nyc : central park zoo



so, we went to the central park zoo with charlie. he was born in nyc, but never visited the zoo. i had a different plan for this post based on how new yorkers are notorious for giving the wrong directions. i was going to ask the animals where we could find the snow leopards and they would tell us the wrong way. you can see in the photos that it's kind of like they're speaking to us and we end up back with the polar bear.

but, tomorrow is september 11th and it didn't seem appropriate. instead, i'll dedicate this post to all that is good and the fact that new york city is still here & thriving. we've never visited ground zero and won't until there's something to see other than a hole in the ground. i kind of think donald trump was right when he said we should rebuild the world trade center as it was, but more structurally sound and with an extra floor on each building. it's been eight years and we're missing the ! at the tip of manhattan. it's time to rebuild already, but regardless, we'll never forget the beautiful souls that were lost that awful day.

xo, cindy


a lovely view from the zoo.


the most entertaining polar bear you could ever see.


the birds in the rain forest were the best part. so beautiful. we love the mohawk-style feathers on this one.


the red pandas were beautiful and playful.


when we first walked into the penguin exhibit i was taken a back because these guys were just posing. i thought we might be looking at some taxidermy, but then they started swimming around.


there's a children's zoo, too. looks like cinderella was there as someone left her pretty pink sandals behind.


sweet.


by this point we were moving like a couple of turtles.


shy and sweaty snake.


big bird.


these were the coolest monkeys.


hey, pretty bird? your blue feathers are incredible, but please don't poop on me like the bird yesterday in city island. gross!


he was the king of the zoo!


the snow leopards were in hiding that day, but the polar bear, birds, monkeys and other animals were great. we should do a better job of caring for our planet so zoos aren't the only places wild animals can survive.

17 comments:

Joyce said...

I'm glad you were the first to experience Charlie's visit to the zoo. Have you thought of sharing your photos with the zoo's gift shop? Many hugs my friend. xoxo

cindy* said...

sounds like a great trip to the zoo ;) i especially love the polar bear.

Elizabeth said...

I want to meet that polar bear!! Cute pictures of him Cindy :)

erin said...

i'm not gonna lie, usually photos of zoos are awful...they're blurry and leave me searching for the animal in middle of all the fuzz...these are not. these are GREAT.

the southern hostess said...

Great pictures, especially the polar bear.

Grace said...

Cindy, your photos take zoo photography to a new level of cool! I love the animated expressions on all the animals -- but my favorite one is the Cinderella slippers. Now I must wonder how the girl spent the rest of her day without shoes? :)

Cindy said...

thanks everyone! the polar bear was pure happiness. i could have done a post just on him as he could be seen from every angle, including underwater! he would swim one way under water, then get out, fall backwards with his eyes closed in slow motion and do the backstroke. it was so cute and everyone was delighted with him.

Line said...

ooh these are simply wonderful I love them all, the bear is amazing!!

meg said...

loved your zoo pics Cindy! and Red Pandas are some of my favorite animals on earth so it was fun to see them! I'm glad you had a great day! (and the polar bear's water looked so refreshing I wanted to jump in. not really. but kind of)

Meg xoxo

Sam said...

I went to the Zoo almost a year ago on my honeymoon!
We saw that bear too...he didn't look as happy as he does in your pictures
;0(

Sam x

People Who Know Me Would Say: said...

GRRRRRRRRRRRREAAAAAAAAAAT shots, Cindy! I haven't been to that zoo and, goodness knows I lived in NYS for long enough. Loved the penguin 'taxidermy' shot. What little soldiers they are!

Bella Sinclair said...

AAAAHHHHHH! I was just there a couple of months ago! My goodness, you took MUCH better photos than I did. Your penguin shots are so clear! I got a lot of dirty window. And the polar bear. Isn't he a cute but sad thing? I saw him about 8 years ago, swimming in that endless loop, and there he is today, still doing the same thing. Sad.

I agree with you about the twin towers. sigh

Cindy said...

i feel conflicted about zoos. it's nice that we can enjoy the animals and it could be worse for them, but i feel a bit melancholy about them. the polar bear was wonderful for us, but i'm not sure how he 'feels'. the dog whisperer would think that's crazy talk. the feeling part.

julie king said...

the polar bears are my faves at our local zoo as well. they are really hams and love all the attention.

Bonbon Oiseau said...

love that first photo and the cow--just magnifique!

Pascale said...

That polar bear is too cute!

But you're right about zoos - I feel a bit the same way. Though I love taking the kids to the zoo, I always feel a bit sad for those poor animals...

Great shots by the way (especially those pinguins)!

onesilentwinter said...

i love your words cindy. at the top photo.