Zoo Lights

I am not a huge fan of the zoo most day.  It’s crowded, it stinks, and you can receive severe flesh wounds trying to rescue a child being attacked by killer lorikeets.  Being a parent is all about doing shit you don’t want and given our proximity to the Oregon Zoo, I take my children a few times a year anyway.  They’re kids, they LOVE the zoo.

I do, however, like Zoo Lights.  Every year during the holidays, the zoo is decorated like a Rhinestone Cowboy.  Over 1.5 million lights are used to illuminate the zoo for the annual Zoo Lights festivities.  It truly is spectacular what they do with those lights.  The best way to view all of the displays is to take a ride on the steamer train that circles the zoo. 

The downside to Zoo Lights is waiting in the train line with two frozen kids asking when it’s going to be their turn.  We waited in line approximately 30 minutes and we got there relatively early.  I have heard upwards of 90 minutes if you get there at prime time. 

They have Disneyland style queues for herding people, but it seems seat assignments for cars while waiting in line might speed up the boarding process. 

FYI, when the train finally rumbles out of the station and the littlest kid asks to play Angry Birds on your phone 2 minutes in, you may be tempted to choke him out.  I’ve heard.

It was really cold the night we went, but I guess that is to be expected in December.  On a positive note, the zoo doesn’t smell so bad when it’s below freezing. 

I am disclosing that our family was given complimentary admission to Zoolights, the train ride and a piece of fudge that only Hank liked (shocking I know).   Like always, all opinions are my own.

As an aside, I was given some information on winter break day camps at the zoo.  I am seriously considering it on the day they have“Northwest Art-i-facts” because they have campers visiting black bears and designing totem poles.  Since we have our very own black bear living somewhere nearby I thought it might be nice for Maren and Hank to learn about them.   Also, Sophie will be with Rat Bastard in California for a whole week during break and I will totally need a day off.  Anyone local want to carpool?

 

 

Comments

[Kimberly]

We live right across the river from Cincinnati, and the Cincinnati Zoo's Festival of Lights is one of our favorite holiday places! The kids love everything about the zoo, but there's something extra-magical about being there at night, with everything lit. We went on Sunday, which was a fairly warm (about 45 degrees) but rainy night, and we counted 12 non-zoo employees the entire time we were there. It was fantastic. We got to write and hand-deliver letters to Santa, enjoy wintery snacks, pet reindeer, and didn't have to deal with crowds. Major win.

That first picture made me laugh. Poor thing looks so cold! Also, on a semi-related note, my mom used to sign my siblings and I up for those zoo classes all the time, and I loved them. So hopefully your kids will, too!

[Bridget]

Won't the bears be hibernating?

They have soo lights here, but it's too fucking cold for us to go. I'm moving to your neighborhood next winter.

[Carrie]

Loved seeing the pics of the lights.

This year we're (my city) not doing the big Trail of Lights thing we usually do. They're whining about money and stuff so that's the first thing to go, you know.

Major bah humbug crap to me.

[Suniverse]

Pretty lights!

I sometimes drive by the zoo know and ALMOST get a little nostalgic at not having gone in so many years.

And then I remember all the treks through there and . . . yeah, I'm o.k. with not going again.

[Eva Gallant]

thanks for the photos! Very nice!

[Kimbelry]

Jaysus, come to Canada...I'll show you cold.
I'll even dare Hank to stick his tongue on steel pole...just for kicks.

[Kim Pugliano]

Tell Sophie to call us while she's here. Does she babysit?

[Audrey]

I have always wanted to go to Zoo Lights but the Point Definance Zoo is SO FAR AWAY! Ugh! WE just hit up the Bellevue Botanical Gardens instead. Totally worth the 10 bucks for all 3 of us :)
I would have loved to do a zoo day camp!

[Tonya]

Lucas is all about holiday lights right now, I wonder if zoo does this.

And a zoo day camp? Awesome!

[Nami]

That's pretty cool your zoo actually decks out for the festivities. Like you, I'm not a zoo fan and being that the best one in our neck of the woods is in Da Bronx, well, I ain't going without an entourage.

[Hopes@Staying Afloat!]

Looks beautiful! I have yet to conjure up the courage to go to our local Zoo's Light event! I'm such a wuss!

[Kristin]

That's lovely, I am a sucker for pretty lights.

I was just looking at March break camps. I could come to you, we could sign up all the kids, then you and I could get into trouble together.

[Poppy]

Now that sounds like a grand plan!

[Poppy]

Honestly, I had never attended before I was hooked up with the free tickets.  However, I would definitely go again and pay full admission :)  Kids loved it.

[Poppy]

That isn't on my tourist "to do" list when I visit NY!

[Julie]

I love to visit the zoo! I wish ours decorated, though it's so cold I'd probably not go.

Tell me more about this Lorikeet situation!

[Poppy]

Seriously, I was chaperoning 4 kids at the zoo.  We walked in and a bird dive bombed a child and it's foot got stuck in her braid.  The child was screaming while I attempted to get the bird untangled from her hair while it was flapping around wildly.  All the while it was pecking the crap out of my hand and the horrified children in my group were watching.  There was no zoo staff or anything.  I seriously considered ripping that birds foot from it's body.  Don't tell PETA.  It was pretty horrific.  Also, I used all the Band-Aids in my first aid kit.  On myself.