Introduction to Art

We were lucky enough to be able to take a docent guided tour Introduction to Art while visiting the San Diego Museum of Art.  I say lucky because I have found that it is extremely rare for any art museum to be willing to give a single homeschool family a tour.  

Our Docent was astounding.  She kept Jaxon's attention the entire hour and kept him engaged.  She combined knowledge of history with knowledge of art. 

As they sat together she helped him learn that art was about looking closely at the individual piece in front of you.  By being able to have the confidence to express his own ideas and thoughts while appreciating art.  By teaching him to dissect a piece of art with his own eyes by connecting it to the past, other cultures, and life itself because art is about so many different levels of emotion.  It is opportunities like these that give our children the chance to learn and develop the skills they need to succeed not only in the art world but in life itself.

Roar and Snore

Roar and Snore Safari

We truly showed up with no excpectations just the excitement that we were finally able to do something we've been talking about doing for over a year now.  We were greeted by Jayme and an amazing animal meet and greet.  To be honest during our stay anytime we saw Jayme we knew our experience was going to be fantastic.  His enthusiasm was absolutely over the top fun!

After we were escorted in we were whisked away on our next adventure.  For seasoned safari park guests this was the African tram.   For everyone else the African tram is a guided tour that comes with your admission to the park.  The ride takes you on a paved path around parts of the African exhibit.  

We then headed to our tents with just enough time to change and head to dinner.  We had chosen the premium tent which was fully equipped with electricity, fans, heaters, a queen bed, and two cots.  We were located in Tent two.  Which had a stunning front row view of the African plains.   I could have sat on the porch all night just watching the animals roam.  Of course, that plan would not include an energetic six year old.  So we moved on quickly to dinner.  

After dinner we met up with Jayme again for another fantastic animal meet and greet. 

Our last stop before bed was a behind the scenes tour of the lions camp.  We have never done a behind the scenes tour through the safari park, so when I heard where we were headed it peeked my curiosity.  We went through the keepers area and learned how they fed and cared for the lions.  After, we were able to go to the back holding area to see the lions that had been in for the night.  There are two groups at the lions camp.  Each day the keepers rotate them giving them the ability to spend time in the open enclosure.  Tonight the Mother and Father were sleeping in the back quarters.  It was very dark and hard to make out any detail of the lions.  You were able to feel the presense of the lions size as you listened to them breathing deeply.

Soon our tour was over and we were led back to camp where we enjoyed s'mores around the fire pits and then off to bed!  By that time we were all very tired as we crawled into bed dreading our 6:15 wake up call. As I lay there at night the sounds of lions roaring was the most amazing experience that I could never have anticipated.  It had never crossed my mind that this would be one of my favorite moments during our safari adventure.  

The next morning came all to quickly our first wake up call was at 6:15 am with an announcement that we could venture down and visit both the Elephant and Lion exhibits.  Our first stop was for a cup of coffee then, we quickly changed and headed eagerly down to see the lions that had serenaded us through the night.  

They were still roaring when we arrived! It was such a awe-inspiring experience to see the lions and how the powerful roar from deep inside is delivered in such a magnificent, beautiful manner.

After we walked around a bit we headed back to camp to grab breakfast before we met our new guide who escorted us to to an animal encounter.  During this encounter we met a tawny frogmouth one of the oldest ambassadors of the Safari Park.  

Lastly we headed to the tigers exhibit to observe them.  I would like to express that the guide we had in the morning did not meet up to the standards of anyone we had interacted with the night prior and I believe our experience would have been completely different had we had him the night before.  He did not interact with the children at all and seemed to be standing behind us counting down the minutes until he would walk us to the entrance.  It was a sad moment as the high from the previous night quickly dropped into straight boredom, as we anxiously awaited for the tour to end.  

Our last activity of the day before heading home was not included in our roar and snore camping trip but was offered to us as an add on.  The Campers Caravan was the perfect ending to a phenomenal experience.  Jaxon had just turned six back in February so it was one of the tours we had yet to take.  We traveled in the back of a covered safari truck out into the Africa enclosure.  

This gave us the great opportunity to be able to feed a giraffe up close.  

This is a one-of-a-kind experience.  We had been at other safari camping trips in the past but none have equalled the excitement and organization we encountered at San Diego Safari Park.  It is the closest I have ever come to being on a true african safari.  Maybe one day I'll make it to Africa but,  I am not sure if the sounds of the lions at night would make me as comfortable.

Climbing the California Tower

The California Tower recently opened to the public for the first time since 1935 . When you purchase California Tower tickets you also receive all day admission to the Museum of Man.  This was an added bonus for us since we had been wanting to look around the museum for future visits.  We were so excited to be able to experience this historical tour.  The building was constructed for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition and has remained an icon ever since.  The Tower and Dome covered in carvings and beautiful tile reminded me of a Alcazar I would have found during my time spend in Spain.  Once we climbed the tower we were able to take in 360 degree views of the entire city and beyond to Mexico.  

Prior to beginning the tour we were all a little nervous of what to expect.  Once we began the climb we immediately knew we were more then capable to climb to the top.  Each time we climbed a flight of stairs we would stop and learn a piece of history prior to climbing the next flight.  This helped keep the attention of all age levels,

The last set of stairs you come to is a spiral staircase which you are only allowed to climb one at a time.

The view was well worth the climb!