mini trip report -- the Bronx Zoo
Drew recently purchased membership -- that means free entry to the Bronx Zoo, the Central Park Zoo, the Prospect Park Zoo, the queens Zoo and the New York Aquarium.
It means that we got free admission to the zoo, free admission to the "extras" (like the gorilla exhibit, the butterfly garden, the monorail ride through Wild Asia...)
there was supposed to be a small group of us, but everyone else cancelled out, so it was just Drew and me.
I've always loved the zoo. We got a great day for it, warm and sunny. Easy ride from Long Island to the Bronx. Place was busy but not overly crowded.
As you walk through the zoo these days, it's very apparent what their mission is -- preserve and protect. And educate, of course. Lots of fun activities for the children to teach them about conservation. Story telling, books, even a 4D movie....
We parked near the Asia gate. As we walked in, I said "I'd love to see some peacocks today!" there was a news story a few weeks ago, one of the peahens escaped into the city for a few days....Sure enough, the first animal habitat we saw contained antelope and peacocks. Lots of peacocks, strutting their stuff and showing off for the hens -- who were ignoring them.
We walked over to Asia Plaza and rode the Wild Asia monorail -- that's a tour through habitats of Asian animals, including tigers, rhinos and elephants. We strolled through the Jungle World building, then headed out to the rest of the zoo. Many of the animals are grouped by geography (Asia, Africa, Himalayan Highlands), many others by type (World of Birds, Mouse House). Lots and lots of deer and antelope, lots and lots of monkeys and lemurs. Speaking of escapees, we had to visit the Reptile House and see the snakes (didn't see Mia, though....not sure where she's housed right now...but then again, I wasn't really looking for her either).
Favorite exhibits include the sea lions -- they're in a pool at the main entrance to the park. Most of them were sunning themselves on the rocks, but one unhappy fellow was swimming and barking. We saw lions and tigers and bears, also leopards, giraffes and polar bears. Saw one poor rhino with a missing horn.
We made lots of corny old jokes -- like "how do you stop a rhino from charging? take away his credit card!" Saw a crocodile and made a joke about "a croc of...." Saw another crocodile and made a joke about shoes. Lions sunning themselves were "just 'lion' around."
We ate in the cafe. Lots of choices here, and not just junk food. Drew had a personal pizza and I had a salad. Expensive but not bad.
Towards the end of the day we heard a rumble of thunder, and sought shelter in the gorilla exhibit. We were inside when the storm broke, but the poor gorllas were sitting outside.
we spent a good deal of the day walking, so by the time we got back to the car we were both exhausted! Definitely earned our cheeseburgers at Red Robin that night!
It means that we got free admission to the zoo, free admission to the "extras" (like the gorilla exhibit, the butterfly garden, the monorail ride through Wild Asia...)
there was supposed to be a small group of us, but everyone else cancelled out, so it was just Drew and me.
I've always loved the zoo. We got a great day for it, warm and sunny. Easy ride from Long Island to the Bronx. Place was busy but not overly crowded.
As you walk through the zoo these days, it's very apparent what their mission is -- preserve and protect. And educate, of course. Lots of fun activities for the children to teach them about conservation. Story telling, books, even a 4D movie....
We parked near the Asia gate. As we walked in, I said "I'd love to see some peacocks today!" there was a news story a few weeks ago, one of the peahens escaped into the city for a few days....Sure enough, the first animal habitat we saw contained antelope and peacocks. Lots of peacocks, strutting their stuff and showing off for the hens -- who were ignoring them.
We walked over to Asia Plaza and rode the Wild Asia monorail -- that's a tour through habitats of Asian animals, including tigers, rhinos and elephants. We strolled through the Jungle World building, then headed out to the rest of the zoo. Many of the animals are grouped by geography (Asia, Africa, Himalayan Highlands), many others by type (World of Birds, Mouse House). Lots and lots of deer and antelope, lots and lots of monkeys and lemurs. Speaking of escapees, we had to visit the Reptile House and see the snakes (didn't see Mia, though....not sure where she's housed right now...but then again, I wasn't really looking for her either).
Favorite exhibits include the sea lions -- they're in a pool at the main entrance to the park. Most of them were sunning themselves on the rocks, but one unhappy fellow was swimming and barking. We saw lions and tigers and bears, also leopards, giraffes and polar bears. Saw one poor rhino with a missing horn.
We made lots of corny old jokes -- like "how do you stop a rhino from charging? take away his credit card!" Saw a crocodile and made a joke about "a croc of...." Saw another crocodile and made a joke about shoes. Lions sunning themselves were "just 'lion' around."
We ate in the cafe. Lots of choices here, and not just junk food. Drew had a personal pizza and I had a salad. Expensive but not bad.
Towards the end of the day we heard a rumble of thunder, and sought shelter in the gorilla exhibit. We were inside when the storm broke, but the poor gorllas were sitting outside.
we spent a good deal of the day walking, so by the time we got back to the car we were both exhausted! Definitely earned our cheeseburgers at Red Robin that night!
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