Monterey

 It's so hard to blog while you're watching soccer! That's what we're doing, me and Ivy the Otter. I bought Ivy at the aquarium gift store. At the time I was justifying the purchase because I can take it to my classroom. Only I'm not an otter anymore (yes, yes- ALWAYS an otter 💙). But I think the thing is, I just love a good stuffy, and I'm totally owning it. 

Today we took to the trolley to the Monterey Aquarium.  We hadn't been in years -- 25+? I feel like I was in college, although I can't put my finger on why we were down here. I think Vancouver Aquarium in Stanley Park is my favorite, but this one was pretty good! 

We had three favorite exhibits, one of which was the jellyfish.  The exhibit hall was dark, so you could really see (and enjoy!) their bioluminescence.

The second thing we loved was the kelp forest. Apparently we love forests! The kelp appears to just breathe in the current, and we were mesmerized watching the various exhibits. 

And finally, we loved the otters! We watched them for a while in the morning, but also went back for a feeding in the afternoon. They are fed with a series of toys, that keep their problem solving acute. They are given toys that are full of shrimp, squid, etc. They do a lot of creative thinking to get the food out! One of their strategies is to pound the (thankfully!) plastic toys against the windows to shake the food out. We loved watching Ivy as she was playful and determined. And thus the otter stuffy! ;)

And then we had a wonderful dinner at Old Fisherman's Wharf. Mom found a delicious Italian seafood restaurant. The setting couldn't have been better, and the food was amazing. It had a real Kirkland circa 1990 feel to it. What a great day!

We finished with a dessert of cannolis. I'd never had one before! I know, right? But usually I just order tiramisu and don't even look at the other options!  This one had hazelnuts, so I chased it with some Benadryl. Ha! (Don't worry about it -- I have it under control. ;) )That cannoli cream is YUMMY! 

On the way back to the car we watched the sea lions for a while. They were chilling on the rocks near the wharf. Well, chilling out, and then causing a ruckus, as sea lions are want to do. 

Tomorrow we head into the desert!