Wild Animal Park

We went to the San Diego Wild Animal Park yesterday. I always like going there, even though I've been many times before. When we first came to San Diego (we had only been here a few days), we decided to go to the Park for a quick visit before going shopping. Well, it's not really the kind of place you can get through in half an hour. Not only is it huge, acres and acres of parkland made into habitat for animals from all round the world, there are many gardens to walk through, not to mention different kinds of shows and talks going on throughout the park. We always like going to look at the giraffes, they are so calm and graceful, and you can even feed them if you arrive at feeding time.

The really cool thing about the wild animal park is that the animals have tons of room to wander around, they are not just sitting in a cage all day, and the zoo has made great efforts to breed endangered species and reintroduce them, with considerable success, back into the wild. There is a young lion cub at the park at the moment that can be viewed in a closed off area where it is being taken care of. It is amazing to see these animals so close. An interesting thing was that a young puppy (I think it was a bulldog) that was homeless after hurricane Katrina is being taken care of by the Wild Animal Park, and has become the playful companion of the young lion cub.

If you want an ariel view of the park, there a helium balloon that you can go up in. It doesn't actually go anywhere as it is tethered to the ground, but it looks like fun. I didn't go up in it, as I'd just eaten a plate of pasta, and wasn't sure the swaying and the height was a good idea at that point in time.

Of course, there are also the many gardens you can walk through. I really love the animals, but I also like the plants and flowers.

I know, however, that this is not everyone's idea of fun, as I once took my mother-in-law to the Park when she visited from England, and on her next visit she specifically requested NOT to visit the Wild Animal Park. She didn't really like walking, and there is quite a bit of walking involved.




If you are feeling energetic you can take a walk up to the Baja Gardens, then work your way back down to Nairobi Village and finish off with a drink or a visit to the souvenir shop.