Safari Park

Who knew that I could go on a safari just a few miles from my current home here in England?  Today I took the girls to Woburn Safari Park in the neighboring village.  We drove through animals roaming free in hopes of some close encounters and were quite pleased with how close the animals were!  Tigers, bears, wolves, rhinos, lions, elephants, zebras and many more animals were never far from the car as we joined the crowds of people driving through the Safari Park.

I believe the scariest moment for me came when it appeared the ostrich was coming straight for the car.  I know that I should be more afraid of the possibility of lions or tigers approaching the car, but for me, there is something terrifying about a bird that can look you in the eye.  I was pecked by geese growing up and knew how much their beaks could hurt; I can't even imagine what damage one of those giant birds can do!

The lions were near the road, lounging, trying to soak up the sun through the clouds that hung over us most of the day.  One laid spread out, belly towards the sky for quite sometime; they didn't seem bothered by us at all.


We got into a bit of a traffic jam when the giraffes decided to block the road, but I think that was my favorite part!  The giraffes were so tall, awkward and carefree just wandering amongst the cars and peaking in car windows, looking for some contraband!  What sweet, curious faces they have!

I've never seen this in my rear view before!


Monkeys are always one of the favorite attractions at a zoo, and it was no different here as the monkeys were free to run and roam about.  We watched one monkey climb into the back of a truck and just sit there, as if he were meant to be riding there, as the truck continued around the path.  Another sat on the rear view mirror of van watching the people on the inside.  What funny little creatures!


The "foot" safari was much smaller, but a perfect place for us to roam about and visit some intriguing animals such as penguins, lemurs, seals, tortoises, goats, monkeys, wallabies and more!  It may seem odd, but I think I enjoyed the goats as much as anything.  We were allowed to go in and pet the goats, which looked very similar to the goats we used to have.  They were short, stout and very friendly.  They were thrilled for some attention and enjoyed the thorough scratching!  The wallabies, too, were quite a treat, reminding me of my visit to Sydney.  Many had babies in their pouches as they hopped freely about.






It doesn't matter how old you get, zoos are always thrilling!  It was a wonderful way to end our weekend together!  I'm so thankful to have friends scattered about this country!

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