Crikey!!!

I know.

Last weekend we took a day trip to Australia Zoo - home of Steve Irwin the Crocodile Hunter! Now, a day trip from Sydney involved a flight to Brisbane and back, so the trip was not for the faint of heart, but neither of us could stomache the idea of a niece or nephew asking us when we got home, "Do you go see The Croc Huntere's zoo?" and having to say, "We didn't have time."

Together with a furry friend

We stayed in a hotel down by the airport proving I value sleep over security. Actually it was fine until we had to get up for our 6:00 AM flights. Flight was uneventful and we arrived at Austrlia Zoo just as the gates were opening...

First stop - whatever was right in front of us! Lots of everything you would expect to find at Austrlia Zoo if you've ever seen Croc Files or The Crocodile Hunter TV shows - komodo dragons, lizards galore, koalas, kangaroos, kookaburas, etc. If it lives in Australia, it is at Australia Zoo. The snake house was very elaborate and well done, but we didn't spend much time there.

"Freshies"

Acco - star of Croc Files and The Crocodile Hunter

Who doesn't love a koala sleeping in a tree?

Fat Wombat

Echidna (NOT a porcupine!)

There were a lot of moms with joeys in their pouches

Couple of strange ducks for Jay

The really different part of Australia Zoo than any other aoo I have ever been to (including San Diego Zoo) is the educational/conservation aspect. Lots of zoos have signs talking about the animals, lots of zoos even have little shows explaining things about them as well. Australia Zoo has things called "Wildlife Adventures" where you can get hands on with the animals and talk one-on-one or in a verey small group with the keepers. These are really limited to not stress the animals out, but we were very lucky to get to meet one of my very favorite animals of all time - the red pandas! I first saw red pandas at Columbus Zoo when we went with my brother and his family. They look like little red raccoons and they are SO CUTE! This adventure was limited to 4 people and lasted only for 15-20 minutes as you got to hand feed the little guys their main meal of the day consisting mostly of fruit and veg. I'll never forget Pasang and Yoddah. I wanted to take them home with me.

Pasang - one of our new buddies

Clarice and Pasang - means "Born on a Friday"

Jon with Yoddah - means "Enlightened One"

Yes, we also saw the croc show at the 5000 seat "Croceseum". Even though it is winter, the temp was in the low 70's all day and the shade in the park made it very comfortable. Apparently though, the crocs really prefer it to be summer and a lot hotter. No matter, "Norman" performed admirably and the show was very educational.

The show opened with some of the reptile keepers bringing out a few of their friends. They talked about each animal and the things that endanger them in the wild. Then the aviary group brought out a bunch of native Aussie birds that swooped overhead and landed on the railings amonst the spectators. Very cool. Last was the big croc, Norman, coming out for a feed. Even though the weather is cooler than they prefer, Norman still got most of his body out when the did the "tail walking" trick where the croc jumps out of the water to grab a piece of meet from the keeper. The purpose of the trick is to show how crocs can take birds and other animals right off tree limbs in the wild.

Wanna wade with a python?

Norman - doing his thing

Later we visited the elephants learning that elephants have only 4 teeth (not including their tusks) and that those teeth are HUGE! We watch the tigers play in their enclosure with the keepers only a few feet away. When the tigers were born, their keeps spent 24 hours a day with them to make them used to their presence. Even though they are great friends and play together, I wouldn't want to be a tiger keeper. Who wants a friend who might eat you any second?!?! I'll stick to red pandas, thank you.

Keeper with elephant's tooth

Before we left for the airport we hit the gift shop pretty hard (duh!). I truely think my family was the inspiration for the saying, "Been there. Done that. Got the t-shirt." All of the proceeds go either back into the zoo, over to the zoo's animal hospital, or into wildlife conservation. The Irwins are currently having a bit of a dispute about some conservation land they have in Queensland that is apparently in the way of "progress". Good on them for saving wilderness!

It was a VERY long day, and not the cheapest day trip around, but it was definately a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.