We headed to the zoo today hoping to see a bit of God’s creation up close and to take in the newly opened Africa section complete with three new lions.  We saw that alright, along with a couple hundred other people.

I’d like to say I’ve never seen it that busy before, but the truth is it was even busier on a visit we made on 7/2/07.  We had friends visiting us from out of town and we decided to spend Nigel’s birthday at the zoo.  My friend’s then 6-year-old son became separated from our party of 14.  The next few minutes were a flurry of panicked searching that shaved a few years off of my life.  I won’t pretend I didn’t have vivid memories of that today.

 

We didn’t lose anyone today, praise the LORD.  \o/   But it wasn’t the best visit we’d ever had.  To be sure, there WERE  highlights, and I trust that will be all that I recall as days go by.   Right now I am sipping a Pepsi and resting my head-counting eyes.  (I am a total head-counter and it wasn’t easy today!)

We did see some of the animals, of course.  But as always, I take more photos of people than of animals!  Stewart took a lot of video of animals so he can use them in the movies he makes on my iPod.  Since his latest passion is Narnia he was quite pleased to get many shots of animals. 

 

HIGHLIGHTS:

Big sisters teaching the “ins” and “outs” of the cougar observation tunnel.

Digging for fossils with new friends.

 

 

Eating a picnic lunch, complete with POPCORN… (minus the mint brownies we left at home – Wah) and watching middle-sized sister look after baby sister WITHOUT BEING ASKED.

Being asked if anyone in your group wants to help the zoo employees as they rehearse for this summer’s educational show.

She says they were heavy.  She doesn’t seem to mind though, does she? ♥

I was pretty impressed with the new lion/Africa area.  It was very nice.  Having been to that region of Kenya/Tanzania ourselves, I love to see reminders of our trip and of the Serengeti.  The other side of it, though, is I see how so many philanthropic groups and individuals in our area made donations to build the section and fund the upkeep.  I can’t help but wonder what the same money would do through the Open Door Mission, or Rochester Family Mission, or Compass Care, or Youth for Christ Rochester.  Yet, most children in our area, including mine, will never travel to Africa to see a wild lion, so maybe bringing them to us is the way to bless young (and older) minds.  It was pretty nice.  And fancy.

Now to join in the name-the-lions-contest.