North to the Bay: Fish and Friends

June 22

This morning I visited the Monterey Aquarium.  This place is absolutely amazing… one of the best I have ever seen.  I thought the $35 entrance fee was a bit steep for an aquarium, but it was totally worth it.

The jellyfish display was the most interesting I have seen since diving in Jellyfish Lake in Pulau (Micronesia).  In Jellyfish Lake the  critters have been without natural predators for so long that they have lost their sting, so we could swim through clouds of them.  I don’t think the same can be said for the aquarium’s collection.  Best not to touch, but these things are poetry in motion. 

The sea dragons (a kind of sea horse) are among the strangest critters in the sea.  I’ve never seen one in the wild, but they are fascinating. 

My next stop was Santa Cruz, where I visited our friend Claire Sears and stayed with her son John.  We had a nice dinner on the pier and evidently I influenced John to get his old motorcycle back in shape and on the road.  Never too many bikers!