YOU belong in the zoo! Yesterday we went to the San Diego Zoo with a homeschool group. It wasn't a very convenient day, but for $12 a person, I just couldn't pass up the opportunity!
We were instructed to meet the group "in front of the ticket booth". Ok, if you know who you're looking for, but homeschool groups can get crazy because most don't know each other! When we arrived the whole area was crowded with school groups. That actually made it a little easier. Just look for the groups of families! We asked around a bit and found the organizer. Well, it was a stand in for the organizer. The original person couldn't make it, so a Dad filled in. Poor guy! He needed a sign!
It took a little longer than expected to get us all in but after that we had the run of the park!
There was silliness going on while we waited!
First things first! Since we left at 7:30AM and it was not almost noon, we needed a snack! They have cool cups that you can buy and refill for a dollar. AND they aren't silly shapes you can't really use at home.
Then we had to take the skyway thing over the other side of the park. Very cool. I was only a little scared!
We had a list of "must-sees" and that included the Polar Bears. He was just sitting there in the back though. Maybe they need to throw a seal in there and get him to chase it? It wouldn't have to be a real one! :))
Tom liked the helicopter thing you could take pictures in. He had to examine it to see if it was real.
Then there was the global warming!!
There was a small polar bear themed playground out front and since it had not little kids on it...the boys had to play!
All the aviaries we saw were closed. Strange. But we had to check out the bamboo along the side of the street. And argue about what kind of plant it is. Of course, everyone knows it's grass!
And off to see the Giant Pandas! Along the way we saw some antelope that we swear were just goats with fancy hats. And then we saw this cute guy taking a nap. It's a red panda.
One was sleeping and the other was sitting in a pile of leaves and eating them. She looked like a big pooh bear! They sure were cute!
The lady there told us that in the wild they would constantly be on the move looking for food, shelter, and a mate, but here they know they are safe and have room service, so they just laze around. This led to some deep philosophical discussion on the way home.
The next stop was supposed to be up the moving sidewalk to the top of the park to see the elephants, but it was closed so we had to walk around to the bottom and walk back up...messed up our plan, but it worked out ok.
We walked through Big Cat alley...and saw nothing. Except this guy! It's a honey badger! And he definitely did not "give a shit" about us. He was very busy with this ball and a piece of wood that looked like it was attacking him.
Then we go up near the elephants. There were rock hyraxes and these guys call klipspringers. Jake said it sounded like a drink order, a "klipspringer on the rocks"!
While we were walking up the road to the elephants a tram went crawling by and suddenly Tom is leaping over the bench next to us into the road! He pops back up with a toy snake and runs ahead to hand it to a little boy that had dropped it. They were in awe of his heroism! When he got back he had to sit and relax for a minute. He was visibly shaken! That is his worst nightmare when on an open vehicle, losing a precious thing! He had to take immediate action.
The elephant exhibit was pretty nice. We could have spent hours in there. This was Jake's favorite part.
And then they had to pull some Assassin's Creed action on the playground. We finally made it to the elephants! Honestly, the whole trip was centered on me seeing the elephants. I love them. We didn't make it in time to see the zoo keepers work with them though.
There he is! He's huge! They didn't do much either, except stand there and sway and snuff the dirt.
I love the zoo but we were rushed this time. We needed to be back for rehearsal. We will be going again and spending the whole day. I might even get a pass and go several times. I love that my sons like to walk around things like this. They like the animals, the signs, the shows, even the plants.
After we grabbed a couple souvenirs on the way out, we headed to the car for sandwiches on the road home. And that's where it got deep. I swear we could solve the worlds problems if we had a long enough drive! This time we talked history, China, Africa, Old Testament, Jesus, economics, and I can't remember what else, but it got so good we had to turn the music off at times. I wish I could record those conversations, or take notes!
We didn't get home on time but only a half an hour late for rehearsal, which they had been warned might happen. I can't wait to do it again!
We were instructed to meet the group "in front of the ticket booth". Ok, if you know who you're looking for, but homeschool groups can get crazy because most don't know each other! When we arrived the whole area was crowded with school groups. That actually made it a little easier. Just look for the groups of families! We asked around a bit and found the organizer. Well, it was a stand in for the organizer. The original person couldn't make it, so a Dad filled in. Poor guy! He needed a sign!
It took a little longer than expected to get us all in but after that we had the run of the park!
There was silliness going on while we waited!
First things first! Since we left at 7:30AM and it was not almost noon, we needed a snack! They have cool cups that you can buy and refill for a dollar. AND they aren't silly shapes you can't really use at home.
Then we had to take the skyway thing over the other side of the park. Very cool. I was only a little scared!
We had a list of "must-sees" and that included the Polar Bears. He was just sitting there in the back though. Maybe they need to throw a seal in there and get him to chase it? It wouldn't have to be a real one! :))
Tom liked the helicopter thing you could take pictures in. He had to examine it to see if it was real.
Then there was the global warming!!
There was a small polar bear themed playground out front and since it had not little kids on it...the boys had to play!
All the aviaries we saw were closed. Strange. But we had to check out the bamboo along the side of the street. And argue about what kind of plant it is. Of course, everyone knows it's grass!
And off to see the Giant Pandas! Along the way we saw some antelope that we swear were just goats with fancy hats. And then we saw this cute guy taking a nap. It's a red panda.
One was sleeping and the other was sitting in a pile of leaves and eating them. She looked like a big pooh bear! They sure were cute!
The lady there told us that in the wild they would constantly be on the move looking for food, shelter, and a mate, but here they know they are safe and have room service, so they just laze around. This led to some deep philosophical discussion on the way home.
The next stop was supposed to be up the moving sidewalk to the top of the park to see the elephants, but it was closed so we had to walk around to the bottom and walk back up...messed up our plan, but it worked out ok.
We walked through Big Cat alley...and saw nothing. Except this guy! It's a honey badger! And he definitely did not "give a shit" about us. He was very busy with this ball and a piece of wood that looked like it was attacking him.
Then we go up near the elephants. There were rock hyraxes and these guys call klipspringers. Jake said it sounded like a drink order, a "klipspringer on the rocks"!
While we were walking up the road to the elephants a tram went crawling by and suddenly Tom is leaping over the bench next to us into the road! He pops back up with a toy snake and runs ahead to hand it to a little boy that had dropped it. They were in awe of his heroism! When he got back he had to sit and relax for a minute. He was visibly shaken! That is his worst nightmare when on an open vehicle, losing a precious thing! He had to take immediate action.
The elephant exhibit was pretty nice. We could have spent hours in there. This was Jake's favorite part.
And then they had to pull some Assassin's Creed action on the playground. We finally made it to the elephants! Honestly, the whole trip was centered on me seeing the elephants. I love them. We didn't make it in time to see the zoo keepers work with them though.
There he is! He's huge! They didn't do much either, except stand there and sway and snuff the dirt.
I love the zoo but we were rushed this time. We needed to be back for rehearsal. We will be going again and spending the whole day. I might even get a pass and go several times. I love that my sons like to walk around things like this. They like the animals, the signs, the shows, even the plants.
After we grabbed a couple souvenirs on the way out, we headed to the car for sandwiches on the road home. And that's where it got deep. I swear we could solve the worlds problems if we had a long enough drive! This time we talked history, China, Africa, Old Testament, Jesus, economics, and I can't remember what else, but it got so good we had to turn the music off at times. I wish I could record those conversations, or take notes!
We didn't get home on time but only a half an hour late for rehearsal, which they had been warned might happen. I can't wait to do it again!
