Cracker by Damian Christie

Our three have been going to the Zoo since before they could walk. At first it was as much because we had a family pass, and it was a nice place to walk, as anything to do with the animals. But as the years have gone by (the eldest, twins, are now 7) the appreciation has grown and the fascination with it.

Our Zoo is, IMhO, one of the best in the world. The programmes for endangered species, the redevelopment of enclosures in recent years, have all contributed to a well earned reputation for quality. Add the concerts, the educational programme, and community involvement, it is no surprise to me that the passing of Kashin last year brought many to tears, including at least one person in our household, and it wasn't one of the kids. ;-)

Wow, I get to go first. Another badge for my PAS jacket.

Wow, that's quite lovely.

I haven't been for years, I might find someone small to drag along next time I'm in Auckland...

I too love the Auckland Zoo - I could, and frequently do, sit for hours watching the sea lions as they pretend to be missiles en route for places unknown. I would say that at her next birthday in a few months, your niece will be at just the right age for appropriate animal appreciation, Damian. Although never underestimate the ability of a child to be seeming to ignore their surroundings whilst secretly they are taking in all the details. Well, the ones that interest them, anyway.

Love the zoo. I think some time between 2 and 3 is where appreciation of the animals starts to kick in, before that they don't really seem to recognize the shapes as animals. Our 2-year-old fed the giraffe there last week and also loved it, his new toy giraffe is a constant companion.

That Damian and subsequent posters, is delightful. Makes me proud to be in Auckland, and after "The Summer Tour Back Benches viewed last night, beats Tauranga any day of the week, rain or shine. :)

Our 3 year old has started to appreciate the zoo (animals) more in her last couple of visits. Before that you are almost taking them for your own sake and are disappointed when they find more interest in mud, trees, a stick they found on the ground or the sparrows that are flying around outside the exotic bird enclosures.

She was car sick on the way back from the Coromandel today so we tried to take her mind off it by pointing out the animals as we drove past.

"Look Yuha, cows, look Yuha, sheep, look there's lots of cows, look there's some sheep, look, some more sheep, look, heaps of cows, look, a horse, oh no, sorry, it's actually a cow". in the end she didn't puke her guts out like she did on the road back from Piha the other day. The second time we've taken her to Piha and the second time she's ever puked in the car. This was monumental pukeage. Step back and watch in awe as a three year old appears to puke food from lunch, breakfast, the previous dinner and the previous lunch in that order though definately merged somewhat. Lesson be learned, avoid taking small children to Piha. I wonder how parents living out there cope with their little ones.

A looonnnggg time ago - I was twelve, my mother was a widow with 6 kids (I was eldest)- we travelled on the "Rangatira" to Wellington. Our destination? Basically - Wellington Zoo.

My father had not long died: I dont know whether she was catering to my obsessions with chimps & elephants or just wanting to get the hell outa NNB but-

I have the photies! We rode on the elephant! (Must've been Kam' - much later , as a trainee tv producer,I spent 3 lovely days with her, and her keeper, and later wrote a wee kid story about her, based on fact.)And, face to face with real chimps at last, I realised they were smellier, more raucous, and *much* more interesting than the Nat Geo made out - they sniffed anyone who came close - and if you came back, sniffed and 'hoo'ed'.Recognise you-

Yamis- your kids may learn things from zoos you do not pick up.
To ths day, healthy chimp shit smells OK; big cat shit, not.

Our first experiences with the Zoo with my son were similarly anticlimactic. Despite having an interest in toy animals, there was little connection between them and the larger, camouflaged version standing 50 metres away. He could seldom see them, and took little interest, but was of course very interested in the unusual environment that our Zoo is. It's a very beautiful park, with many twists and turns and unusual structures everywhere. Also, the adults behave very strangely, often standing in clusters staring into the trees. It's also a pretty long walk to get through most of it, quite tiring for little legs. And lastly, the assortment of animals, out of context, makes them almost unbelievable. I don't think Marcus fully appreciates that elephants can't be held in your hand.

I think it takes a few visits to learn the norms of Zoo behavior, that making loud noise is not appreciated, that people read the signs in Zoos, that sometimes you even have to work for the experience, looking for quite a while into an enclosure before you actually spot anything. Marcus remembered a lot about the trees from the Zoo.

But the last time was better, and Marcus remembered a few of the animals he'd seen. The giraffe is an especially striking animal if he ever gets close, and we were blessed that the tiger was wandering around when we came, and chanced to walk within a few feet of us, whereupon Marcus came to realize that not all cats are smaller than him. It gave me hope that something I enjoyed as a child can be shared with him.

And thinking back to what I liked about the Zoo as a child, I must confess that the animals were only about 50% of it. There was also an excellent playground/park/maze in the middle (which used to be the best shortcut between walks too), we usually had some kind of picnic, and the peoplewatching was always different.