A to Z (Anastasia to the Zoo)

Al Ain Zoo

Today we went to the Al Ain Zoo, the largest zoo in the Middle East (with plans to become a whole lot bigger soon). Al Ain is inland about ninety miles; it's an oasis with many date palms, a town we have visited on numerous occasions--but this was our first trip to their zoo (and Anastasia's first zoo trip ever--unless you count in utero in India last Christmas).

The zoo is at the base of Jebel Hafeet, the highest point in the UAE. It was 97*F out, but not a bit humid. It felt more like 80*F! So the weather was perfect. We slathered Anastasia in sunscreen and put her in the stroller...She likes the stroller now. Then we toured the animal attractions: She LOVED the penguins, just like her old man. I was proud. One penguin was swimming in the water right next to her, and they were eyeballing one another.

We also saw oryx, gazelles, emus and flamingoes, the usual monkees and zebras and rhinos, and reptiles and birds...and of course the giraffe. Lots of giraffes there, including some that were running. That was a funny sight. The giraffes were in the African savanna exhibit, an impressive piece of land with plenty of room for them to run around in. I liked the rock mountains in the background. There was a nice breeze around there too--a great location for a picnic (maybe next time!).

Occasionally, Anastasia became the main attraction--as people of all ages wanted to touch her, kiss her, hold her...She handled it well. She really seemed to enjoy herself today--full of smiles and happy faces. We had some good human encounters too, like the Indian family with their babies (Anastasia really seemed into playing with this one little girl) and the Emirati family who gave us juice and potato chips.

There weren't any camels (go figure!). Enjoy the photo album above--be sure to click on the album to see all the pictures!