MONDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2012

OMAHA, NEBRASKA

 

I forgot to mention that last night when we arrived at the KOA it was really dark.  Bill had called ahead and the lady said she would leave the site information in a box on the side of the building.  We were really having trouble seeing (they keep it dark in these campgrounds you know) so we weren’t sure where the pull thru campsite was.  Bill finally just stops the vehicle and says I think this is it.  I really feel like he just stopped in the middle of the road but he got out and looked around and assured me he was pretty sure we were ok.  I should know better than to second-guess him on this stuff because he is like an expert but I kept thinking all night that someone was going to rap on the door and tell us to “Get OUT of the road”.  Well, as I said I should know better and I apologize to my husband for doubting him for even a minute.  We did have a quiet night, no rain, no one at the door and good sleep.  Thank you God!

As soon as I was up and functioning we got ready to leave for the zoo.  We were both looking forward to the day, the weather was turning out perfect.  So even before the crack of noon (our normal “start the day” time) we arrived at the Henry Doorly Zoo.  Since I talked about “Ruby” the little red scooter that Bill bought off Craig’s list, got repaired and spruced up, thought I would have him take a picture of it and post it.  I mean the guy went to a lot of work and invested a lot of time in it so I want to show it off.  Seriously without this blessing we would not be on this trip and not going to the zoo today!

Zoos have always been a big thing in my family.  It is one of the few places I remember my parents taking us to when we were children.  The Toledo Zoo is a really nice zoo and that is the one we became members of year after year.  When my children were young the zoos started doing this “Reciprocal” thing and you could get in free (or half price) at other zoos that participated when you were a member of one.  So every year we went to the Toledo Zoo and at least one other one.  Every vacation we took included a zoo.  I mean really they were inexpensive and they have them everywhere.  And who doesn’t love the zoo?  God has such an incredible imagination and sense of humor.  And the variety!!  I love to see the animals and watch their antics and know that God did this for us.  Awesome isn’t it??   

Jason got so tired of zoos when he was in his teens we practically had to drag him there (it was a family outing and he was going).  Now, it is so entertaining to see him take his girls to the zoo every other week or so.  It takes on a new feeling when you watch it through the eyes of little children.  Bill and I take the opportunities we can to tag along with our kids and our grandkids whether it is in Detroit, Toledo, or Nashville.  It’s always fun.

I think Bill has been to the zoo more since he met me than in all of his life before, maybe not.  So when Suzanne, who we met at the Winterset Festival of Covered Bridges, told us about the Henry Doorly Zoo, we immediately thought we’d have to do that.  We need to send her an e-mail and tell her how much we appreciate the advice.  It is a great zoo, one of the top ten in the country.  We really missed having our grandchildren there but enjoyed watching the little ones that were there.  (We are making plans to kidnap a few of our grandkids in the near future for an RV trip – it’s ok Moms and Dads, we will only keep them a couple weeks and we WILL return them!)

This gorilla was right up by the glass where we were!

This zoo has a wonderful Gorilla exhibit!  We must have spent about an hour just watching the gorillas.  They certainly have an attitude.  There was one that was 9 yrs old and really playful.  He kept running up to the window and rolling around and then he would hit his palm on the window.  There was a little girl about 4 who was laughing hysterically, enjoying his playing with her.  He even would repeat taps on the glass (which I know you are not supposed to do, it wasn’t me!).  They are very entertaining.  That was probably my favorite.

This one definitely had an attitude!

This one walked quite a distance away and sat down to enjoy some grass, later he jut layed down and put his hand over his face!  I think he was the grand daddy!

Bill thoroughly enjoyed the Lied Jungle 

The Macaws of the Lied Jungle

The Lied Jungle was really like walking through a jungle with the vegetation, vines, waterfalls, humidity, and animals.  They really did a great job on designing this attraction.

These were real vines that the kids could hang on or swing on!  Cool!

 

The Aquarium had live sharks and upside down jellyfish for the highlights.  This was another favorite of Bill's. The touch zone was closed (What do they think this is, fall?) which would have been disappointing for the little ones but there was a wide variety of exhibits and aquatic beings.  The neatest thing, there was an area that looked like it was a pond of fish and sea life but was really just a light show on the floor.  The neat thing was that if you walked or jumped on it the fish would swim away and the water would ripple.  Something like the “Fluid” app for iPhone.  It was pretty cool.

This is the "Fluid" pond.  It really is cool!

T

The zoo had a geodesic dome called the Desert Dome that encased a, yes, desert! It was like walking through a desert, sand dunes, cacti, animals, birds, snakes, lizards, etc.  It was done very well but the smell and the heat had us going through it fairly quickly.

All in all I would say all of their exhibits were done very well, it is a nice size (we didn’t quite cover everything) and has many, many animals and things to see.  I believe the children’s area was one of the nicest I have ever seen but we just glanced through that at the end of the day.

The Butterfly Exhibit Entrance

Aren't these benches adorable, they are placed all around the Butterfly Exhibit.

We took a ride on the “Skyfari” which was really a lot of fun.  All in all it was a great day.  We recommend it to anyone who is passing this way or just wants a fun destination.  Vacations can be just about the zoo you know? You can see them on the right.  They covered quite a bit of the zoo from the air.  Good views!

Not sure if you can see this monkey was walking the rope with a baby on his back to a little island in the middle of the pond --- there were other monkeys hanging out there.

BEARS, BEARS & BEARS

Can you see this polar bear has his paws over his face??

This is a large globe floating on a cushion of water.  There was a continual line of kids that enjoyed moving it around.  It was really intriguing.  Different. 

Heading out tomorrow, still going west on I-80.  Not sure what we will find for our next adventure on the way, but I know something cool will come up.  There is always something unexpected around the next corner.  Blessings to all our family and friends.

Miss you but having fun!