The parks and gardens of New York City are full of fury critters like squirrels and chipmunks, we take a look at some squirrels playing on the lawns.
Posts under ‘Animals’
Singapore Zoo’s orang utans
The Singapore Zoo is one of the world’s great zoos, set in lush rain forest it is one of this small island country’s biggest tourist attractions. The zoo has a huge array of animals from all over the world but by far the most popular is the beautiful orang utans. The Singapore Zoo has 24 of these amazing orange primates making it the largest display in any zoo around the world. The orang utans are part of a huge social group which have a huge been successfully bred in the zoo, to date they have bred 35 and many of them have been sent to zoos around the world to help grow the numbers of this highly endangered ape. The orang utans live in a huge free range enclosure complete with natural jungle with plenty of places to swing and play with others or and get some quiet time. The exhibit gives the visitor a chance to see them in a close to natural environment with some great platforms and viewing areas where you can really get up close to them without disturbing.
Sheepworld – New Zealand where else!
Well New Zealand is known for its sheep and there’s no better way to get up close to these woolly critters than a visit to Sheepworld. Sheepworld is located about a 40 minute drive through the scenic country side to the north of Auckland and offers a truly New Zealand farm experience. Not only does sheepworld have plenty of sheep they give visitors a wonderful insight into the importance of the New Zealand wool industry, its production, and uses. There are sheep shearing demonstrations, sheep dog shows and plenty of farm animals including sheep, donkeys, goats, calves, pigs to see. There’s even a few emu and pesky possums from Australia on show. The expansive farmland is also a great place to explore and have a picnic making a real day of it. Don’t forget to bring a few dollars for the great gift shop either, there are some really cool things to buy.
Teeing off with a roo
Anglesea on Australia’s Great Ocean road only minutes from Geelong in Victoria is home to one of the world’s most unique golf courses. The greens are shared by golfers and hundred’s of Australia’s national symbol the Kangaroo. These delightful grey kangaroos gracefully hop around the course picking the lush greens not giving a second thought for the golfers or the balls flying across the green. The Anglesea Golf Club is surrounded by bushland which is the perfect habitat for kangaroos and everyday they come onto the green for a nibble or maybe just a lay in the sun. The kangaroos usually don’t give the golfers much problem but they are sometimes not as cute and cuddly as they look they have very sharp claws and extremely strong rea legs and have been known to inflict serious injury on people when alarmed. Kangaroos like many of Australia’s other unique animals are best viewed at a distance.
A whale of a time
The magnificent Orca or Killer Whale are the highlight attraction at San Diego’s Seaworld park. These massive mammals live in over 7 million litres of water an have been the major drawcard to this popular park since the 1960s performing to millions of visitors. The park currently has seven of killer whales but they have a huge variety of other amazing animals to thrill young and old including the pacific walruses who are so cute. Dolphins, penguins, sharks and otters are also hugely popular exhibits and many are part of several daily shows which are held in the park where people can see the animals up close and learn about their threat of survival from pollution, over hunting and climate change. Seaworld is home to more than animals they have a huge amount of fun for the whole family, with dozens of rides and attractions including boat rides, simulator rides and the skytower which gives a panoramic view over the park. The Sesemae Street team are on hand for the youngsters and there are plenty of dining and shopping options. Seaworld is a great day out in Southern California.
Alligator capital of the world
Well we think of Orlando, Florida as being home to the huge Walt Disney Resort, Universal Studios and Sea World but did you know that Orlando is also the Alligator capital of the world. Well Gatorland on the Orange Blossom Trail in Kissimmee not far from Mickey and his friends is home to 110 acres of Alligators, crocs and other leathery reptiles. The park dates back to 1949 and was founded by Owen Godwin who’s family still run the park today. The park is great fun and the kid’s really love getting up close to some of the huge reptiles and there’s nothing like feeding time. The park is also an important learning and conservation area and home to many rare and threatened animals- not just reptiles but birds, amphibians and mammals. The park takes about half a day to cover and is a great way to kick back and enjoy a little quieter pace in between the queueing and hustle and bustle of Orlando’s huge theme parks.
Beware the baboons
Safari Parks are always a bit of a hoot, some of our favorites animals at many safari parks are the baboons who can be clever little devils as seen in the video above put out by the Knowsley Safari Park in the UK. Apparently the baboons have figured out how to open luggage boxes you find on top of cars to get to all the treats inside. The park is asking people who have the boxes to avoid the baboon section and staged the video above to show us all how the baboons get into the boxes. If the little rascals ever get to see any of the Planet of the Apes movies we could all be in trouble.
A view over KL
The KL tower or Menara in the Malaysian capital is a magnificent place to view the city. The tower is actually the city’s highest observation tower, the Twin Towers only offer public viewing from the skybridge linking the towers. Being the fifth highest telecommunications tower after towers in Canada, Russia, China and Iran the structure is a pretty impressive engineering feat. The tower features an antenna reaching 421 metres and viewing pod and revolving restaurant at 276 metres and offers some breathtaking views. The tower open-ended in 1996 and has been one of KL’s major tourist destinations ever since. The tower now features a mini zoo with some amazing native animals including reptiles, amphibians and monkeys, a interesting themed snow park complete with cement polar bears, penguins and snowmen and some magnificent rainforest including a 100 year old jelutong tree which was saved from construction of the tower.
Wall Street’s Charging Bull
The Charging Bull is one of the most recognisable pieces of art around New York Wall Street financial district. Weighing in at over 3200 kg and standing 11 feet tall and 16 feet long the huge bronze bull was sculptured by Arturo Di Modica as a symbol of Strength and Power to the American People after the 1987 stock market crash. The artwork was actually a piece of guerrilla art by the artist who had it installed under the stock exchange Christmas tree in 1989. The statue was seized by police and impounded but after public outcry was brought back and installed a little up the road at Bowling Green. The statue today is one of New York City’s most photographed and loved sculptures with thousands posing with the bull every day. Some pose beside the head and horns of the beast while just as many want to pose with the rather graphic rear end.
A donkey of a time in Tijuana
Visitors to the Mexican / USA border tourist town of Tijuana might be a bit surprised to see Zebras in the main streets. Well on closer inspection you will see that they aren’t zebras but donkeys that have been painted up to look like the stripy African critters. The idea dates back to the 1940’s when the owners came up with a solution to the problem of donkeys shiny greyish fur being washed out by the sun in black and white photographs. Today there are Tijuana Zebras on many of the major tourist intersections around Tijuana and for a few Peso and a bit of bargaining you can have your photo taken with them as a memento of your visit to the city. Tijuana is a easy day trip from southern California. Just jump on one of the red trolleys from San Diego and after a 15 minute walk through the border control you are in Tijuana. Tijuana is home to some great shopping and dining, with great value, but like everywhere people should take care with their personal belongings and keep their wits about where they are as some parts of this city are deemed unsafe. But Staying to the tourist areas you are bound to have a great experience.
