, we went to Balboa Park.

Over 1000 acres, Balboa Park gathers 15 museums, the Old Globe Theatre, and the much loved San Diego Zoo. The best way to start your time in Balboa Park is with a stop at the Balboa Park Visitors Center. Located across from The Prado Restaurant in the House of Hospitality, the Visitors Center has the most current and comprehensive information about the Park’s activities and attractions. Open from 9:30am-4:30pm daily, the Visitors Center offers brochures, maps, audio tours, free guided tours of the Park, transportation information, dining advice, and more.

The Balboa Park grounds are opened 24 hours a day, the Visitors Center is open 9:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. daily, and museum hours vary by institution.

As we only had one day to spare in the park, we chose to visit the museums and bought the one day pass where we can choose any 5 of the 14 museums listed for only $43! We chose

San Diego Natural History Museum
Reuben H. Fleet Science Center (admission includes one IMAX film)
San Diego Museum of Art
San Diego Museum of Man
San Diego Air and Space Museum

At the Natural History Museum:

Features fascinating exhibitions and a new giant-screen Dolby digital 3D theater showing films with a focus on the natural world. The museum’s award-winning exhibit design team creates exhibitions on the unique and biodiverse southern California region. In addition, the museum hosts several traveling exhibitions each year which teach visitors about our natural world as it is today and as it was in the past.

A real rattle snake

At Reuben H. Fleet Science Center :

The Reuben H. Fleet Science Center is a science museum and planetarium.. Established in 1973, it was the first science museum to combine interactive science exhibits with a planetarium and an IMAXDome (OMNIMAX) theater, setting the standard that most major science museums follow today.

At Museum of Art :

As the region's oldest and largest art museum, the San Diego Museum of Art's renowned holdings include a fine selection of European old masters, 19th and 20th century American art, an encyclopedic Asian collection, and growing collections of contemporary and Latin American art. In addition, the museum presents major art exhibitions from around the world, as well as an extensive schedule of supporting cultural and educational programs.

At Museum of Man:-
The San Diego Museum of Man is a museum of anthropology. The museum's collections and permanent exhibits focus on the pre-Columbian history of the western Americas, with materials drawn from Native American cultures of theSouthern California region, and Mesoamerican civilizations such as the Maya. The museum also holds one of the most important collections of Ancient Egyptian antiquities in the United States, which includes authentic mummies, burial masks, figurines, and seven painted wooden coffins.

At Air & Space Museum:

San Diego Air & Space Museum is an aviation and space exploration museum. The museum is divided into many galleries with exhibits emphasizing the contributions San Diego has made to aviation. Sections include the Theodore Gildred Rotunda, Special Exhibit area, World War I Gallery, Golden Age of Flight Gallery, World War II Gallery, and Modern Jet & Space Age Gallery, and the Edwin D. McKeller Pavilion of Flight. Visitors can enter the Rotunda for free. Admission is required to visit the remaining galleries and additional cost to see the Special Exhibit.