Adventure: Monterey Bay Aquarium & Capitola

Monterey Bay Aquarium in California is a very popular attraction on the coast. It opened back in 1984, and was the first aquarium to have a living kelp forest. The kelp forest is pictured above and to the left, with the aquarium life swimming amongst the greenery in the tank.

A leopard shark decided to hang out for a bit fo a picture in the left image. 

One creature that you could find in several locations around the aquarium was the anchovy. The aquarium had this round tank where the fish swam around in circles, and all I could think about was that scene from Finding Nemo where the fish are playing charades by making shapes.

I did learn that when these fish are hungry, they swim forward with their mouths open. I can relate, fish. I can relate.. 

Jeremy and I were convinced that the puffer above was broken. All it did was swim into the glass of the tank. Poor thing. She wants out!

One of my favorite creatures to photograph at aquariums is the jellyfish. They are so majestic and poetic with the way they move.

I love watching their tentacles ribbon through the water. It's like watching music play. 

Also, for some reason, the lighting is usually the best in the jellyfish tanks, making for super clear shots. Maybe the glass is flatter for the jellyfish than for the rounded tanks that warp the imagery for other creatures. 

I could definitely spend a large portion of my time just watching the jellyfish move.

By the time we made it over to the penguins, I think they were all tuckered out. Most of them were napping, or just standing there and staring off into space. Do penguins have third eyelids that allow them to sleep with their eyes open? I'm going to Google this....
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Yes, yes they do. So they were probably just sleeping standing up.

There were two penguins doing... um... naughty activities, but I decided to not share the penguins' intimate moment. Ha! My sister, Jeremy, and I had a good laugh about it though.

I loved the Sandy Shore & Aviary exhibit, because I love looking at all of the different birds. The bird pictured below is a phalarope.

One of the other birds featured was the western snowy plover, which reminded me of the adorable birds in the Disney Short, "piper".PS, the bird in the Disney Short is a sandpiper.

One of Jeremy's and my favorite animals that we could watch all day long is the otter. Especially when they are lazing around with their little paws on their face. Yes, please! I could adopt you right now, little otter, but that would be irresponsible. 

After the aquarium, we stopped at a little coffee shop and waited for mom and dad to join us. 

We ended up dining for lunch at Bubba Gump, which was sort of on its own mini pier. We had to scare away some birds several times to ensure the safety of our food. It's all good!

After lunch, we drove to Carmel-By-The-Sea for a very, very, very brief visit. My parents essentially drove us to the parking lot down by the water, said "This is the beach" and then we left.

We made our way down to Capitola, where we actually got to go to the beach.

Jeremy was so excited to walk along the shore. He changed into his flip flops when we arrived and was ready to go dip his toes in the ocean. We both discovered how cold the water was in February, but we still had a lot of fun.

I loved the sea-worn wood of the pier in Capitola, the roughness complimenting the ripples in the water as it meets the sand.

We made it to the beach just in time to watch the sun set, and it was a beautiful thing to witness, and I'm so happy I was able to watch the sun go down with my fiance. Next time we are in California, we will definitely spend more time at the beach!

Before Jeremy and I went to the beach, we ran into Jaqi and her babies who had previously planned on meeting us in Capitola.

Giovanna and Oracito were very interested in Aunty Boo's camera, and I let them take pictures for a while. Well, Oracito can't figure out the button, so he just kept telling people walking by, "PICTURE!" and they'd stop and pose for them. It was great.

Giovanna really enjoys taking photos of murals and the art around her.

I love the patterns in the sand left behind by the waves, too. They resemble trees , or veins, so well, and it was a reminder of how connected we all are to nature.

After our time in Capitola, we drove out to Santa Cruz for dinner and ate at a restaurant on the pier. We ate at a place called Stagnaro Bros.

By the time we made it to Santa Cruz, it was dark outside, so we didn't get to see much of it. Again - something for next time!

We really enjoyed our time going to the various towns on the West Coast, and we really can't wait to explore more next time we are in California.

​Maybe Jeremy will win us another free flight voucher at the next Furry Scurry which takes place on May 2nd! And yes, we are already registered!

After dinner, we did drive out to an ice cream place, so I was pretty happy with how the night ended! Thank you, family, for showing us the West Coast, and we can't wait to be back! Love you all.