"I'll Do You One Better: Why is Gamora?" (WDW Vets Visit Cali, April/May 2019) Completed 6/23

[PlutosRHM55]

(Although Infinity War isn’t my favorite Marvel movie either, Guardians 2 tops my list and probably makes me the most emotional too).​

I'm replying A LOT here but omg Guardians Vol. 2 is one of my favorites and nobody understands. That was a film I did NOT expect to hit me as hard as it did. My number one is probably and will forever be Civil War, but Guardians 2 sits comfortably in my top five even over the first film.

 

[Raeven]

I'm replying A LOT here but omg Guardians Vol. 2 is one of my favorites and nobody understands. That was a film I did NOT expect to hit me as hard as it did. My number one is probably and will forever be Civil War, but Guardians 2 sits comfortably in my top five even over the first film.

That’s okay! I love talking about the 2nd Guardians movie because I love it so much! Going into it I didn’t either. I had liked the first one a lot, but when I saw the second it was just wow, and I still get emotional no matter how many times I’ve seen it.

It made me completely fell in love with the Guardians after that and caused me to want to seek out some of the director’s other works (which I also liked although they’re very different). After rewatching the first one again I just ended up loving them both but I think the second will always sit at the top of my Marvel movies list with the first following right behind (unless the 3rd tops it). ​

 

[lvcourtneyy]

Joining in. I followed along from your dining report!

Sorry to hear your trip got off to such a rough start. I would've been freaking out for sure- I feel like you handled it much better than I would have!

 

[amalone1013]

I love it

Great use of tax dollars

Black Widow was actually the only one I didn’t see coming.

And that was the one we had spoiled for us on the way into the theater So when her and Clint were like, we'll go to whatever that planet was, I was like ah this is how it happens.

 

[Raeven]

Seaworld SD & The Seal and Sea Lion Up Close Tour
April 27th

Since I started my DTR I just wanted to add in my post about our first dining experience on the trip which was:

Airport Dining (Denver Airport)

So last we left off we were taking a Lyft to Seaworld. For some reason there was no separate area for the drop off apart from where the normal parking was. So they directed our Lyft driver to get in the line. There was no one directing the cars so it created quite the traffic jam as people tried to get into the parking area.
Of course, the first thing we noticed as we were walking up is the line to get in was pretty much endless. It looked like it was going to be a VERY crowded day.

However once we got in line I would say it only took about 10 mins to get in. I think they opened a couple more lines after we got in ours so everyone was moving around and so we just stayed in that line. It did make me laugh because a lot of people would see people get out of line to see if the other line was shorter and then someone behind them would just walk out of line and follow them. It was like no one knew where anyone was going, but wanted to follow because they were walking about so confidently

The first thing I did was grab our sampler pass for the food festival, and then we started sampling some dishes. This was the main thing we did for the first hour or so and the details are in this post in my DTR:

Seven Seas Food Festival Review

At around 2:30 pm we headed over to the seal and sea lion area to make sure we were on time to meet up with our tour at 3 pm.



We were on this tour with two other families. The employees could not take any pictures of us (because they had a Photokey photographer there), but we could take them of each other. In the first part of the tour we were introduced to Chloe the sea lion. (Josh's mom actually has a dog named Chloe and we always joke about how she's weird shaped, and Josh thought she looked like the sea lion ). So the first thing they had us do (one family at a time) was take turns feeding Chloe fish, and then everyone could go up and get their individual pictures with her. She was in training so we weren't allowed to touch her though.

Here's Josh's pictures with Chloe:




And mine:


I thought I would be super grossed out by the fish. I don't eat seafood, and I'm also weirdly freaked out by dead fish? Idk how to describe it not really a phobia just a weird thing.
It didn't really turn out to be a problem during the tour though because I just didn't really think about it and that part was pretty fast. They handed us the fish, we threw them, and we were done.

I just think sea lions are so cool. I love the seal and sea lion show because they seem so close with their trainers and they’re really smart and able to learn so many tricks.

Then they brought a Harbor seal out. And they told us one of the differences between seals and sea lions are that sea lions kind of walk on land, but seals kind of adorably undulate.

I'm not sure if they told us the seal's name, but we did get to pet her.



