Carolina Kiwis: Lions and Tigers and Syrian Brown Bears! Oh, My!

Thursday

We all slept well last night for a change, and actually got to sleep in since Mark's conference had a late 9:30am start. Guess they figured everyone would tie one on last night. Dr. T gave another presentation in the morning session, but after that Mark decided to cut out early and spend his last full day in Melbourne with Sherry, Cerine, and Ro at the zoo. As we headed out to the CBD to catch our tram, we all commented on the various blisters we'd acquired from walking so much in our sandals. Ro exclaimed enviously, "Awww, I don't have a blister!"

Melbourne has the largest city tram system in the world, so it's pretty easy to get around. We had to buy our tickets at the corner 7-Eleven, though. The tram took us past the Queen Victoria Markets, sort of like the biggest flea market you can imagine, but Ro was too eager to see the animals for us to consider stopping. We wound our way into the suburbs, and were dropped off right outside the back entrance of the zoo.

Here comes our tram!

Well, helloooo there!

Once inside the zoo, we were greeted by that ubiquitous Australian animal - the fly. We'd suffered them while walking along the Yarra, but they were even worse here. And unlike American flies, these ones aren't shy. They'll land right on your lip or around your eyes and stay there, looking for moisture, no matter how much you shoo them. You have to actually slap yourself to get them to move, and even then they just hop a ride on your back, waiting for another chance at your mucosal surfaces.

The Melbourne Zoo is easily one of the better zoos we've been to, simply for the sheer variety of animals on display. The only animal Ro wanted to see but didn't was a rhinoceros. Highlights included snow leopards (Mark's favorite), pygmy hippos (Sherry wants one as a pet), red pandas (Cerine), baboons (Ro's favorite because their red butts looked so funny), the butterfly house, and top-notch elephant, gorilla, lion, and treetop monkey exhibits. We were a little rushed at the end of the day, trying to see all the native Australian animals before the park closed, but we all had a great time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne_Zoo

Trying to elicit a response from this frilled lizard

Note all the sun hats on the Aussie schoolchildren

Where better to enjoy an ice cream than with the Little Penguins?

The Hills at the Melbourne Zoo

A Roback gorilla

Siesta in the shade

This gibbon took a shine to Sherry

Scariest animal we saw all day

Come here often?

Ro was tired of walking by this point

Can we get one of those, mommy?

We split up briefly after our tram brought us back to the CBD. Mark and Ro hopped on the City Circle Tram back to the hotel, while Sherry and Cerine went shopping for postcards, Krispy Kreme donuts, and Vegemite (for Cerine to share with curious friends back home). By the time the girls had rejoined Mark and Ro at the Executive Lounge, Ro had already discarded his hot chocolate-stained shirt, flashing his guns for the well-dressed ladies sipping champagne and eating sushi. When we finally put him in the bath, the water soon turned a dark brown color as the layers of zoo dirt and chocolate were washed away.

Chillin' on the balcony

We went over to the Crown for dinner (yes, again), as there's no shortage of choices and it's within easy walking distance. All of the restaurants were quite crowded, and we were too hungry to wait for a prime outside table, so we sat inside at Automatic Cafe, a lively, trendy bistro. The food was very good, although not exceptional: Mark had the lamb, pine nut, feta, and sun-dried tomato pizza, Sherry kept it simple with minestrone soup and a salad, Cerine had the gnocchi, and Ro tried the hot dogs. Mark couldn't talk the girls into hitting the casino tonight, so we walked home, enjoying the city lights along the river. With the exception of some minor fatigue-induced whining towards the end of our zoo visit, Ro was in a pretty good mood all day, but that soon changed when we got back to the room and couldn't find Bear Bear! We fruitlessly tore the room apart looking for him, and finally came to the conclusion that he must have been taken out with the sheets when the maids cleaned the room. We called the front desk, only to find out that all the laundry gets sent out. Poor Bear Bear, lost at some laundry in Oz!