Day 21, 12/14/2011:
Where has all the time gone? When will I get some rest? But wow what an adventure. Monsoon Asia was a blast but come and gone way too quickly. After today's visit to the Beijing Zoo after the flight from Pattaya City and then a second flight after the visit to the Beijing Zoo to Shanghai I am exhausted.
Beijing Zoo was nice, but the Panda exhibit, for which it is most famous, was an additional fee on top of the price of admission. As interesting as the the giant panda, red-crowned crane and Pere David's deer-all unique to China, it was fun, as American tourists, to see the American Continent exhibit.
Recommended time for a visit was only one hour, but we found ourselves lingering for about three before we had to head back to the airport. We ate quick fried mutton and dumplings, a dish preferred by Mongolian rulers during the Yuan dynasty.
Day 23, 12/16/2011:
Down here in New Zealand tonight. Stayed in Shanghai last night and visited the zoo there this morning. Luckily the zoo in Shanghai is fairly close to the Shanghai Hongqiao International airport. I was surprised that there was an even greater variety of native Chinese animals, with the usual compliment of African animals and a nice Kangaroo exhibit. It was another quick visit, but worth it. Now I need sleep.
