[Photos] China Has Its Own Jurassic Park

Like something out of Jurassic Park, China's Dinosaur Valley is home to a museum and theme park dedicated to earth's prehistoric residents.

The attraction, which has been open to the public since 2008, lies 80 kilometers west of Kunming near the town of Lufeng, according to GoKunming.

Farmers first uncovered dinosaur bones in the area in 1938; since then, a full 150 dinosaurs skeletons have been excavated intact, not to mention scores of individual bones. With the help of local residents, Chinese and foreign specialists even discovered a new species of dinosaur, the Lufengosaurus, named after Dinosaur Valley's nearest town.

Now an attraction occasionally visited by curious day trippers, the valley greets tourists with a massive Hollywood-style sign before opening on to a welcome area filled with large, plastic dinosaurs and a soundtrack of classical music interrupted by the odd roar.

Inside, the valley's museum boasts dozens of intact dinosaur skeletons, as well as a pretty interesting theory on human evolution from dinosaurs. At the amusement park, rides are mostly run-down, however it is worth going for a spin on the dinosaur merry-go-round.

Samuel L. Jackson would not approve.

[Photos via GoKunming]