A Day at the Zoo

The day after our beach adventure, John and I decided to take further advantage of the nice weather with a trip to the zoo! One of the nice things about some of attractions around Syndey is that they require a cheap harbor ferry to get there. So, instead of paying for a more expensive harbour cruise, you just hop on a ferry and get your own little tour. As we pulled out of Circular Quay, we passed right by the Sydney Opera House.

We got there and were able to take a nice gondola ride up to the zoo entrance, rather than walking up hill the whole way. It was nice to see it from up above, and it was actually quite large!

It wasn't too crowded, considering the fact that it was a nice Saturday afternoon. There were a fair bit of young children running around, though. It was also a bit of a touristy thing to do but it had plenty of animals that you don't get to see in any zoo in the U.S., so for us it was worth a visit.

We got to see Koalas, which used to be my favorite animal when I was younger. In fact, what they call "Koala cuddling" or basically getting to hold one, is one of the things that I REALLY want to do while we are here. Apparently they outlawed it in New South Wales (the state that Sydney is in) a few years back, but you can still do it in Queensland. 

We also got to see Kangaroos and Wallabies. As we were walking through their exhibit--which was pretty much an open space with just a pathway through it and a big wall surrounding it, there was a zoo keeper there feeding a wallaby and letting people pet it. Everyone was hovering around it and I felt kinda bad for the thing, so I just got a quick picture and got out of the way. 

We also saw some other native Australian animals--a platypus, wombat, and a cassowary--which is a type of big native bird. 

We also saw some other cool animals not necessarily native to Australia--like meerkats and a Komodo dragon. 

We also saw the Fierce snake, which is the world's most venomous land snake! It was surprisingly active--slithering around it's exhibit and it was troublesomely plain looking--it was just tan and blended in with the dirt. I think the general rule in Australia is to avoid any and all snakes at all costs. 

But anywho, we had a nice mosey through the zoo. At one point John and I ran into a peacock that was having a fight with it's reflection on the side of a mirror-covered building! It was kinda funny, John got some video:

Overall it was a day well spent, as it actually gave you a great view of Sydney harbor. The giraffes having one of the best views in the place!

Now, I just hope to be able to see some of these animals in the wild at some point!