A Day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, Part 1

After a terrible night of sleep, we rolled out of bed at 8AM and ordered room service for breakfast. Both Russell and Punky ate little, which is characteristic of their behavior whenever we leave home for vacation. I purchased tickets at the hotel's front desk, and then we headed on foot down the street towards the Aquarium, which was only 4 blocks away.

As you can see from the photos below, Russell seemed mesmerized by the scenes at the aquarium. He led us through most of the exhibits, stopping at each one for several minutes to take in the view. Often, he would lean against the fish tanks with his face pressed flush against the glass. On the other hand, Punky seemed more interested in climbing the stairs between the aquarium's two levels, or breaking away towards the outdoor tanks. I don't think Punky knew what he was missing as he ran away from the displays at every opportunity. Eventually, this would prove to be his undoing, as his constant movement--like that of a shark--appeared to wear him out. He fell asleep in my arms as we headed out of the aquarium for lunch next door at Bubba Gump's Restaurant.

Altogether, we spent barely three hours at the Aquarium and restaurant before we headed back to the hotel, and called it a day. We had deliberately skipped a few sections of the aquarium (the Shark and Jellyfish displays) knowing that our tickets were valid for two days, and that we would be returning the next morning. I have nothing much to say about the remaining part of the day, other than that we watched a lot of Disney videos, and I saw "Extreme Home Makeover" for the first time.


Russell spys on a pair of leopard sharks in the Kelp Forest Tank at the Monterey Bay Aquarium


Punky at the controls of the Penguin display'


Russell at the anchovy's circular tank


Punky munches on a cookie as sardines swim by


Russell shows some interest in the tuna display


A birdseye-view at the Coastal Aviary


At the Coastal Aviary, with the Brewster Boys and Jenny's mother


After a day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, there's nothing like eating at Bubba Gump's Restaurant