Relaxing with the fishes...and the lorikeets!

Today, I decided to take a more low key approach to my day. Since I was heading down to Long Beach anyway to spend the night on the Queen Mary, I decided to do something leisurely and relaxing. It had been four years since I last visited the Aquarium of the Pacific, and I felt the urge to experience it again. Actually, I was really looking forward to feeding the lorikeets again. Yes, of all the animals at the aquarium, I love the Lorikeet Forest. After purchasing a cup of nectar...the sign at the booth said the birds are "Very Hungry"...I entered the bird enclosure. You're supposed to let the birds decide where and when to feed, but it didn't take long for a lorikeet to hop on my hand. It was soon joined by a second bird, after crawling up my shirt onto my shoulder and sitting on my head!

Needless to say, I had so much fun feeding the birds, I went back and got a second cup of nectar to have even more fun! Like the first time, I had two birds sitting on my arm arguing over the nectar. But, this time, only one bird won out.

Of course, I also enjoyed the many sea life exhibits at the aquarium. My favorites included the different types of jellyfish, colorful tropical fish, sea otters and bat rays...yes, I touched the bat rays! Oh, and the puffins were cute, too!

After a couple of hours at the aquarium, I was ready to check into my accommodations for the night.  I had two wonderful stays at the Queen Mary Hotel in the past, and it wasn't hard to decide to replicate those memories. This time around, I upgraded from the standard stateroom and booked a mini suite. The website said that the upper class staterooms were all different, and I was very pleased with mine. Two televisions, one in a separate sitting room and the always nice fridge. I don't really need the two bathrooms, but I'm not complaining!

Tomorrow is my last day in Los Angeles and I'll be going out with a bang, so to speak. A Big Bang. It will be another late night, so no blogging tomorrow night. But, I promise to catch up the next day! Stay tuned...