San Diego Zoo

Lions

And Tigers

And Bears oh my

And of course the creme de la creme of the bears are Pandas. They are adorable and are of course on loan from China. I am not sure when they have to go back but I am sure it will be way too soon in the eyes of the zoo keepers.

This is the baby of the bunch. He is still on his mother's milk and not yet ready for the bamboo diet.



Those eyes are irresistible.

And the Koolas.

Most were sleeping and all wrapped up in themselves like this one.

If you look closely you may be able to see that this momma has a joey (baby) wrapped in her arms.

Munching on greens

I think they have four elephants at the zoo. It is interesting how they care for them.

You look at this and think...cages yuck. Not so. This is where the keepers do all of the elephant care. The keepers never ever enter the elephant's area, instead they 'invite' the elephants into the care area for all touch, baths etc. The doors are always open so the elephants are able to come and go in this area as they please with the keepers separated from them by the cage. The reason for this makes so much sense....if the keepers are in the elephant's area there is often negative interaction in that the keepers need to push the elephants so that they do not get too close etc.... This takes away the need for that so the interaction is always positive and fun for both the elephants and their keepers

This Meerkat smiled and posed quite nicely for his picture

There are many deer looking animals at the zoo and this little guy was snuggled right into his spot.

While riding the tram Jan and I spotted this great steeple. As I snapped the shot a plan was coming in for a landing.

Flamings are colorful and fun to watch

It was fun to watch them scatter

This fella has a very interesting face

And lots of color in this bird and his apple

Monkeys, always monkeys

I can't remember what kind of cat this is but it has webbed feet to allow it to swim

The Rhino blends right into his surroundings

We spent the entire day here and will return again next year.

I would like to express my sympathy to my cousin's the Biehn 'clan'. Steve's wife Jennie lost her battle with cancer this week. This family has had more than it's share of struggles over the years and my deepest sympathy goes out to Steve, his family and his siblings.

Just Some Fun Pictures

Imperial Beach

Point Lomas

Looking over the San Diego skyline

As the rain rolls in

Great color and contours

Today we have our Monday morning planning meeting. Now remember Jan is a retired principal so she is used to having plans and lists and yadda yadda yadda. However this meeting comes complete with home made muffins:)

Pondering

But first pictures and adventures to share:
Point Lomis has a military cemetery that is pretty fascinating in that it is so peaceful and serene. The flowers are called Bird of Paradise and are quite striking. David and Mikey (both ex Navy men) taking a minute to reflect.

This lighthouse on Point Lomis makes a great picture, it looks like an estate. Anyway this light house replaced..... This one. Apparently this one was too high (is on the point while the new one is below on the ocean) and the light confused boaters because it was so high.

David and Mikey have played a few games of cribbage. David pegs...constantly

While poor Mikey scratches his head wondering how can it be?

The waves have been fabulous this past week and many were out to enjoy them. This is taken on Coronado Beach with Point Lomis in the background.

The beaches here have black sand running through them. Those are Jan's feet strolling along.

One of THE places to stay is Del Coronado or for those in the know it is just 'The Del'. This is apparently where the rich and famous stay. In fact, according to our tour guide (Jan) the apartment at the top shown here is where the presidents stay.

Bob G if you are following this blog I just want you to know that I have decided to stay

And open up my own shop....whatchya think Bob?

I can get my taste of Mexico in Old Town. Our two old boys posed for us trying to look old. I think they just managed to look danged crabby!

While on Isla I have posted pictures of the island church. Many of the churches you see here are the old world look churches. I love that style.

Yup there are even vendors selling items from Mexico.

Since the day that we arrived I have been trying to figure out why I so enjoy this place. After all we live in the woods (and this is far from the woods). At home our nearest town has a population of maybe 200 (I have no clue how populated this area is but given all of the roads and cars it is definitely more than 200:). I have never liked big busy towns (this is big and busy). Well you get the idea. And I guess we are both surprised that we do enjoy it so much. I think it is the diversity of the area and the lifestyle of many. Surfers, joggers, bike riders, rich, poor and homeless side by side and it all seems to work. We can spend hours sitting or walking on the beach, riding our bikes into town to have coffee on the street or enjoying one of many farmer's markets. There is also Bourbon Street, LA and of course the Price is Right. Dozens and dozens of parks to enjoy, Sea World, the Zoo, Balboa Park and a boat load of museums....nuff said? And yes Bugs you were right:)

Beaches Beaches Beaches

Mission Beach is Jan and Mikey's favorite beach and I can understand why. This beach seems to have it all. Sun, sand, rolling waves, sunbathers, t-shirt and more shops, places to eat and drink and rows of homes and apartments to rent. It seems that most everyone is jogging or walking, biking or skate boarding and the ever present suffer. For some reason I just can't resist taking pictures of these surfers. Of course the 'true' surfer looking guys are way more fun to look at and this one just does not fit that bill but oh well. David and I walking our way down the beach.

Pacific Beach is very nice as well. For some reason my camera was not out and I didn't get any pictures but I did get myself a nice sweatshirt and David got a hat:)

Silver Strand Beach is so close that we are able to ride our bikes to it....in fact Jan and I did just that. We watched this fella enjoying the wind para sailing and walked along picking up a few shells her and there. The shells here are much different than the ones on Isla, these seem to be much bolder in color...I have not a clue why that would be.

Along the bike trail we saw what we are sure are loons. This must be a winter time spot for our northern loons. Who can blame them given this is one of the few US places that has the most consistent enjoyable weather.

Ocean Beach. Yet another wonderful San Diego beach. This is one of the piers that Mikey and David may wet a line.

This pelican had some wonderful color and he was happy to show it off.

Waiting for the perfect wave. Everywhere you go here you see people enjoying the water in one form or another. It is a great place this San Diego!

Suffice it to say that I love it here and it is so far my favorite spot of the trip. There really is just so much to see and do and most of it involves close proximity to the ocean or just being outdoors. And nope I do not miss our little island of Isla Mujeres as of yet.