Amazingly, I was away from my laptop all weekend. It was glorious. I love blogging but being on a computer all day for work sometimes makes blogging tedious.
It was great to get away.
This picture is from Saturday night while walking among the twinkling trees downtown. We ate at a new Thai restaurant with Peter’s dad and stepmom then started watching the Godfather, Part 1. I had never seen it before and was delightfully entertained. They just don’t make movies like that any more.
So back to Saturday.
We got up early for a fun day at Busch Gardens! I used to go there all the time as a kid. My best friend and I would go dozens of times in the summer with our one piece bathing suits, athletic shorts, water shoes, and pigtails. Man we looked good.
It had been almost 4 years since my last visit and it felt almost like coming home. I know BG like the back of my hand! I had to guide Peter in the right direction every time he took a wrong turn. I don’t know, maybe it’s not good to be intimately familiar with a theme park haha.
The lines for most of the rides were short so we were able to breeze through the park, screaming our heads off along the way. I think we both forgot how intense roller coasters are because we screamed and laughed hysterically the entire time.
BG also has a great zoo featuring African animals like lions, hyenas, meerkats, zebras, ostriches, and my favorite… giraffes! We were lucky enough to watch a female giraffe eat from an impossibly tall tree with her long black tongue deftly securing a branch. It was incredible! Did you know that they have only 7 vertebrae just like humans? They are so cool! I want one.
We also saw zookeepers feeding the lions and hyenas by throwing large meatballs across an abyss into the animals’ mouths and paws. That is definitely a smart way to feed big predators.
Our final ride was a wet trip down Congo River Rapids where we got blasted with a jet of water in the first 5 seconds. That was annoying. By the end of the ride we were completely soaked. That was ok because it started pouring rain! We waited in line for Sheikra while it stormed for almost an hour and a half then decided to just leave since all rides were closed. Of course as soon as we leave, the weather clears up. Whatever.
But overall Busch Gardens was fun like always! It is a definite “do” if you visit the Tampa Bay Area.
Just get ready to scream your face off.
Kirsten Captures 
