Best of the Zoo II: Got Carrots?

Posted by liaso (Bay Area, United States) on 6 December 2007 in Animal & Insect.

So the original idea behind this project was to free up time for me to catch up on life. I should have known better. Finding my pictures was an adventure, picking pictures an even bigger one. But I have to say, even though I didn't save time, it was a great joy to go through boxes of old photos. I found everything from junior high to high school to college and beyond. I saw things as close as the San Diego Wild Animal Park and as exotic as the Great Wall of China all over again. I saw family and friends I haven't seen in years, relived high school drama classes, a year spent abroad... all in just a few hours. The power of photography is truly amazing.

Part of the photo safari at the Wild Animal Park that thrilled me was getting to feed carrots to the giraffes and apples (I think, not sure) to the rhinos. It was just amazing to be that close to the animals. The giraffes have enormously long black tongues. I actually have pictures with the tongue wrapped around the carrot, but they are not as close as this photo, nor as well framed. I remember the tongues feeling slimy, but not caring because I was feeding a giraffe. (Although, I began to care when I realized I had to wipe my hands on my shorts in order to handle my camera afterwards.). You couldn't get quite as close to the rhinos, needing to drop the food to their mouths rather than let their tongue wrap around the food (and your hand!). It was still very cool. (And mind you, this was more than a decade ago and I still have vivid memories of the experience.)

This is what I love about the San Diego Zoo and the Wild Animal Park. They draw you in. While feeding the giraffes and rhinos is a "gimmick" to draw in visitors, it also connects you to the animals in a more visceral way than to just look at them through cages or glass. I am sure that my experiences at the Zoo in high school helped to shape many of my views on the environment, preservation of lands and animals, etc.