Today we went to the Tama Doubutsuen. The ZOO! Once we figured out how to get there...the evilness of changing trains across train companies...it was pretty cool. It only cost 600 yen to get in, less than $6.00 U.S. Though it did cost about $10.00 U.S. to get there...but that is beside the point. This zoo is apparently known for housing its animals in natural environments. Many of the animals looking pretty content, but there were a few that we unhappy to be the center of attention.

The first thing we saw was a Tapir. Yeah, what?? They were actually pretty cute!! They have the body of a pig kind of, and a nose between an elephant and a pig. Maybe closer to an anteater. One of them was just wandering around, he had a lumbering gait that endeared him to me. He may have been a little bored, because he kept bugging the one that was trying to sleep. And he wouldn't hold still so I could get a nice picture. We'll see how the roll develops.

Then we saw this really cute and friendly Wild Pig. Boy was he hairy!! He kind of followed us along the fence as we read his information and tried to stick his snout through the wire at us. Yuck, but cute. He was like a dog wanting attention. There weren't many people there, so we were the only ones looking at him at the time. I didn't see any female wild pigs, and I can imagine it gets pretty lonely all by yourself. His pen was all full of mud, and so was his fur. I guess that's what he likes.

Then there were some PereDavid's Deer. Don't ask me what kind that is, but they were big and had fuzzy antlers. They were also really bored and unhappy. The male, I think...he was separated from the rest, was just lying on the ground with his back to us. He barely had any room, and those guys are used to the forests and lots of space...I'm assuming. The others were just standing around. They didn't look happy at all.

Next we saw Snow Leopards. In one inclosure, there were two adults. One was sitting high on a rock and staring at something. Don't know what, but when we walked by later, he was still in the exact same position. The other one was laying in a rut and licking at the ground...who knows. They have the furriest, puffiest tails I have ever seen. They actually got even more puffy at the end. They were probably as big around as a two-liter bottle of pop!! The one licking the ground stopped and when to play with a wooden post. He was just a big kitty-cat at this time. And he knew exaclty where to keep his head so we couldn't take too many pictures. In another area there was a mom and two babies. Maybe teenagers. The little ones attacked the mom, and she just licked them. Then one made the mistake of lying on his back while the other was sitting on a rock. Showing your belly is the universal sign for "Attack me!!" They were already so so fluffly! I bet they don't have to worry about staying warm.

Then the best exhibit in the place: Red or Lesser Pandas. They are SOOOOO cute. They look like a red colored raccon with the face of a panda bear. They have little ears and hands they can use to manipulate the branches. They eat like pandas, all slow and very concentrated. But then they would wander about like a bear, just plodding about. And they also climbed the rocks and trees. One was high in a tree and hanging upside-down and generally hanging-out. They also slithered like otters when it came to small spaces between braches. I just wanted to take one home and poke its belly. They were also really fluffly!!

They had a Tiger, some Gray Wolves, and an Asian Elephant that were all really unhappy to be there. The Tiger wouldn't stop pacing and scratched a couple times at the door to the inclosure. That's all the Wolves did. They didn't even bother to look at the spectators, they were intent on getting through that door. But the scariest was the poor Elephant. His pen was all make of concrete, nothing nature like in the others' cages, and he was standing there swaying. It looked like he was dancing, but I really don't think that's natural for an elephant. Maybe he used to perform in a circus or something, but it kind of freaked me out. If he was a human, I would have said that he was dancing to the music in his head...but...

They had a Koala house, but all the Koalas were sleeping...noctural I guess? There were some cute Wallabys and a huge Wombat. I thought wombats were small like the Wallabys, but this one was as big as a medium-sized dog, though lower to the ground. Way bigger than a bread box. They also had Laughing Ko-ca-something birds that were kind of cute.

Then we went to find the African animals. They were on the map, but there was construction (and I think the map was a little wonky) so it was hard to find. On the way we passed a mega-load of Storks and a bunch of Hawks and Eagles that showed off their impressive wingspans. Wouldn't want to make one of those upset with me!! We finally found the African section and the Chimpanzee habitat. Their playground looked like the playground at any elementary school, with lots of things to hang from. Not exactly natural, but I'm sure they didn't mind.

But they didn't stay long...ran off to the back or somewhere. About this time, we started wondering when the park closed. We got a late start, so it was already after 4:00. And yup, that's when the park closed... So we didn't get to see the Lions, or the African Elephant, or the other fun things. We did find the Giraffe house on the way out, though why they are kept in a rather smallish building is beyond me. But they were cute, they kept crossing over other peoples necks to get at the food. It looked like a complicated knot, but they were very serene about it all. So we left, and that was that. Have to go again to see all that we missed, I suppose.