January 2nd. Taronga

January 2nd.

Taronga

After a wonderful sleep everyone was feeling great.  We had a breakfast before heading to Manly Wharf to catch a ferry to the Circular Quay.  The boat was relatively empty and we were able to stand up front and watch the beautiful view.  After landing at the Quay we changed boats to head to the Taronga Zoo.  After some confusion which saw us board a boat before having to disembark and reload from a different launch, we headed to the zoo on a 12 minute ferry ride.

Brody and Tara at the front of the ferry.

Sunrise over Sydney harbor.

The Opera House from sea.

Finally, we make it to the Taronga Zoo Wharf.

We focused our day on the Australian animals and instantly found out Taronga was a special zoo.  They go out of their way to remove barriers between you and the animals.  Also, you get peaks of the Sydney skyline as you walk around.  We saw emu, kangaroo, wallabies, echidna, rock wallabies, and a male platypus. 

The kids outside Taronga Zoo.

The kids found a peacock roaming free.

Tasmanian Devil-they are quite cute.

A rock wallaby!  They love rocky/rugged areas.

Gabriel watches a Rock wallaby eat.

After a snack, we headed to the seal show.  

Australian sea-lion:

New Zealand fur-seal:

The NZ fur-seal has very thick whiskers and a shaggy-lion-like mane.

California sea-lion:

After lunch it was the Kodiak bear, snow leopard, Himalayan Tahrs, Chimpanzees, giraffes, and then Reptile world.

We finished the day with a two hour Australian Animal Encounter with zookeeper, Laura.  There were supposed to be two others on the tour with us, but they no showed, giving our family a private tour!  This was one of the coolest things we have done on this vacation.

First, we got to go in and learn about the fascinating platypus.  It was much smaller than we thought.  Besides its size, it was interesting for us to learn that the male platypus is venomous.  It has an ankle claw or spur that while not deadly, is very painful to humans.

Sorry, they don't allow flash, that is the platypus' eye and bill.

feathertail glider-the world’s smallest gliding possum.  They are incredibly fast and can jump up to twenty-five meters.  They eat a nectar and like a hummingbird, their metabolism is crazy fast.  When you hold them you can feel their little heart beat pounding away and they shake like a caffeine addict. 

Can you see its tail?  Not sure if it comes across, but it is like feather.

A feathertail glider on Gabe's head.

One jumping from Tara's arm to the zookeeper.  They are fast and very active.

Bilby  These small Australian marsupials like the desert and are nocturnal.  They are Australia’s answer to the Easter Bunny, in fact, the zookeeper told us that they have chocolate bilbys instead of bunnies!

Tara pets a bilby.

Gabe and Ursula feed the bilby.

The kids got to be the exhibit!  The zookeeper took them in the bilby exhibit and had them act like bilbys.

    

An emu called Thunderbird. We were able to feed thunderbird the emu, raisins.  This emu really thought he was the king of the enclosure.

Gabe pets Thunderbird while the zookeeper feeds it.

Brody feeds the emu.

The ring-tailed possum was another behind the scenes visit that was up close and personal.  It loved to climb all over us.  It is another nocturnal marsupial from Australia.

Ring-tailed possum on Tara.

Brody has a friend on his shoulder!

The possum is about to jump off Gabe's arm.

Arguably one of our best experiences was the behind the scenes wallaby tour.  The wallabies really took to the kids (and the peanuts the zookeeper was feeding them).

Tara really bonded with one of the female wallabies. 

Gabe petting a wallaby.

Family photo plus two!

Tara and her friend right before it gave her a big kiss!

We had a blast with the echidna-Rudolph.  He was incredibly friendly and inquisitive.

Gabriel and an echidna.

Brody gets a chance to pet the non-shooting quills.

Tara enjoys Rudolph.

Laura, our zookeeper, shows off Rudolph.

We were able to visit the kitchen and see how they prepare the food each day.  The fruits and veggies were pretty fine, but the frozen baby mice, full grown mice, baby chicks, and larva were disgusting!  Well, disgusting to us, but Tara and Gabriel loved it!  Tara was able to keep a peacock feather!  Apparently, she said the peacock was considered bad luck by some because the “eye” at the top was thought to be the eye of the gods that could constantly keep watch on you!

The koala’s were being themselves (they sleep twenty hours a day)!  We did get a couple to wake up and look at us, but none came down to feed.

One of the kitchens at the zoo.

Tara holds a frozen meal/mouse.

Gabe holds a baby frozen mouse.

Tara is very proud to hold a baby chick.

Large larva.

The koala eyes us.

They gave us a care package, a free drink, and a desert before we took the skyline/gondola ride to the exit.  There was a huge line for the ferry and it was a frustrating forty-five minute wait as people kept cutting in front of us.  We eventually made it back to Manly and ate dinner late at around 7:30pm.

Gabe looks out the window of the skyline.

Tara's peacock feather.