I still have more stories lined up about my recent African traveling spree. In the meantime though, it pains me that so much time has passed since my last Joburg post. So here’s a quick one.
Last week I visited the Joburg Zoo for the first time. It’s crazy that it took me this long to go. I live five minutes from the zoo and it’s one of the city’s most popular attractions, especially for locals. I guess I subconsciously thought that every city in the world has a zoo and this one couldn’t be much different. It also seemed weird to visit a zoo in a country like South Africa, where there are so many amazing animals wandering around freely in the wild.
Anyway, I finally went to the zoo and of course I was wrong about my previous assumptions. It’s a great zoo and there are lots of animals there that you can’t see in the South African wild, like mountain lions and spider monkeys and armadillos. (How had I never seen an armadillo before?)
It was a quick visit and I didn’t see everything. But of the animals I did see, the owls were my favorites by far. I’ve never been so close to an owl before and I was blown away by how beautiful they are.
This is a young owl, somewhere between a chick and an adolescent. He was sitting on the ground by the fence and stared back at me quite curiously and brazenly as I shot his photo. Unfortunately I can’t remember what type of owl this is – maybe someone can help.
Thanks to the person who finally convinced me to go to the zoo and waited patiently while I shot a bajillion photos of owl eyes through a fence. You’re awesome.
How have I never blogged about 44 Stanley Avenue, the coolest shopping and dining complex in Joburg, which is only five minutes from my house?
I guess it’s wrong to say I’ve never blogged about 44 Stanley; I’ve mentioned it countless times over the years (see here and here) when writing about specific restaurants or shops that are there. But I’ve never written a dedicated post about 44 Stanley as a destination and it’s about time I did – especially now, with the holidays upon us.
I’ve been dreadfully uninspired lately, struggling to think of anything I want to blog about despite having a long list of great ideas (many of which you, my readers, provided in September). I’m finding it hard to feel positive about life at the moment. But on Saturday Thorsten and I got the chance to visit Indwe Park, an indigenous garden and sculpture park in Braamfontein, and I knew I had my topic for today.
Given this week’s political nuclear bomb blast, it feels like a weird time to publish a light-hearted post about my recent (pre-election) jaunt through the United States. But I’m hoping you’ve have had enough of the U.S. election horror show – I know I have – and are ready (at least temporarily) for some wholesome American travel adventures. If so, please read on about my four-day visit to Maine, the northeastern-most state in the lower 48, with my sister, Susanna.
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It makes me smile, when I see it.