The Zoo

It's amazing that elephants live within three miles from the White House.

Aunt Katie, Desmond and I visited the National Zoo this week. Admission is free and we found free 2 hour street parking. Two hours is as much zoo as Des could handle. Pretty cheap and a lot of fun.

As much as I dislike the concept of zoos, I had a good time. It was fun watching Desmond excitedly race around and laugh with glee at the animals. There are some truly fascinating animals on this planet. I felt fortunate to see some of them in person.

Desmond and Tian Tian.

A better view of Tian Tian. Washingtonians are particularly fond of their pandas.
When Tia Shan was returned to China, it headlined the local news.

My favorite moment was at the elephant pen. A particularly playful elephant stopped to pee. Boy did this guy pee; think fire hose strength. Anyway, you could hear a quiet chorus of mothers talking to their toddlers saying things like, "Yes, the elephant is going to the potty. Yes he is doing a good job. Yes, he should get a sticker." We are approaching potty training; I could sympathize.

Thanks for the teaching moment, Mr. Elephant.