Since it was our last day in the city, auntie M made sure our schedule was jammed pack with actions! We started the day with the
Academy of Sciences-another super cool place to visit in the Golden Gate Park.
Lucky for us, auntie M is a member of the academy, so we got to go in with her for free~
We got there in the morning with bus load of school kids pouring in the building, so Auntie M suggested we start with the biggest feature of the academy-the rain forest! The rain forest is housed in a four story glass building with spiraling ramps. And with each ascending ramp we got to visit a different level of the forest. We got to see a lot of birds and butterflies up close. I kinda rushed thru the whole thing because they kept the temperature in there just like the real Amazon-super hot and humid! And it was not exactly the temperature I wanted while being surrounded by hundreds of school kids! Maybe we'll come back next time in the afternoon, after all the school trips leave.
Z was so curious about everything she saw...
Once we reached the top level of the rain forest, there was an elevator that took us down to the basement, where we got to visit another much anticipated exhibit-the aquarium! Granted the Academy is not Monterey Aquarium, we were pleasantly surprised at how extensive the exhibit was.
Haha Z was tired! Not a bad place to nap, sleeping with the fishes (and walk away when you're done!)
Having a snack to recharge.
Q's mom told us about a playroom for toddlers inside the academy, so Z and I paid it a visit. It was cute, had a boat and a tree house where the kids could climb and pretend to cook, sleep, even steer the boat. The only thing we didn't enjoy was how crowded it was. And also I met some parents I didn't appreciate. Sharing shouldn't be a one way street. That's just my personal opinion.
Z the boat captain!
The food at the academy was crazy expensive. Ok so it was organic but it still didn't justify the price. Good thing we packed some treats from home so we only got a hot soup to share. The whole time we ate and rested our legs the rain drizzled in the court yard, so the hot soup really hit the spot. See how Z enjoyed hers??
After our light lunch we walked around the academy a little bit more (and saw the white alligator-apparently he's famous) auntie M picked us up and off we went to east bay. Both Z and I were so beat and we completely passed out in the car ride and didn't wake up til we got to Q's house.
After a much needed nap, it was snack time (again!) Thank you Q's mommy for a healthy & yummy treat!
Q is auntie M's nephew. He's about two months younger than Z. I've been seeing Q on Facebook and looking forward for Z to meet Q for awhile. Z was her usual self, as soon as she got in the house and saw the toys she just threw herself in! Haha definitely no sign of restraint there!
Q was such a generous lil host. He had (almost) no problem sharing toys with Z :0D
At night we went back to the city to visit auntie X at her house. We've never been to her place before and it was the first time Z met Hazelnut the rabbit. He was fearless and oh so friendly-he kept going up to Z to check her out! Tonight's dinner was in auntie X's neighborhood. I really don't think I can find bad tasting restaurants with my foodie friends by my side...
The next day we flu home. On our flight was the Standford men's swim team. For the whole entire hour Z couldn't sit still and she kept oogling at all the college guys. Haha I thought it was funny how a 17 months old knew to check out young hot guys, but I doubt Z's dad would share my view (hehe!)
We had such a fun-filled trip to the city, all thanks to all the aunties who took time out to show us around, take us to their favorite restaurants, open their home to make us feel welcome, and research about toddler friendly places for Z. We couldn't thank you guys enough!
