The Moretons Amazing California Adventure - Day 11

[LLKJDisney]

DAY 11 – SEAWORLD

As usual we were up early again, the forecast today was for cloudy skies but we were delighted to see nothing but blue sky when we got up. Breakfast was the normal boring fair but in the new house sat on the balcony having a nice English brew was heaven!

We finished exploring the house and made use of the washing machine and dryer. We were off to Seaworld today and it didn’t open until 10am, so we had a bit of time to kill, as it was only a 5-minute drive away. The boys were desperate to go on the beach but we held them off and went for a walk along the bay. The views were amazing, it was so peaceful. We crossed over the road and went for a look at the beach and it was equally amazing. Rollerbladers, cyclists and joggers passed us. We just took a gentle stroll taking in the views. We were all so happy with the house and location.

We dragged ourselves away from the ocean view and set off for Seaworld. We found it very easily and paid our $16 to park. The entrance to the park seemed busy but not packed, we were soon through the turnstiles although the park was not open yet. We checked out the ‘cleaner fish’ exhibit. You put your hands in the water and the fish eat the dead skin on your hands. It took Jacob a while but once he put his hands in he loved it. We moved round to the underwater viewing area for Shamu, but all we saw was water as the whales weren’t keen to come out.


The park was then officially opened with the National Anthem, which was observed by everyone. We watched the Dolphins at Dolphin point, they were very lively.

Lee, Dick and Me then went on to the Manta which only had a short queue. We were on within 10 minutes. Now I love this ride in Orlando but I found this version very under whelming, the first few seconds was excellent but then it was very tame. Does anyone else feel the same?

Only Lee fancied the rapids so we gave them a miss, we continued walking round the park and looked at the ‘washed ashore sculptures’. They were brilliant, made from all the items found along the coastline.


We wanted to make the first Sea lion show at 11.30am so we made our way round to the stadium. Although we were there in plenty of time there were not many seats left. The pre show act was very good, very similar to the mime artist in Orlando. There was no roof on the stadium so it was very hot with the sun beating down on us. The main show was excellent and very funny, although there were lots of references to US TV shows.

view from the top of the stadium

It was time for our daily ice cream but unfortunately there was nowhere close by that sold them so we settled for a shamu bar. Lucas managed to get more on him than in his mouth, he was in a right mess. After cleaning up Lucas we went into the fresh water aquarium and checked out the shark encounter, which seemed quite small.


Jacob wanted to go on a ride called ‘riptide rescue’ which basically just spun round, I wasn’t keen so it fell to daddy to take him on. They got off and Jacob loved it, Lee said it was horrible and felt sick.


The boys wanted to feed the sealions so we purchased our super slimy fish and tried to avoid the huge birds nicking the fish before they got to the sealions. I must say the feeding tubes were a good idea and stopped the birds getting to the fish.

Moving on we came to the Sesame Street themed play area, the boys loved it. There were cargo nets, slides and rope swings. The hardest part was getting the boys out. Sue and Dick took the time to rest in this area Long days and our 2 little monkeys taking their toll on them.

It was now 1.30pm and we wanted to catch the 2pm Shamu show. There were only 2 shows a day so we knew it would be busy. Although the stadium was ¾ full we still had a good view of the show. Before the main show there was a good video about how a grey whale was rescued and then cared for at Seaworld before being returned to the ocean. The main show it self was full of energy but definitely not the same without the trainers being in the water.


On the way to Wild Artic we fed the Flamingo’s. We went into Wild Artic in the hope of seeing an active Polar Bear, in all the times we have visited Seaworld we have never seen a Polar Bear move an inch. Well guess what we still haven’t, all we could see was a big paw poking out the side of a cave. The Beluga whales were very active and very cool, the boys enjoyed touching the ice wall, which was freezing. Jacob was desperate to see the penguins so we went there next, he finds them very funny.

Lee and I then wanted to go on Journey to Atlantis, it was only posted as a 5 minute wait however we soon found out it was more like 25 minutes. This was mainly due to the most incompetent ride operator in the world. The lady was absolutely clueless, she was sending off boats with 2 people in them and sometimes-empty boats were going through because she couldn’t get organised. When we did get on the ride we both felt there was more of a coaster element to this one than the one in Orlando. We didn’t get very wet but that was mainly because we let a father and son have the front row instead of us. Lee said this showed we were getting old as 10 years ago we wanted to be on the front of everything.

As JTA had taken longer than expected we had to rush over to the Dolphin stadium to catch the 4pm show. Lee said it would be ok as it wouldn’t be that busy as it was the 2nd show of the day. Well when arrived there was only about 10 seats left, so he could not have been more wrong. Although we were at the back we still had a good view, but to be honest it didn’t matter as the show was rubbish. There was a total lack of energy and imagination. No atmosphere was generated and people were leaving half way through, definitely the worst show we have seen at Seaworld. We expected something similar to Blue Horizons but it was nothing like it.

Our tummies were now rumbling and it was time to head for the exit. It had been a good day; the crowds had been less hectic and very manageable. Definitely not as good as Orlando but certainly worth a visit if you enjoy Seaworld parks.

We fancied Olive Garden for tea and our Sat Nav said there was one 3 miles away at Sports Arena Blvd. Unfortunately it was either not there anymore or we were blind, as we could not find it. Lee spotted a Chilli’s opposite, so we went there. It was quite empty when we arrived but it was still early, the boys enjoyed the console they were given as it had games on.


I was happy to see Fajitas on the menu although a little disappointed to be given only 3 wraps, especially as there was a mountain of food. Everyone enjoyed their meal; only Lee and Dick had room for pudding although Jacob did order an extra Corn on the Cobb for his pudding. Does anyone else have a 7 year old who orders corn on the cob for his or her pudding?
The bill was split but for the 4 of us it came to around $60.
While we were having our meal we got talking to a very friendly guy, in the booth next to us who was in the navy and had been stationed in San Diego. He gave us a few tips on where to go and what to do while in the area, He had his 3 children with him and I have to say they were immaculately behaved throughout.

We got back to the house just before 6.30pm; Jacob still had energy and wanted to play football on the beach. We said we would go to the bay for a kick about, it was so lovely the sun was still out, we were the only ones on there. It was so good to sit and watch the boys enjoy themselves. Everyone who walked past (mainly dog walkers) spoke and said good evening. I can’t really describe it or do it justice with pictures but I knew it was a million miles away from normal life and I could have stayed here forever.



It was starting to get dark so we took the 1-minute walk back to the house. We tried to remove all the sand from our bodies; another great thing about the house was that there was a bathroom on the ground floor so we could shower before trekking the sand through the house.

The boys were soon asleep and the adults were not far behind them. Our first full day in San Diego had been brilliant and we all spoke about how happy we were. We watched a bit of the Voice, before going to bed. Tomorrow we are off to USS MIDWAY.

[smedley]

Another fabulous day, the location of the house is perfect, lovely to be able to walk to the beach.