Afternoon at the San Diego Zoo with Preschoolers – Elephant Odyssey
by Donna Amis Davis / @DonnaAmisDavis
The San Diego Zoo is an amazing place. We love taking our two little grandchildren to the zoo. It is near downtown, in Balboa Park. At 100 acres, with more than 3,700 animals from 660 species and subspecies, and over 700,000 plants, it is too large for a small child to take in on one day. So we’ve learned to focus on a few areas at a time when we visit.
Here is a recent afternoon.
Inside the zoo entrance, we turn to the right and wander along the pathway toward the new Australian Outback exhibit. At the entrance to that area stand these colorful poles. The kids love to play hide and seek among them for a few minutes.
Continuing on into the Australian Outback exhibit, we have to stop and read the names of all the birds. And especially look for the kookaburra. Pronounced ‘kookoo-bird’ by the 4-year-old.
Besides being able to view a Tasmanian devil, there are statues and cards of the different exotic Australian animals. Lots of interactive play for little ones.
Passing on through the Australian area of the zoo, you come to a fork in the road, and it is time for a decision. Today will we hang left and visit the giraffes, clouded leopards, and rhinos in the Urban Jungle area of the zoo? Or swing off to the right and head toward the elephants in Elephant Odyssey?
Elephants it is, today.
At the Sabertooth Grill, we stop for a snack. We recommend their onion rings! They are crispy, and just right. While we sit under an umbrella, an elephant is just across the way. This one has super-long tusks. Very impressive.
The meerkat exhibit is fun to watch. Those busy little animals are always scurrying around, digging holes, running across their area. They often stop and sit up and check out their visitors. They are small and cute.
The San Diego Zoo has several play areas for the kids. The one in the Elephant Odyssey area is fun. It’s called Elephant Play Yard. A pretend fossil dig fascinates the little ones. And they love climbing all over the bucket-loader. There are also “caves” that they love to run through and hide in. And big rollers with an animal matching game. A maze of elephant tracking collars is fun to run around in. And big metal animal “x-rays” to pull in and out. Lots of ways to use up some energy, while learning about animals, and manipulating things.
Along the way, the camels are on display. Today this guy seemed particularly proud to show himself off.
Elephant Odyssey has many elephants. Duh. But after the elephants, you’ll come to a indoor-outdoor jaguar exhibit, and the lovely lion couple. Such gorgeous animals. And over toward that area are some elephant statues to climb on.
We really enjoy breaking up our time of viewing animals with just plain old play time. It’s a win-win situation. We get to spend time in the beautifully landscaped San Diego zoo, observing the variety of birds and animals, and enjoying our grandkids. Our grandkids are learning, and getting all kinds of fresh air and exercise.
On the way back to the main gate, we passed this little guy, a klipspringer. He was at attention. We were enthralled. He stood there posing for us for quite a while. Notice his feet. He looks like he is standing on his tippy toes. The name klipspringer comes from Dutch, and means rock jumper. They are rock-dwelling antelopes native to southern Africa.
Many families in the San Diego and southern California area find investing in a Zoo membership is a great bargain. For the price of two admissions, you can visit both the Zoo and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park all year long.
I’ll share more of our favorite adventures another day.
https://www.donnaamisdavis.com/preschoolers-afternoon-san-diego-zoo-elephant-odyssey/Animals Wild & TameKid StuffSan DiegoSan Diego,zooby Donna Amis Davis / @DonnaAmisDavis The San Diego Zoo is an amazing place. We love taking our two little grandchildren to the zoo. It is near downtown, in Balboa Park. At 100 acres, with more than 3,700 animals from 660 species and subspecies, and over 700,000 plants, it is...Donna Amis DavisDonna Amis Davis[email protected]AdministratorDonna Amis Davis
Zoos are great, although a number of people do not like them. The animals are always well treated.
At least it looks warm.
I go to Edinburgh Zoo often and love it. Actress Nicole Kidman took her children there when she was filming ‘The Railway Man’ which was about an Edinburgh man. She walked in just like an ordinary person and waited her turn to visit the Giant Pandas.
http://janeslog.wordpress.com/2012/03/22/visit-to-edinburgh-zoo/
That’s a great story.