Day 16

Today was my first and only day in San Diego and I had one thing on the agenda, check out as much of the San Diego Zoo as possible. I'd heard great things about this zoo and wanted to dedicate nearly a full day to soaking it all in. I left my hotel early that morning and got to the zoo shortly after it opened. The San Diego Zoo is gigantic with over 8000 species on 107 acres which was impossible to cover in just over 9 hours... I started with a bus tour off the Zoo which gave me a decent idea of the layout and what areas I wanted to hit up over the rest of the day.

One of the things that really sets the San Diego Zoo apart from other zoo's I have visited in the past is the way they try to showcase the animals in a natural habitat with limited barriers between you and them. Which means it's much easier to take pictures of the beautiful animals around every corner of this zoo. With no further delay; here are some pictures from the San Diego Zoo.

Clyde, a 300 lbs Male Orangutan

Nameless Female Gorilla chilling under a tree to keep cool.

Bonobo, a kind of small chimpanzee.

Mallard Duck shaking it's wings.

Kalluk, the male polar bear with two interesting facts:

1. Polar Bears can eat 140 lbs of food at a time!

2. Polar Bears are HUGE... At 180 lbs, I weigh about the same as a 1 year old polar bear cub.

Giant Panda Bear cub, these are very rare in the states and the San Diego Zoo is one of only a handful of zoos outside of China that have these on exhibit. FYI, adult giant panda eat 25-30 lbs of bamboo in a single day!

Koala Bears, most of these animals do not much if any water and get the moisture they require from the eucalyptus leaves they eat.

Baby giraffe, did you know that giraffe horns lay flat when they are born and they are the only horns that are covered with skin as adults?

One of the last places I stopped was the childrens section of the zoo and they had a building called “Spineless Marvels”. Having no idea what was inside but my curiosity peaked, I had to check it out and was not disappointed. The building contained some of the most interesting insects I had ever seen close up.

After leaving the San Diego Zoo I decided to head to Sunset Cliffs which were supposed to be one of the best places to watch the sunset. There is really no beach to speak off here and instead very rocky cliffs overlooking the Pacific Ocean which are quite beautiful. I got my tripod and camera gear setup and waited for the sun to fall... Here is what I came up with.

Finally, I was heading back to my hotel and needed to grab something for dinner... I decided to check Yelp on my phone and there was a BBQ joint close by with rave reviews. I was dubious about how California bbq could compare to the plethora of great places in Texas but the reviews persuaded me to check it out. As I walked up to Phil's BBQ I noticed a line which seemed odd for a restaurant and was floored when I realized the line was probably 200 + people long... I made my way to the take out line and ordered some pork ribs to go and actually briefly met the owner who was very friendly. Let me just say these were some of the best ribs I've ever had and if you are ever in San Diego checking out Phil's BBQ is an absolute must, finger licking good!

Thanks for reading my blog and as always any questions / comments please post below or email me at chris@pricelessperspectives.com