She was sooo cute look at her whiskers



Our tour guide was named Jessica, and she was very nice although different people did handle different parts of our tour. This is the second tour we've done at Seaworld (the other at Orlando), and we've enjoyed both. Both coasts have different up close tours though they also do share some in common. In Orlando we did the penguin tour, and while I think that one was more in depth, both of them were good. And I also think the amount of time each tour is, is probably dictated by the animal’s schedule.

At the end the tour we were given another little container of fish to feed to the seals and sea lions in the exhibit. This was a little gross because most of the spots around the exhibit were taken so I had to walk around for a minute with a dripping container of fish in my hand A lady in the crowd did pull her kid out of the way, look at me, and say EWWW as though I were walking around with a container of dead fish on purpose just to upset people in the crowd.

Next we walked through the Turtle Encounter.




Does anyone else remember “Master of Disguise”? I used to love that movie as a kid and I sent my dad a text with this quote in it and he responded with the next line which is “Turtle, turtle” right away

Then we did the Shark Encounter. It was jam packed in the shark tunnel. Most the exhibits were.

Flamingos:



I hate to disappoint again, but much like our trip to Seaworld Orlando this wasn't ride focused. We actually didn't ride any rides at all We spent a lot of the day sampling different festival dishes.

People shouldn't litter, but I think this bird might be a cannibal...



Yes, I'm documenting everything for you even cannibal birds.

We were getting tired so we decided to get in one show before we left, and that was Clyde and Seamore's! We had seen the Christmas show in Orlando, but not the regular one so I figured even if it was the same as the regular Orlando show it would be new to us.

Like I mentioned before I love watching sea lions do tricks , and these shows always have adorable little otters in them too.
They did like a mash up of different reality shows like Survivor and Dancing with the Stars featuring the sea lions doing tricks:




I thought I’d also add in a little comparison between the Orlando and San Diego parks. This food festival had much better food and more options than the Christmas one we went to in Orlando. When we went to Orlando the park wasn’t as crowded, but overall I’d still say the Orlando park had more rides/exhibits and seemed bigger. Both parks were worthwhile to visit, but probably wouldn’t have been different enough to warrant a visit to both without the festival offerings. I do think we’d probably go back to the Orlando parks sooner than the San Diego ones, but mostly because we’ll be returning to Orlando sooner.

Afterwards we took a Lyft back to our hotel. We hung out in the room waiting for our dinner reservation, but we were getting a little tired so we decided to cancel our reservation, and head to In N Out.

In N Out Review

Also as we were hanging out in the room I realized I had acquired some sunburn while we were in the park. I had put sunscreen on, but not immediately. Still it was probably only like 10 mins after we got there. So for the rest of the week you'll have to endure my sunburned nose

And so ends our first day of the trip!

Next Up
The San Diego Zoo

​

 

[Raeven]

Joining in. I followed along from your dining report!

Sorry to hear your trip got off to such a rough start. I would've been freaking out for sure- I feel like you handled it much better than I would have!

Hi

I was freaking out all day till we got to the airport, but once we got there it was easier to do something about it. I guess I also was a little calmer because something like that has happened before and it was a worst case scenario thing (we had to cancel a whole trip due to Irma a few years ago) but we had found a solution that worked for that so I knew we would be able to work something out for this.

Great use of tax dollars

And that was the one we had spoiled for us on the way into the theater So when her and Clint were like, we'll go to whatever that planet was, I was like ah this is how it happens.

Wait, someone spoiled part of the movie for you as you walked into the theater? ​

 

[StarWarsMomofGirls!]

Isn’t she adorable?

She is so shiny!!!

When I looked back at the pictures I realized a bird must of been flying by right as I took it and it perfectly lined up to make the sea lion look like a proud angel

That is amazing!

 

[missangelalexis]

Chloe is such an adorable sea lion! Great pics!

I definitely remember the movie Master of Disguise! That was the best part of the movie!

Sounds like a fun day at SeaWorld!

 

[Raeven]

Chloe is such an adorable sea lion! Great pics!

Thank you!

I definitely remember the movie Master of Disguise! That was the best part of the movie!

Yes!​

 

[Lesley Wake]

When I looked back at the pictures I realized a bird must of been flying by right as I took it and it perfectly lined up to make the sea lion look like a proud angel

Hilarious!

 

[xlsm]

Dwight is not totally wrong

(Josh's mom actually has a dog named Chloe and we always joke about how she's weird shaped, and Josh thought she looked like the sea lion )

Isn’t she adorable?

