We are back from Omaha where we went for her Great-Uncle George’s 80th birthday. Maria got to meet lots of cousins and, of course, they all adored her. She was her usual sweet self, very cuddly and affectionate. There were 3-4 hair pulling incidents but we warned them beforehand so they were patient about it. No biting though!
One of the places we went was the Henry Doorly Zoo which is the best zoo I’ve ever been to. Maria had a terrific time watching all the animals. She was fascinated by the penguins, trying to track them as they swam – penguins are fast underwater. She also loved the jellyfish, the waterfalls in the jungle display, and the fish in the aquarium. The aquarium display is a glass tunnel so the fish were swimming all around us and over our heads. Maria loved watching them and got a big smile when a ray swam right over her face.
What was really cute was how much the animals loved her. A fruit bat landed on her fingers. A gorilla stared at her. The most amazing moment was the meerkats. There were about eight people already lined up watching them. The instant we came around the corner, every one of the meerkats turned to stare directly at Maria. Two of them scurried over and were trying to dig out of the cage to get to her! They ignored everybody else once the princess came along.
On another day we went to an exhibition on chocolate at the Durham Museum. Maria tasted some chili-infused chocolate that she really liked, although I think the spiciness got to her after a bit. Other than that it was mostly hanging out at George’s and chatting with the relatives.
She slept a lot on the trip, which is good. She got exhausted from all the stimulation but was very happy. On the day we went to the zoo she didn’t get a chance for a nap, but never got cranky like she usually does. Overall it was a great little vacation.