Taking the Animals to the Zoo!

After a long week, trapped indoors behind a construction barrier, with nothing but homework and video games to keep the kids entertained, the last thing we need is to spend a long Saturday under the same conditions! On Saturdays like today, getting out of the house is obligatory ... and what better place to take one's wild animals than to the zoo!

Rio de Janeiro's zoo is not exactly the most modern zoo I've been to ... nor the most politically correct. The Jardim Zoologico do Rio de Janeiro is the oldest zoo in Brazil. Founded in 1888, situated in a park surrounding what was once the Emperor's palace, the zoo itself is beautiful, with massive trees and tropical vegetation both surrounding and throughout it. Some of the enclosures leave a little to be desired: the big cats, for example, are housed in cages which are clearly less than adequate. Still, the zoo has improved somewhat over the years, and the kids know it like the back of their hands. I used to joke that whenever we arrived there, the monkeys would greet James & Christian like old friends.

Over the last couple of years, as James & Christian grew older, the frequency of our visits has waned considerably. I believe Kevin has only been there once or twice, and the last time was nearly a year ago. As such, we expected him to be overwhelmingly enthusiastic about his visit. Instead, however, we found him somewhat wary ... afraid even, in the beginning. Of course, as we progressed, he gradually warmed up to the zoo, but not until we stopped in a playground with slides did we start getting any visible excitement out of him.

Here are the pictures of our trip to the zoo, from this afternoon! click: Rio Zoo

Also, I've updated the pictures of our construction project! in Under Construction