Zoo-ila

Time again for a little write as I go. After twenty laps in the pool and my daily massage to work over those poor muscles, I now sit in a cab on this near perfect cool sunny breezy Manila Day. Probably the first such day
since I arrived in late June. My destination? The Manila Zoo!

The thought of visiting the zoo would not likely have crossed my mind had Carrie and I not randomly passed by a few weeks back. I’ve
been jonesing to pop in every day since. However at Carrie’s behest I abstained. She was a bit worried about what she might see there in terms of animal treatment. And I don’t blame her. Zoos in general, even the best, are a mind fuck on the animals within their walls. Lets face it, what mammal of any species
wants to be confined to a space 1/1000th of their habitat? It goes against hundreds of years of evolution. Point being that the only thing worse would be confined animals that are underfed with poor conditions.

So I sit here in this taxi rocking out to Radiohead, having given up on cabby music selection and ready to investigate this Manila Zoo for myself.
It would be naïve to rush towards judgement without giving it a looksy.

I must note that the taxi driver urged me to take Manila Zoo with a grain of salt. Of course he didn’t use that exact wording. He essentially said this zoo is quite old. Not shocking I suppose considering this is “Old Manila.” It exists as a remnant of times past. Sitting just one or two kilometers from Remedio Circle, essentially the center of it all. Not a whole lot of room to expand in this part of town. In fact no room at all to expand.
He claims a much larger and modern zoo has since been erected. Were it a reasonable distance I would bypass Manila Zoo. One and a half hours in without traffic did not meet my definition of ‘reasonable’. So Manila Zoo it is.

And I’m there. Barely inside the gates and I’m already quite pleased. Forty Pesos (apx $.80) is my kind of entrance fee. I can only hope that’s not in direct proportion to the animal’s care.

I am immediately smitten
with a few of the more exotic animal exhibits. In particular the rabbits and the horses. Although having lived here I can understand the horses. I’ve come across several “horses” since arriving. And they are either an especially small Asian species of horse or they’re ponies. Any attempts to
ascertain an answer to this question has been ‘lost in translation’.

Without slipping behind the scenes I can’t really comment definitely on Manila Zoo happenings. Standing out as far as differences go would be animal visibility, particularly those housed in cages. They hadn’t adopted the ultra-thin bars and netting as I’ve experienced in the US in recent years. However access to ice cream bars is dramatically better than in the US. Vendors are strategically placed every 100 paces or so.


The similarities? Kids are just looking to have a little fun. Whether that means stripping down to their skivvies in order to flail in the fountain, playing on the jungle gym, or convincing their parents to buy them stuffed animals. And grandparents of course dote and spoil their grandchildren as much as ours do.

Disappointments – Couldn’t buy beer, or San Miguel.

Oddities – People selling little birdies in 4x4 inch cages. House cat meandering around the zoo. If I were a cat I can think of an infinite amount of places I’d rather live than a compound full of tigers, lions, crocodiles, hippopotamuses (I can’t believe I spelled this right on the first try),
and leopards. Hopefully that little guy knows more than me.

Pleasant Surprises – I got to take my picture with two snakes! What? I said it was a breezy fucking day didn’t I???? Get off my back already! ☺