Family Day At the Zoo

One of the family outings we enjoyed this summer was a trip to our zoo here in Krasnoyarsk. We also counted this outing as a reward of the boys finishing their school year. Our schedules got a bit "off" with all the house construction this year so the school years are sort of blending together.

Even though Krasnoyarsk as a whole is not the cleanest of cities, the zoo grounds are beautifully maintained and groomed.

I thought you might enjoy walking along with us through the park.

Old style Russian stove in the children's petting zoo area.

 We have animals of all types almost as many as the zoos in America. Obviously the cold winter climate is a consideration as to what sort of "tenants" can live here year round.

The polar bears were quite active on this day and put on quite a show for us. A lady who is one of the veterinarians here at the zoo told us that this big guy to the right, Felix, loves to wait for a big crowd to gather by his cage, pace around a bit sticking only his paw in the water and then jump into his pool splashing them all!

Silly boys!

Timothy loved this "Wanted" poster since it was written in English.

This is one of my favorite picture spots!

Beka loves Tiger Lillys!

Momma and her kids.

One of our newest zoo residents is the giraffes! There are four of them now after one died. The whole process of their transport and arrival at our zoo was big news!

People feed the animals so much that they will come right up to the fences to see if you have any treats to offer. It can be a bit dangerous to stand too close to the fences!

Beautiful flowers with little or no weeds!

Love the entrance to the water terrarium.

We found a great "hang out" for the boys!

The zoo also has a small amusement park located at the front of the property. The zoo is on a hillside so the park is almost at the bottom of the hill. 

Since we were celebrating the boys finishing their school year we treated them to a few rides.

Beka was excited about crashing into her brothers on the bumper cars.

Posing by the mammoths as we were leaving the zoo.

We took the family to one of our favorite restaurants for dinner after walking all day at the zoo. 

After enjoying good food we went home for dessert and 

presents (rewards) for the completion of a good school year.

Present time! 

The anticipation is killing us!!!

At this point in their lives the boys love anything with a million small pieces so they received just that - lots of little parts to put together Hero Factory guys.

A big Hero Factory guy to share.

Mater Operation Game! This should be fun!

I am always so thankful for times like these to make special memories together as a family.