Today we went to the San Diego Zoo. Based on past experiences, Noga and I wanted to get to the zoo as early as possible, to see the animals before it became too warm. So, after an overnight nap, we packed up the "Pimp-Mobile" and headed to San Diego, about 2-hours south of Long Beach. Luckily, we were going the 'wrong' way, and only hit about a half-hour's worth of traffic and made it to the zoo by 9:30am. We purchased deluxe tickets (using AAA's 10% discount), and promply loaded onto a "Kangaroo" tour bus. On these tour buses, you can 'hop' on and off at each stop if you decide to further explore the exhibits in a particular area. The bus tours around and through most of the zoo's expanse and is a good way to get a feel for where you may want to re-visit. We stayed on the "Kangaroo" but for the whole loop, and were lucky to have made it early enough to see most of the animals. The panda cub was even out (but was facing away from us). Once back at the main entrance and off the bus, we took the tram up to the polar bear exhibit. When we passed by on the bus, the polar bear cubs were out playing with each other, but when we made it back, they were snoozing. Then we walked around the zoo, stopping at our leisure. The zoo covers a lot of real estate, and we were fortunate enough to see most of the animals before it warmed up. The other animals, such as the meercats and gazelles, were saved for last, because they are used to the heat. Even the small children's zoo was full of critters. In all, we spent about 8-hours at the zoo. On the way back, we were stopped by the U.S. Border Patrol at a control point: must have been the combination of my tan and the "Pimp-Mobile". But, we were quickly waved on, and were on our way back to Long Beach. Since Ray lives in the southern part of Long Beach, we decided to swing by to see if he and his wife wanted to go out to eat. They were back from their wedding night's stay at the Ritz Carlton, Pasadena and were packing for their honeymoon in Tahiti. Corey's parents were there, as well as Ray's sister and her fianc�. Since it was also Corey's birthday, she chose to go eat sushi. So, Noga and I headed back to the hotel to freshen up and change clothes and then met the newleyweds and the engaged couple at Sushi of Naples (Naples Island, that is). Corey's parents decided on hamburgers. Ray isn't as fanatic about sushi as Corey, so he opted out and ordered Teriyaki, while somehow the rest of us decided we could share a sushi boat. Eighty-six pieces of sushi split between five people, and we were quite stuffed by the end of the feast. After that, Noga and I made our way back to the hotel and passed out.
