We're Going to the Zoo

Everyone knows that we LOVE going to the zoo so when we found out that the Lincoln Park Zoo is just up the road from where we were staying, we simply had to go there.  Now being Friends of the Zoo at Melbourne Zoo (one of the most awesome zoos in the entire world) for ALL of our lives, we have spent plenty of time at the zoo.  The fact that we knew all the zoo animals before we even knew what farm animals were was a little disappointing to our country cousins but super impressive non the less.

To say that we have been known to be zoo snobs is fairly true, we are often not that impressed by zoos that aren't completely awesome.  Well we are here to tell you that Lincoln Park Zoo is totally AWESOME!

There was an African Experience that had heaps of interactive displays as well as super cute meerkats.

As an added bonus, most of the exhibit was indoors so we didn't freeze as we looked at everything.  I guess it is pretty good for the animals too, I am sure they would get pretty cold if they were outside in the cold, especially since the African animals are more accustomed to warmer climates!  I can only imagine just how cold it must get in Chicago, I mean it is only Fall (that is American for Autumn) and it is super cold.  It snows around here so if there wasn't anywhere inside to go and see the animals, I am sure they would be forgotten by everyone, except the people who work at the zoo for the entire cold winter.

Do you know they even had inside exhibits that didn't' have any windows to keep the animals inside?  In the bird house the birds loved their homes so much that they just stayed there.  It was a little more concerning when the giant orb weaving spiders weren't behind glass but the signs explained that the spiders were fed in their little corner so they didn't wander away.  Of course we didn't get too close, just in case but made mum get in close for a photo!

The primates had an inside / outside house too, a house that they could play outside in when it was warm and an equally awesome inside home for when the weather was cold.

The best part about the primate area was the computers.  Did you know that the primates there know how to use touch screen computers?  I didn't know just how clever they were.  The gorillas were amazing, they touched the different symbols on the screen in order, following the same pattern, just like playing a game of memory.  The primate keepers, were their teachers, and they were just like parents, they bribed the gorillas with fruit every time they got it right!  Even without the bribes, the gorillas were really cool.

As well as the normal zoo area, with zoo animals, there was a farm section too where you could see cows, goats, chickens and rabbits.  We hid out in the barn area for a while playing games and trying to warm up.  Did you know that as a family, we weigh almost as much as a horse?  Surely that little fact will impress the country cousins!  It is amazing what you can learn when you visit the farm, even if it is at the zoo in Chicago!

So all round, Lincoln Park Zoo was pretty darn cool.  All of this and more and it is FREE.  Can you believe that, a super-duper awesome zoo that is for free!  I hope we get to visit this zoo again some day.
Love AJ and Milla