First Stop, San Diego

Our first stop of Meg's senior Spring Break trip was fantastic.  There were a lot of variables that could have made this day a complete failure, but the only hiccup in our schedule was taking an extra fifteen minutes to get through the Enterprise rental car line.  Our flight was on time and arrived early, all of our luggage fit in the car we rented, the San Diego Zoo was only 5 miles from the airport and the Pandas were on full exhibit.  When we entered the zoo at 12:30 California time I finally relaxed.

In our years together, Doug and I had visited over a dozen zoos.  The San Diego Zoo by far was the best and biggest zoo that we had ever walked through.  There were so many animals to see that I lost count.  The zoo was crowded, but the weather was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed it.  Meg's favorite animal was the Babirusa, an Indonesian pig with a face that only a true swine fan would love.  She also agreed with us that the Pandas and the Koalas were absolutely adorable.  We had read so many reviews for the zoo and it definitely did not disappoint.  It took over four hours, but we made it through all of the exhibits that we wanted to see and even had time for lunch and some shopping.

After the zoo we drove to Coronado Island to check out the beach.  Doug had heard that it was the best beach in the San Diego area and we definitely loved it.  The water was too cold for Cam and Meg to swim, but we all enjoyed getting our feet wet, walking the beach and looking for shells.  The only drawback to the journey to the island was the two mile long bridge that we had to drive over twice.  It was well worth it, however, and I was glad to have finally put my toes in the Pacific Ocean.

 

We thought about eating at the Gaslamp area in downtown San Diego, but felt it was more for the over twenty-one crowd.  After touring the streets of San Diego, we decided instead to drive to LaJolla to look for a restaurant there.  By chance we happened across Karl Strauss Brewery which had delicious food and fast service, a plus after a long day of traveling.  We stayed in the Embassy Suites and by nine p.m. Meg was fast asleep.  Cam and Doug watched the end of the Duke game before calling it a night.  Our first day of Meg's senior Spring Break trip was an absolute success.  Can't wait to see what tomorrow will bring.