Being one of the few people that are actually from Toronto, I find certain local attractions comforting because of a familiarity acquired during my own journey from childhood to adult (debatable). St. Lawrence Market, the Ex, the Beach, all are places I visit quite regularly and have since moving here from Newmarket when I was 4 months old – ok, not born in Toronto , but let’s just say the Newmarket influence quickly fell away during my infancy, (although I still get cravings for Kelsey’s wings and Glass Tiger songs).
Another locale of great familiarity is the Toronto Zoo, which I was lucky enough to attend with my family on Saturday on a blogger junket. Growing up, from the time it opened in 1974, we went to the Zoo at least once a year. We used to take the long trip by TTC bus, getting a real thrill going all the way to Kennedy station, the former last stop on the eastern line. We would eat crunchy apples and look out the window, giddy with excitement as suburbs morphed into the Rouge River Park where the Zoo is located about 30 kms east of the actual city of Toronto (I guess Pickering Zoo just didn’t cut it).
During my teenage years and into my twenties, the visits to the zoo became more fleeting. I had chicks to fall secretly in love with and booze to steal from my parents. But occasionally, a trip to the zoo was thrown out by my diabolic group of friends and we took the trip as a gag and ended up having a blast. We would laugh at the poo throwing orangutans and crack wise about the size of certain elephantic appendages. We were young, dumb and had a lot of fun.
With Hud and Tasman in the mix, the trip to the Zoo became more frequent. We even became members three summers ago as the boys were 6 and 3, perfectly manageable ages for multiple zoo visits. Last Saturday, during our brief information session, zoo membership was pitched by our lovely host Cheryl and beyond the considerable savings a membership includes, one benefit she mentioned resonated because we remember it as a true bonus when we were members.
Let’s face it, the Toronto Zoo is a big place with lots to see. Membership allows you to do the ol’ in and out. Spend 90 minutes there instead of the entire day. Add going to the Zoo to the daily list of things to do on a weekend instead of the only thing to do on a weekend.
There were many meltdowns happening on Saturday. There is no mistaking the cacophonic shriek of a child freaking out because their ice cream dropped to the concrete or a camel gave them the stink eye. I think this happens because the day can be exhaustive and the obligation to see everything can be overwhelming. This is unavoidable if you are the selection of the 1.3 million total visitors per year that are from out of town where membership doesn’t make sense. But to us, being local, that option of the Toronto Zoo pop-in was always something that we appreciated.
So what the hell did we see while we are the zoo? There was no poo throwing (disappointing to the boys. All of the boys) but there was some stingray and shark petting:
Very cool.
Some smarmy posing with a wonderfully named baby polar bear (his name is Hudson too!)
Very cute.
There was an incredible behind the scenes tour where we saw Vishnu, a male rhinoceros up close and found out some interesting facts about this remarkable beast.
He weighs about 2 tons, he eats primarily hay (with carrots and apples as a treat) and he is only allowed to spend time in the same pen with his female counterpart for three days a month, only when she is heat, so hopefully they get it on. All other times they remain separate because Vishnu annoys the female rhino too much.
Hmmm a three day sex window and the male is too annoying to stand at other times – this low hanging joke fruit sure is tasty.
Speaking of sex, there was a certain amount of spring fever going on.
Turtles!
Giraffes!
So awesome and thankfully my youngest thought they were just wrestling. Hudson, through muffled giggles, found it fascinating. Stephanie stood nowhere near me because watching two giraffes try and hump is a pretty awesome spectacle. And when it comes to embarrassing her in public, this was gold Jerry, gold!
To summarize this lengthy post, we had an fantastic visit at the Toronto Zoo. For a non-profit organization, they do a great job balancing the fun part, which draws in the crowds (and pays the bills), and the animal conservation and education efforts very well. There are also 372 volunteers who, through their love of animals and people, dedicate their time to this Toronto institution.
It’s a place I sincerely hope I take my grandkids one day.
And not just to see the giraffes get it on.
Jason, it was so nice meeting you there! It was a beautiful day! Love your post we too seen the turtles and Giraffes too, lol.
I love it… 😉
“low-hanging joke fruit.” Heh. My favourite line of the day.
We’re ‘out of towners’ and it’s about an hour trek to the zoo but I wouldn’t miss it. We’ve been members for the past few years (we have 2.5 & 5 yr olds) and will spend a couple hours at a time.
It’s worth the drive and the girls love it!
Coincidently, my hubby & I had our first date there – a blind date! 🙂
we saw lions “wrestling” once, too. a little more enthusiastic than the giraffes i’m sure! gotta get there this year! i miss it.
Love it – and please – I always search for the animals doing it at the zoo…if that means I’m 9 too…awesome! I knew you’d take a Hudson/Hudson pic!
Nature is an amazing thing. Nothing like a little spring fever to keep things exciting!
Rachel – I try to keep things pretty light around here and as my eldest son is nine, we obviously find the same things fascinating and funny.
Springtime at the zoo was the perfect fodder for our similar level of maturity.
Always appreciate the feedback!
J.
Wow…nothing like having a guy who hasn’t matured past the age of 9 write a zoo review
I clearly missed out. 😉
And after reading your post…I do believe that it’s time for a re-visit! We LOVE the zoo!!!
Dude – we were there at the same time! We saw the same Giraffe’s doing the same “courtship” dance. Too funny! We love the zoo also. Great post.