Family Vacation - Day 8

Earlier in the week, LaVor's mom was chatting with her neighbor across the way when the neighbor graciously offered her passes to the California Academy of Sciences.  It really was a blessing because the tickets are super expensive, there was no way we would have been able to go without them.

On the way to the city, LaVor and I realized it was the first day of Outside Lands and were worried Golden Gate Park would be a mess.  What a relief when we pulled into the park and things were running as usual.

Everyone initially started exploring together but when most of the family got in line for the earthquake simulator, The Lime opted to continue exploring.  We browsed for a bit and then decided to check out the rainforest.

The butterflies were everywhere!  It was somewhat magical and got The Lime super excited.

We started off at the bottom of the forest as if in Madagascar. There were exotic plants as well as leafcutter ants.

As we made our way up, the number of butterflies increased and we were able to get a great shot of the water down below, where huge arapaima were swimming.

There was a plant at the very top of the exhibit that was attracting butterflies from every direction. I caught one extracting nectar from one of the flowers, captured another butterfly forcing a different butterfly away from a flower, and even caught a glimpse of a butterfly trying to seduce another. No photos were taken of that incident.

After the free show from the butterflies, we turned a corner to find a few lizards, snakes, and a cute little frog. We then took an elevator down to the Amazonian flooded forest which allowed us to see life from below.

LaVor and The Lime soaked up the chance to touch the starfish and other creatures. While checking things out, The Lime slipped on the ledge he was standing on and chomped down on his tongue. With blood spewing everywhere, we called it quits on the exploring and headed back to the main floor while we waited for the rest of the group.

While we waited, LaVor spotted The Lime's current infatuation - an alligator. And not just any alligator but Claude the albino alligator. That was enough to distract and calm The Lime down.

Our stomachs were telling us it was time to eat, and while on the way to get our hot dogs, we passed a group of folks getting their segway lesson. The teacher sounded like quite the character, yelling, "Schnell!" at the Germans.

We had a little bit of time before we needed to leave so we checked out a few more exhibits. The sharks and stingrays swam underneath us, the penguins dove right before our eyes, and the African hall felt as if we were really there. On our way out, we stopped in the gift shop where The Lime got a little bag of aqua marine rocks (his favorite color). We passed on the gigantic white stuffed alligator.

On the way to the freeway, we just so happened to pass a macaron shop. Naturally, we stopped and grabbed a dozen. The salted caramel was AMAZING. But still not like my Sprüngli's.

The day was finished off with a visit with my sister and her family. We gobbled up some pasta and let the kids run around at the park, where my sister suggested The Lime spend the night. It took him no time at all to decide if he wanted to or not.

A rousing game of Wizard (where I won for once) and some quality time with LaVor's grandparents was the end of a fun-filled day.