Today we braved the second attempt at the Melbourne Zoo and were victorious! The first attempt if you have not read previous posts ended with Cian running away from a time out just before we got to the zoo gate and we turned around and walked the 40 minutes home again - him sobbing all the way. Tough love prevailed however and behaviour was amazing this time around.
It was hot today in Melbourne and I have begun to welcome the breezes that brought shivers just days ago. We had heard great things about the zoo and after crepes for breakfast we were off. We walked the 40-45 minutes (mostly uphill) and got to the beautiful zoo entrance. I'm not sure I've been to a zoo with palm trees and bamboo before. The Melbourne Zoo is set up with two large circles in the middle and the exhibits go out from there. The map has pictures of the animals on it and our little cartographer was very interested in being the captain of our zoological adventure. First were the elephants, we got to see the big bull eating up close which the kids loved. Keith's favourite part of the entire zoo day was watching elephants eat whole watermelons. We hung out with the elephants for quite a while actually, watching the little baby and the big bull taking a bath. Emily wanted to pretend she was an elephant and would raise her fake trunk and then giggle in hysterics - it was pretty adorable.
We then went to the Orangutan enclosure which was amazing. The viewing areas they have to see the animals are really well done. The Orangutans were huge and came right up to the glass. Stunning. What a great way to get kids interested in animals and conservation.
Next were the seals and on the way we ran into an open sting ray tank that was waist height for kids. I was taking Emily up to see them when the STING RAY JUMPED ONTO THE ROCK! Did anyone know that rays could jump? It hopped up about half a foot and then it was gone again. Nowhere did it say this was a petting area for rays but of course there were the people that stuck their hands in the tank which Cian saw so he did get a quick pet in before I whisked him off to the seals. I didn't catch him before he got his hand in the water because I was still reeling from the fact that a ray jumped at me. I can't imagine they aren't pet on a regular basis though because they were the friendliest rays I have ever seen. Cian thought it was amazingly cool. We went inside to the little aquarium in the zoo where there was a seal and penguins, seahorses and many varieties of fish. It's neat that they have a little aquarium there despite the fact there is a large aquarium downtown (we have yet to go there). We didn't see the penguins inside but did get to see the little sand-dwellers outside. They are a similar breed to the ones that live on Phillip Island and a lot easier than taking our kids out there.
We then had lunch at the playground and carousel. The playground has a tent canopy over it which was a brilliant idea by someone who I would like to thank because in the height of midday it's a beautiful thing to have your pale Irish children be shielded from the sun. After lunch we went to see the Australian animals. We went into the Platypusary (that was the name) and in the darkness (they are nocturnal) saw the platypus diving around in the tank. I have never seen a platypus in real life and it was amazing. They don't look real at first. Cian loved him so much I had to promise we would see him again before we leave. The platypus was a definite highlight. We also saw the koala bears. Yay victory is mine - koala sighting (even if it's in a zoo). We saw kookabura, wombats, emus, wallabys and kangaroos. The wallabys, kangaroos and emus are in an open area where you stay on the trail but there is no real fence between you and the animals which is neat.
We then saw the baboons and this guy clandestinely handed one of them grass through the bars and the babboon looked around to make sure no one was looking and then took it. I'm pretty sure it was a reenactment of something from Orange is the New Black.
We then saw the platypus again (I did promise) and on our way out saw this kids playland with a big exhibit of Meerkats. There's a variety of tunnels kids can climb through and then you can pop your head up through glass bubbles into where the meerkats live. The bubbles were a little tall for my little guy though so I climbed in with him to lift him up. He was the envy of the other kids in the play yard and it was totally worth getting dusty climbing through the tunnels to see how excited he was to learn about meerkats. There was also a play area about giant tortoises. Cian said they were "enormous" so now I would like to call them "enormous tortoises". One was right by the short rung fence (you could sit on the fence beside him) and when I sat on the ground beside him he stuck his neck out right beside Emily and I. It was pretty neat.
We didn't even see all there was to see at the zoo but had a great (and full day). There were no naps and lots of sunshine and fresh air but everyone was happy getting to spend the day with new and exciting animals. Keith actually got a membership since he will likely go again with the kids while I'm at work. Cian could spend half a day in that meerkat playground. We also realized that the train runs up to the back of the park so they could get there by train which would be ideal. The membership was the cost of going 3 times (including this time) and includes all 3 zoos in Melbourne so I'm sure we'll use it. Plus the money goes to conservation so I'll contribute to anything that helps these animals survive for generations to enjoy...our two generations definitely did today.
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