penguins walk funny

Getting There...
The Philadelphia zoo is located in west Philly bordering fairmount park on 34th and Girard. And unless you want to pay twelve dollars for parking, you want to use public transportation. Unfortunately, this means the trolley. Emery shook his head "I like to be known as that guy who doesn't use the trolley," he said. I agreed with him, but I said something like "Dude, you can't be known for not doing something". We rode the electric trolley on Girard from Broad to 34th street while Emery and I argued how old the car was. Anyway, I realized the trolley is not all that bad. Don't let it intimidate you even though it looks like an old train car from the 1920s that septa constructed into an ugly green bus. Needless to say, it's the only way the zoo without a car.


The Zoo...
Even though everyone else seemed to believe it was basic common knowledge, I was surprised to learn that the Philadelphia zoo is the oldest zoo in the US, celebrating 150 years. Showcasing a lot of exhibits from the tortoise trail to the African plains to Monkey Junction, Bear Country, Big Cat Falls, Carnivore Kingdom, Bird Valley and much much more, you could spend at least six hours in this animal paradise. I forgot how cool giraffes were and how ugly naked mole rats looked. I realized Ardvarks looking like some kind of hybrid between bunnies and pigs are really cute. There is a lot to see here and for those of you taking pictures like myself, there are a lot of exhibits without the viewing obstruction of a fence. And if you get bored watching animals, ride a camel. Mount a pony or paddle around in a swan boat. For only fifteen dollars you can also soar four hundred feet in the air in the Zooballoon and catch views of the entire city. For eighteen dollars, the zoo is worth the trolley trip.