She's so cute!!

A lady in the crowd did pull her kid out of the way, look at me, and say EWWW as though I were walking around with a container of dead fish on purpose just to upset people in the crowd.

Some people I mean, what exactly did she think the sea lions eat, anyway? People are rude. And weird.

I realized a bird must of been flying by right as I took it and it perfectly lined up to make the sea lion look like a proud angel

this cracks me up!!

My faaaavorite picture. It looks so pretty!!!

Yes, I'm documenting everything for you even cannibal birds.

I expect nothing less! I demand all details!!

oh my gosh, the proud little otter!!!!!! He brings me joy!! Standing there like a person!

 

[Raeven]

She looks a bit like a hippo

Some people I mean, what exactly did she think the sea lions eat, anyway? People are rude. And weird.

She never expected to see any fish at Seaworld She treated it like we were carrying it around with us just because, but they sell the containers there and anyone can buy one.

this cracks me up!!

I love it

I expect nothing less! I demand all details!!

I will tell you whenever I see a bird eating another bird

oh my gosh, the proud little otter!!!!!! He brings me joy!! Standing there like a person!

I love the parts where they bring out the little otter! ​

 

[Raeven]

*video is unavailable*​

 

[PlutosRHM55]

Awww the Sea Lion show was so cute. I still refuse to go to Seaworld for reasons why most don't go anymore, but ugh sea lions are just the freakin cutest. Love that you went to In N Out for the first time on your first night in CA. But I mean, if you didn't go get In N Out on your first evening in CA, did you actually go to CA?

 

[Tracy161]

It did make me laugh because a lot of people would see people get out of line to see if the other line was shorter and then someone behind them would just walk out of line and follow them. It was like no one knew where anyone was going, but wanted to follow because they were walking about so confidently

Right?! I see this happen at Disney all the time - it's like people are thinking "they must know something I don't, let's follow them!"

Isn’t she adorable?

Yes!!!

She was sooo cute look at her whiskers

Sooo cute!

A lady in the crowd did pull her kid out of the way, look at me, and say EWWW as though I were walking around with a container of dead fish on purpose just to upset people in the crowd.

Loved your report about Sea World - it's been ages (like 1997) since I've been to the one in Orlando, so it's nice to take a break from Disney and see what other parks are up to Thanks for that! Loved your vlog too

 

[xlsm]

Penny started barking when the sea lions were making noise, lol

I'm sad Josh never got to pet Chloe and deepen their connection

I get weirdly emotional during animals shows, like, they're just so smart and amazing, so I was tearing up over the sea lion show. This is why I can't watch movies about animals I'm a mess.

 

[Raeven]

Awww the Sea Lion show was so cute. I still refuse to go to Seaworld for reasons why most don't go anymore, but ugh sea lions are just the freakin cutest. Love that you went to In N Out for the first time on your first night in CA. But I mean, if you didn't go get In N Out on your first evening in CA, did you actually go to CA?

It was! We actually stayed away after that, but started going once it looked like they were taking steps to change the way things were. I know the overall corporation might still have some problems, but from the trainers/tours we've seen it really seems like everyone there loves what they do and takes such good care of the animals.

Right?! I see this happen at Disney all the time - it's like people are thinking "they must know something I don't, let's follow them!"

They're walking so confidently I must follow them!

Loved your report about Sea World - it's been ages (like 1997) since I've been to the one in Orlando, so it's nice to take a break from Disney and see what other parks are up to Thanks for that! Loved your vlog too

Thank you!

Penny started barking when the sea lions were making noise, lol

I'm sad Josh never got to pet Chloe and deepen their connection

I think he was sad too

I get weirdly emotional during animals shows, like, they're just so smart and amazing, so I was tearing up over the sea lion show. This is why I can't watch movies about animals I'm a mess.

They are! "Why are you crying?" "Just thinking of how smart sea lions are" ​

 

[paradesintherain]

My name is Raeven!

Oh Hi Raeven! Fancy meeting you here!

I just booked a Disneyland trip so I came to these boards to check it out - didn't expect to see you! Though I did know you went recently! Can't wait to read about it all, so fun to see a first timers views!

They said they'd still have to charge us which I figured, but surprisingly when we checked out it wasn't on the bill!

