There were too many fascinating and beautiful animals. After two hours, I was numb and I had barely made it through half the exhibits. I recovered a bit over lunch before returning to see the rest. At first, I was filled with awe and wonder, but I quickly became overwhelmed. By the end, I was a zombie. Beauty no longer had any effect on me. Only the most unusual animals made any impression at all.
One thing that never failed to make it though my mental fog was the joy of those that were holding animals. My daughter, who’s always been fascinated with chameleons, finally got a chance to hold one. I witnessed a funny encounter when a young woman attempted to return her blue tongued skink. She wanted one with more sought after genes, but she was, ultimately, unable to part with it because it had already started snuggling up to her. Even at the end, when I was racing through the exhibits, I had to stop to watch a young man tenderly holding a hognose. I'm sure there were many more interactions like these that I missed. When I return one day, I’m going to make it a point to spend less time checking out the animals and more checking out the people.
More to follow, including the obligatory photo dump.
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