Our last full day in Sydney was a "weather day". At 6 in the morning it was sunny, by 9 there were a few showers, and the wind was starting to pick up.
The plan was to take a ferry to see the Torango Zoo. This zoo is situated across the harbour from downtown Sydney, on the side of a hill. When you get off the ferry there is a sky tram that takes you to the top of the hill, where the zoo entrance is located. By the time we reached the top the wind was very strong, it was raining, and the wing had all the flags flying horizontally. There was an announcement that the sky tram was no longer running, because of the winds.
The zoo store did a great business selling umbrellas and rain gear. It was so chilly, mainly because of the wind, that some people bought fleecies.
It rained for an hour, on and off, then the blue skies returned. The wind never stopped, all day.
The zoo does not have a huge number of different animals, but what it does have is very well presented and maintained. The other nice thing is that many of the animals have large private quarters, and on a cold day, like yesterday, they were happy staying inside. To help the public to see the animals they schedule feeding times. Food will do it every time.
This way we had an opportunity to see the gorillas, orangutans, and chimps, up close.
The enclosures for these animals are huge. The apes, for example, have a play area, about the length of a football field, and half its width. The indoor facility is the size of a small house. There are lots of climbing equipment.
I was amazed by the size of the apes. The male gorilla was eating a head of lettuce, and it looked like an apple in his hand. The male orangutan was huge, and his fur hung on him like a long hairy fur coat. It was an amazing sight.
The birds are also amazing. Pigeons the size of wild turkeys, and lots of brilliant colours, iridescent blues, greens, and purples. Truly a wonderful sight.
The other lovely feature of the zoo are the great views of the city, as you walk down the hill.
On the way over the ferry guide pointed out the area, along the harbour, where house prices were in the 20 to 30 million dollar range.
One of the memories I will always have are the birds. Cockatoos, flying wild, or just pecking on the grass as I walk in a park. At this moment, while I am writing this blog on our patio, there is a multi-coloured parrot, green, blue, red, yellow, pecking at the seeds of a tree, not 3 meters away.
The sun is shining; Life is good.
Till the next trip
Ralf
The plan was to take a ferry to see the Torango Zoo. This zoo is situated across the harbour from downtown Sydney, on the side of a hill. When you get off the ferry there is a sky tram that takes you to the top of the hill, where the zoo entrance is located. By the time we reached the top the wind was very strong, it was raining, and the wing had all the flags flying horizontally. There was an announcement that the sky tram was no longer running, because of the winds.
The zoo store did a great business selling umbrellas and rain gear. It was so chilly, mainly because of the wind, that some people bought fleecies.
It rained for an hour, on and off, then the blue skies returned. The wind never stopped, all day.
The zoo does not have a huge number of different animals, but what it does have is very well presented and maintained. The other nice thing is that many of the animals have large private quarters, and on a cold day, like yesterday, they were happy staying inside. To help the public to see the animals they schedule feeding times. Food will do it every time.
This way we had an opportunity to see the gorillas, orangutans, and chimps, up close.
The enclosures for these animals are huge. The apes, for example, have a play area, about the length of a football field, and half its width. The indoor facility is the size of a small house. There are lots of climbing equipment.
I was amazed by the size of the apes. The male gorilla was eating a head of lettuce, and it looked like an apple in his hand. The male orangutan was huge, and his fur hung on him like a long hairy fur coat. It was an amazing sight.
The birds are also amazing. Pigeons the size of wild turkeys, and lots of brilliant colours, iridescent blues, greens, and purples. Truly a wonderful sight.
The other lovely feature of the zoo are the great views of the city, as you walk down the hill.
On the way over the ferry guide pointed out the area, along the harbour, where house prices were in the 20 to 30 million dollar range.
One of the memories I will always have are the birds. Cockatoos, flying wild, or just pecking on the grass as I walk in a park. At this moment, while I am writing this blog on our patio, there is a multi-coloured parrot, green, blue, red, yellow, pecking at the seeds of a tree, not 3 meters away.
The sun is shining; Life is good.
Till the next trip
Ralf
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