Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Going to the Zoo
Daddy hasn't posted for a while, but he's working on one that covers the last few months (yeah, I know, pathetic). In the meantime, he thought that I would be good to get a recent adventure up for all to see.
We went to the Seoul Grand Park Zoo on Sunday. It was a great trip. I was in a stroller and daddy pushed me around ALLLLLL day. He's feet hurt quite a bit by the end of the day, but the smile on my face was worth it :)
The subway exits right into the park, so It's not a bad trip from home (about 45 minutes on the #4). Mommy was worried that it was too far for us to go in the late morning on Sunday, but she didn't realize that it is only 4 stops past Sadang. Of course, in Seoul 45 minutes is a very, very short trip. We go farther than that for dinner on many nights :)
The entrance is lined with food stands. You could get something here, but you aren't going to get ripped off inside the park, so rather than carting food along with you just order it there. There is a KFC at the entrance and they sell picnic packs, maybe that would be worth it if you're not in the mood for other Korean staples (they have a good variety in the park)
As you can tell from the map, it's a pretty big place. The most difficult thing, though is to walk from the entrance to the zoo. It's takes about 20 minutes, so wear your walking shoes. You can take the "Sky Lift" if you are so inclined, but not easy to do with a stroller in tow. It took about 5 hours to do the tour we did and we didn't even get to see everything. Probably a good idea to break it up into multiple trips. I'd also recommend hitting the northern sites first, since they are often the more exciting for kids: big cats, bears, elephants, etc.
This cool tiger statue is at the entrance of the zoo. It is huge and really sets the mood for the day. The Grand Park Zoo is truly grand. In fact, it's one of the best that I've been to and I've been to quite a few at this point (given that I'm only 2). They spent a lot of time on the design. It's not cliche (at least too much so) like so many other attractions in Korea. It's subtle and somewhat natural.
As you can see from the sign, there are a lot of options (not all represented here). I was impressed with the variety and the quality of environments. While some were a little too much concrete, the majority seemed very well done. I'd seen reviews from 10 years ago saying it was a depressing place, but my experience was much different. It was a great family environment for the humans and seemed like a good environment for the animals as well.
I woke up just as we arrived at the first animal display. These strange pink birds are called flamingos. They look good, but not as good as me with fantastic bed-head. I was amazed with these strange birds and I didn't want to move on, but daddy convinced me to do so.
The next group of animals were really strange. They looked a little like horses, but they had these long necks. They are called giraffes. I wanted to climb over the fence and get a closer look, but daddy said that they would eat me, so I stayed back. I don't think they really would, but you never know. The world is strange.
These are called rhinos. Rhinos have a big horn on their nose. This is a funny picture. It looks like one rhino has two heads :) Alas, that is only an illusion, but I would love to see a real two-headed rhino. That would be cool. These guys were interesting enough. However, by this time I was looking for something a little more. I get bored easily and with so many people around and so many animals, I wasn't paying much attention any more.
And THIS was just what I needed. This was the coolest slide I've even seen. It is an elephant head and I got to slide down the trunk. I wanted daddy to go with me, but he was afraid he'd get stuck, so I went alone. I liked it so much I went again and again, until daddy pulled me away. He thought I was going to break my head on the climbing wall there. I feel backwards a few times, just missing rocks and other nasty things. I wasn't worried. I just think he's over-protective.
Next, we went to the bird sanctuary. They were feeding the pelicans and cranes. They gobbled up the fish and I couldn't get enough of that. I nearly got pushed in thanks to the pushing crowds, so we didn't stick around long. That's the first time that I've ever seen those big birds eat though. Very interesting. I wonder if I could fit in the pelicans' mouths?
I got to feed the deer again. I did this once before at the Seoul Forest, but this time I got to get closer to the deer. I was so scared, but excited at the same time. We ran out of food fast, so I try to feed them dry leaves. Surprisingly, they didn't like dry leaves. I'll have to remember that. They did like carrots and this dry cereal-like stuff. They licked my hands and daddy (the germaphobe) freaked out and wash and sanitized my hands a few times. I think he's a little nuts sometimes.
This was a silly bear. He stuck his tongue out at me. I really liked the bears. They had a few different kinds and they really played to the crowd. Unfortunately, this is because people were throwing junk food at them. I was a little upset, but I couldn't do much about it. Daddy is a little bit of a wuss and didn't do anything either. I guess it's tough to stop large numbers of people from doing something they don't think is wrong.
Mommy and Daddy keep telling me I'm a monkey, so I really identified with this statue. These are my people. It was not nearly as cool as the real ones though. They had the monkeys and crocodiles/alligators in the same building. I really liked the crocodiles. It is featured in my favorite Korean song, so I am fascinated with them. Daddy had to drag me away from the railing. I only wanted to swim with the crocs, but he didn't think it was a good idea.
Daddy bought me a tiger mask to remember the day. He taught me to growl like a tiger and I really liked doing that the rest of the day. I even scared some younger kids on the subway back home. It's a guilty pleasure to scare people :)
I'll probably forget about this trip soon, if I haven't already, but daddy promised that we'd go again. Maybe next time, we'll have time for the Children's Zoo either there or at Children's Grand Park. It would be fun to touch more of the animals. Daddy is already stocking up on santizers.
Labels: 2008, danielcraig, family, samuelcraig, seoul, september, travel, zoo
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Sammy's 2nd Birthday
Welcome back to one of the most neglected blogs on the Web. However, I was motivated by Sammy's 2nd birthday to post something.
Cliche as it is, time really does fly. It's amazing that our little boy is now 2. He surprises us every day with his grow, both physical and cognitive. We never know when a new word will pop out of his mouth (or which language it will be) or where we'll find him next (he's mastering the move and climb maneuver).
This year we celebrated Sammy's birthday at a "Play Room". It's a relatively small business that has indoor playground equipment and toys. Great for infants to toddlers.
We invited Moon's SIWA (Seoul International Women's Association) playgroup members. Most have kids that are a little too young to fully enjoy playrooms, but we have a wonderful time anyway.
We then went to the Olympic Park (yes, from the 1988 Olympics), which is across the street from the playroom. It was a glorious day (note me in a t-shirt) for a walk.
On Sunday, the Kims came over for tacos and a make-shift cake.
Labels: birthday, family, korea, party, samuelcraig, seoul
