Saturday, December 24, 2005

Christmas Eve at the Brookfield Zoo

We often go to the Brookfield Zoo on Christmas Eve, as in this photo from 1988. We see the annual display of Christmas trees and, of course, the animals.

We did so again today. It was a great day for seeing cats. Both leopards came down from their loft in the rocks, and one even passed right behind the window. The sand cat sat in a basket right behind its window, and one of the caracals got into a cardboard box. The lion was asleep on its heated rocks. All four snow leopards were out. One of them looked up, obviously right after a nap; a wood chip was stuck to its cheek for several minutes until it finally wiped it away.

We also saw Payton the polar bear beating up a blue thirty gallon plastic barrel. He lifted it up from his moat and threw it into his pool after knocking it about the rocks. We wondered whether the zookeepers had put fish inside the barrel. He was very persistent.

There were many trees decorated by scouts, school groups, and families. Though we have seen many, many trees over the years, each year we discover some wonderful new decorations made from everyday items. Some one should have made a book of the best.

The zoo is open every day of the year. Christmas Eve and Christmas are great days to visit.

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