Off to the Zoo!

Today's adventure was to visit the Singapore Zoo! This zoo uses the "open concept" idea for the animals, which means that the animals are kept in large landscaped enclosures with moats to separate them from people. The more dangerous animals, such as cheetahs, jaguars, etc. have glass enclosures to protect visitors. The zoo itself is enormous and averages at least 1.5 million visitors a year. For those of you interested in more about it, here's the website: http://www.zoo.com.sg/index.htm. It's hard to explain how large this place is and even though you can't make out the map very well in the picture below, it can at least give you an idea of how much there is to see. Definitely will have to take several trips to get it all in.
The first half hour or so was pretty miserable, because our poor daughter was not feeling well. She's still getting over her cold and it was very hot out. But after she settled in and cooled off a bit, she seemed to enjoy the sights.

Both Jacob & I were overwhelmed with everything there is to see. You don't know which way to look, because there are animals everywhere! Juliana's favorite part actually seemed to be the plants, of all things, but there was plenty of them.

About two hours into our visit, I was absolutely exhausted, which made it difficult to enjoy what I had been looking forward to most: the giraffes, zebras and flamingos. It's amazing how close you can get to the animals and they are so beautiful! I put some pictures of the animals on the shutterfly page for those of you interested.

The orang utans were also
a sight to see. The zoo uses "free ranging areas" to create a natural environment for the orang utans to swing around in. Other points of interest was the Cat Country, which allows visitors to get up close and personal with lions, jaguars, pumas and leopards. I was inches away from a gorgeous leopard relaxing in its enclosure.

I look forward to returning and being better prepared for the heat the second time around. Lots of fluids, snacks (because the ones inside the zoo cost a ridiculous amount of money) and a bathing suit for Juliana. There is also the Rain forest Kidzworld that we didn't have a chance to visit and I know Juliana would have really enjoyed it. It has rides, a water play area, a carousel and lots of other activities for kids.

Overall, the trip may have started a little rough with Juliana being a little miserable, but it ended up being a nice afternoon. We're learning more about how to properly prepare for an afternoon outing, specifically what to bring along and what to leave home. We have almost been here for a full month now and I am amazed at how fast the last several weeks have gone. There is so much to do out here, but we certainly will have the time to visit most of it!