That's so great! The travel day sounded a bit rough, but you guys seemed to handle it well!

At check out I got to pet a St Bernard which I was very excited about because I think they're adorable,

Petting a dog makes any day instantly better.

Amazing!

What a cute room! Really love that window seat.

Your day at Sea World looked like a lot of fun, and what a beautiful location!

 

[Raeven]

Then I Go To The Zoo In San Diego, It's Really Such a Better Zoo
April 28th
Our morning started off with brunch at The Blind Burro (also ft some zoo snack reviews):

Blind Burro Review

Afterwards we took a Lyft to the zoo.
There were some events going on in Balboa Park that day so we got stuck in traffic for a little bit. This is when our Lyft driver (who grew up near where we live) decided it was a good time to talk about the economy in our area...back in the 60's. I wonder if he always waits till he has a captive audience (literally) to launch into such topics

We arrived around 1 pm, and we were happy to see it wasn't as crowded as I thought it would be. The weather was kind of weird though and alternated between kind of warm and quite windy and chilly. We only brought a sweatshirt for Josh (since he said I could use it if I needed), so I ended up borrowing it basically all day



The first thing we did was take the Skyfari towards the Arctic section of the zoo.

The Skyfari was actually nice and relaxing. It had nice views and moved pretty fast. (If you know any statistics about it getting stuck in the air please don't tell them to me though ). I'm scared of heights, but didn't really mind these at all or feel unsafe in them. Maybe I can brave those gondolas in Sep @xlsm

The first thing we saw was this cute little sleepy warthog



Over in the Arctic exhibit the polar bear was adorably napping:



We actually went back to the Arctic section a couple times throughout the day because there was an Arctic fox and a raccoon in the area (I know who goes to the zoo to see a trash panda but I was excited ), but as they are nocturnal we never saw them.

Speaking of pandas, it was the pandas last weekend at the zoo. From what I've heard the pandas are on loan from China and even the ones born in the U.S. are property of China. The loan was coming to an end, and I think most (if not all) the pandas were going back. Some had already gone, and the ones that were left were sleeping. Panda Canyon is one of their most popular attractions and we waited in line for awhile to see the panda, there was another one as well but her line was closed when we finished with this one.

So here's a sleeping panda's butt:



I thought this donkey was the cutest thing ever :



The San Diego Zoo is also known for being a botanical park so there's also areas with different plants.

For some reason at this exhibit most the people looking at it didn't understand what was going on? They assumed the zoo was feeding the dog to the cheetah? I don't know if they were just being annoying on purpose (they were adults) or if they really didn't understand, but they kept yelling at the dog to run.



For those that don't know dogs and cheetahs frequently become friends when introduced to each other (usually when they’re young). If you don't believe me google it, it's adorable.
The reptile area:



Just gotta rep my Hogwarts house with some snake pics.

This mother monkey was not having it when the baby monkey tried to get off the rock



Around this time I bought @xlsm a rhino hat, but I can't reveal which one because I've been lazy and haven't sent it to her But I have a surprise to announce in my next PTR update that's she's already mentioned in hers...Suffice to say I'll see her sooner than I thought so I might just give it to her then.


Meerkat


I know at this point we'd taken the Skyfari across the park again. We got about 3/4 of the zoo done before we left around the 6 pm close which was pretty good for our arrival time. We saw all the exhibits we wanted to see, and of course I have like a hundred more pictures that I won't include in this post.

We had gotten a bit turned around trying to get back to the front and ended up closer to the Skyfari station in the back again so we took it to the front of the park.
I will say this side had a landing that was quite a bit bumpier than the other side



After we headed back to our hotel I had a little bit of a headache. We watched the Dawn of the Dead remake before dinner.

We were headed to Little Italy!

Bencotto/Salt & Straw Review


Next Up
The next day is a very exciting day filled with foxes, gorgeous views, and delicious food!


​

 

[Raeven]

Oh Hi Raeven! Fancy meeting you here!

I just booked a Disneyland trip so I came to these boards to check it out - didn't expect to see you! Though I did know you went recently! Can't wait to read about it all, so fun to see a first timers views!

Hey! Awesome! Yeah, we just got back a couple of weeks ago.

Petting a dog makes any day instantly better.

What a cute room! Really love that window seat.

Me too! Although it wasn't very soft to sit on ​