They'd closed early yesterday because bits were falling off trees everywhere, and none of the animals would come out (more sense than humans). The journey passed very pleasantly with interesting chats with complete strangers. (I'll talk to anyone, and obviously so will they!)
The big cats were very obliging. The tiger was beating the bounds of his territory. The lion had to stir to sort out his two ladies who were having a bit of a punch-up. The serval was being a bit of a poser.
The giraffe wasn't sure whether it was safe to come out.
The squirrel monkeys had gone in to enjoy a meal. Turnip seemed to be the favourite. They kept rubbing it on branches or the glass, maybe to tenderise it, but it didn't seem to have much effect.
The parrot keepers regaled me with stories about how the Hyacinths excavated a hole in the breeze block wall overnight, and both pairs were together in one room. On another occasion they made short work of the new perches and fittings some workmen put in, dismantling the whole lot in an hour, unscrewing bolts and everything.
Best of all was the relative shortage of humans. At Easter the zoo is opening the new Gorilla Kingdom, which will be great, but I think it will be like a zoo there then...
5 comments:
Great pun there Val, "it'll be like a zoo". hahaha
Loved the pictures! It looks like such a great zoo. I've been to the ones in San Fran and Oakland and they are small, dirty and run down. I wish they'd transfer the animals to a decent zoo and close them down.
At the SF Zoo, they let the public watch the feeding of the big cats. Unfortunately a tiger turned on one of the handlers a couple of weeks ago and tore off her arm. They are rethinking the policy on letting the public watch.
Keepers aren't allowed in with big cats over 18 months old - we lost some in zoos where contact was allowed with full-grown animals.
London Zoo isn't very big. When I was a kid, it was grim - cages with concrete floors, and obviously mad tigers pacing. It's much better now, though it's only a few years since they moved out the elephants after one stomped a keeper's head. They have a wildlife park in the countryside and the elephants were sent there.
Despite living only an hour or so outside London,we've only been to the Zoo once.thoroughly enjoyed it,but public transport makes it a bit of a nightmare to get to :(
Maybe this year we'll go again,but if we don't I hope you'll keep supplying the pictures
Eliza xxxxx
Hi Val, Good to se your survived the storm. It's been here very stormy too, 6 people died.
I live in a corner flat on the top floor, it was very noisy and scary.
They closed the Zoo in Rotterdam (Artis) during the storm. Great pictures of the animals.
What a great day out you had... I was terrified. The air conditioning unit in my office became dislodged, the winds were howling and something was going on above my head either on the office roof or above the ceiling. I really have never been so nervous and I've lived in a war zone before....
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