Z is for Zoo

It’s the last day of the A to Z Challenge for 2014. Zoo might seem like an obvious, lazy choice, especially since I used it for last year’s challenge, but I didn’t choose it because it’s easy. As I explained last year, we like to visit zoos we haven’t been to when we travel. Since my theme for this year’s challenge is about our anniversary trip to Nashville, it makes sense to include the Nashville Zoo. It might even be a good place to find some of those birds I mentioned in my last post.

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Everyone knows what a zoo is, so it doesn’t need much explanation. In addition to the usual exhibits and animal shows, the Nashville Zoo has some pretty cool features for kids. I won’t dwell too much on those since we won’t be taking any kids on our anniversary trip.

One pretty cool thing at the Nashville Zoo is their Jungle Gym, which is the largest community-built playground in the United States. It is a 66,000 sq. ft. playground with a 35-foot tall “Tree of Life” tree house structure, a concrete sculpture garden, a dancing water fountain, cargo netting, super slides, and other fun things for kids.

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They also have quite a few educational programs for kids, including photography classes and programs for home schoolers. They even have youth volunteer opportunities.

One thing I’m looking forward to seeing is the giraffe that was born in December of last year.

Bahati was born on December 13, weighing 180 pounds
and standing 6 feet 5 inches tall.
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If we make the zoo part of our trip, I’m sure I’ll take hundreds of pictures. I always do. I’ll try not to post too many. :)

That’s it for the A to Z Challenge this year, but it’s just the beginning of our vacation planning. It will be fun to share our personal experiences and pictures from Nashville when we go.