Academic

YCGTNO - Fun for the Whole Family

By Gordon Smith, Christine, Hurt, Vic Fleischer, Fred Tung, Lisa Fairfax, David Zaring

A good number of you will bring school-aged children to AALS with you, and there's plenty to do with them while you're in town.

Both the Aquarium of the Americas and the Audubon Insectarium are within walking distance of the conference.  They are operated by the same organization, so you can get a day pass to both if you are so inclined.  The aquarium is bigger and a better stand-alone trip than the insectarium, but my kids love both. 

There are several things you can do for little or no money.  One of our recent favorites is riding the streetcar round trip.  It begins downtown on Canal Street, meanders all the way up St. Charles Ave., turns briefly onto Carrollton, and then turns around and heads right back downtown.  Also, wandering around the French Quarter can be fun.  Street musicians will set up shop on different corners, artists line around Jackson Square, and Cafe du Monde serves beignets at all hours.

If you're willing to venture out from the conference area, the amusement park in City Park has lots of rides that are fun for grade school kids.  Also, Storyland is right next door and caters to younger kids.  Also, the Zoo is a few miles uptown along the river and is always a pretty solid choice.

Have fun.

Full post as published by Conglomerate on January 04, 2010 (boomark / email).