A grassy shower

Having not yet had my fill of the zoo, although I was not so sure about its smells, I continued to visit some
of the other animals. Not wishing to stop on that limited time afternoon, to visit those that I was more familiar
with, I took a look a the white tigers, who were quite impressive, the wolves, that seemed hairier than others
that I had seen in the past as well as more ferocious and of course the other main attraction that I had come
to see, the African elephants.

Walking leisurely through the park and gardens, it is spotted with wooden buildings, that themselves lend a
charming and olde world look to the zoo. The lake, half frozen, hosts visiting magpies that reminded me of
home. More than an abundance of wooden benches are placed around and available for sitting and looking at
the lake and surroundings. There are nevertheless none placed in front of the cages and glass is used in the
inner enclosures to ensure safety. There are many keepers out and about, that are visible in their uniforms
and friendly and helpful if questioned.

To the left of the famous aquarium and dolphin show, is the elephant house. I arrived at feeding time. What
I enjoyed maybe, even more than the zoo itself, was seeing a large amount of the chinese, out and about with
young children, left to run free, not being carried or bundled up, but squeeling and shouting delightedly both
at the animals on display and at their own freedom. This in itself gave me tremendous joy, that at least here
at this spot, the parents and grandparents, as well as toddles and young children, felt at ease. Here I too
noted a stroller or two, being pushed by a native as opposed to an ex-pat. Admittedly it was a beautifully
mild day and for the first time I even felt a tinge bit warm in my fleece lined jacket.

The elephants, two large and one young one, at first gave me the benefit of there rear end, as they were busily
feeding themselves with an assortment of orange peel and apple. A keeper was injecting one of them in the
buttocks, as another distracted the animal by holding its large foot aloft with a special trainers stick. To the
amusement of all that were watching, as you can imagine, the creature didn't feel a thing!!

Pushing each other aside to be able to get to the juicier peels of fruit, the animals then proceeded to bathe
themselves with the surrounding hay. Blowing it up playfully, with their trunks and then throwing it over
their backs in apparent glee. It was a joyful sight indeed to see and I left that place, with cobwebs swept and
a happy smile on my face. There is no age limit on visiting the zoo.