Houston Zoo--Have You Been Lately???

Seriously, I'm asking you: Have you been to the Houston Zoo lately? Lonnie and I realized we haven't been there in probably two years. We renewed our (looooong overdue) membership today after noticing before ever getting to the entrance all the new "touches" to the area.

I have to say that I could go to the zoo, never see one creature and STILL be mesmerized by all the beautiful plants, trees, and blooms. Their horticulturists are absolutely amazing because there is breathtaking scenes everywhere. There are walking paths with placards telling you about the plants, a butterfly garden, and lush, lush landscaping in general. Even the children's zoo is much improved, although the Discovery Zone is closed (don't know why) and of course, the amazing touch tank that had sting rays (barbs removed) has long been gone probably due to someone at some point abusing the privilege of being able to "pet" those incredibly graceful underwater "ballerinas". That's what sting rays remind me of when they are moving through the water--they have a continuous, graceful "wave" or movement that allows them to glide effortlessly through the water and even up the walls of their environment.

We were truly speechless with the Birds in the Tropical Rain forest, part of the Tropical Bird House. Even children who walked onto the bridge were immediately hushed into silence, which is the quality that the area provokes. The quieter you are, the more birds you see. The "bridge" not only has birds and other creatures below, there's also a whole lot more of them overhead in these huge fiddle fig trees, vines, and other humongous trees, plants, and rocks.

The best part of the day, besides spending it with my husband, was having the incredible luck of walking up to a "feeding" of one of the Bengal tigers, a female named Hannah. We were literally about two feet from the clear Plexiglas that separated us from her. The keeper, Sara, would mold raw meat onto the end of what looked like a sharpening steel (click here for a picture of one) that is used to sharpen knives. She would then stick that into the "cage-like wall", probably 3"x3" square openings, to feed Hannah. I love to see animals up close, but the bigger animals are just majestic and regal.

Hannah was no exception. Even when she was "hissing" (which is much more aggressive than your average domestic cat) after realizing that Sara had no more meat for her, she was the most hypnotizing creature for me. I could've stood there and watched her for hours. Maybe I should've followed in Jane Goodall's footsteps only with the feline-type creatures instead of primates.

It was a great day, even with summer-like temperatures threatening that summer really is here, humidity that made me perspire just by sitting, and rain clouds looming overhead every now and then wanting to spill torrential rains on us.

-a-