Tokyo Zoo

I have new ideas about zoos since I read “Life of Pi.” It is a fantastic and fantastical novel about a young Indian boy who grew up on a zoo. It would make an amazing movie, although, I am a bit reluctant to encourage such a project, because the disappointment would be very bitter if it were done badly.

Since reading this book, my childhood fascination with zoos has returned in full force. Somewhere between high school and my college years I developed the very noble ideology that animals kept in artificial environments, such as zoos, was a travesty against “mother earth” and that I couldn’t support these institutions that were turning a profit on the abuse and imprisonment of nature’s most beautiful animals. However, with a little more thought, I’ve come to realize that it is these institutions that are keeping endangered species from becoming extinct, and although their living space might not always be ideal, I have no doubt that these animals are loved and taken special care of (maybe not in all cases, but in most.) Or, at least that’s what I’ve started telling myself.

After studying my Tokyo travel book, I read a section on Ueno Park, which is a fabulous and sprawling cultural park in Tokyo. It has something like 5 art museums, temples and shrines, musicians/performers that play all day in the streets, and….a zoo. My interest was sparked by this line, “Japan’s oldest zoo includes all the lions, tigers, and bears that zoos normally have, although the sweet and sleepy pandas are by far the most popular.” The PANDAS!? I don’t know if you have noticed the remarkable similarity between Amanda and “Panda”, but because of this similarity I’ve felt a very sincere (nicknames) and material (several panda bear stuff animals) connection with these animals throughout my life. However, I have never seen one of these animals for myself. The thought of walking through a zoo that is over 100 years old in one of the largest and most economically well-off cities in world on the most beautiful summer day of my life to see the mystical panda bear for the first time, just seemed too perfect to pass up. So, with my maps and guide books, dressed in a flowy summer skirt (and a comfortable pair of sandals), I set out on my first trip across the Tokyo Metro area.

After a successful subway ride, I entered the Park at the opposite end of the zoo, which means I had to do plenty of walking before I made it to the zoo gate. The park was not only huge, but also beautiful and so fun. There are temples and shrines that are hundreds of years old standing amidst the park’s contemporary walkways and unique Japanese street performers. My favorite shrine was one called Benten-do, which is a memorial to the goddess of the arts. To get to it, you had to pass through a tunnel of red torii that led to the small but beautiful little shrine. At the little washing basin at the entrance of the shrine, I discovered a unique basin leg that made me smile. It was a fat little demon guardian grunting under the weight of the stone basin. He was so covered with moss, I hardly noticed him at first, but the discovery made me feel lucky and happy about my trip.

The Zoo entrance fee was a measly 600 yen ($6), much cheaper than any zoo in America. I walked in and immediately found a map in English. I set my course and the first stop was the cage of “Ling Ling” the Panda Bear. I was told that Ling Ling would be asleep. I talked with one family who said that the extent that they had ever seen this panda bear move was that it took a leak once while it was napping. So, I didn’t expect much. I figured seeing a fluffy, sleeping panda bear in Tokyo should be enough for any girl. I approached the large enclosure, and there was Ling Ling asleep, as promised, next to a leafy bamboo branch. I took several pictures, of this black and white furry mass, and was about to move on when I heard a gasp from the audience. Ling Ling woke up! And she began to drowsily walk around her enclosure. She would walk a few feet, sit down on her bum, and yawn like some kind of cartoon character. She was beautiful, and surprisingly small. The name “Giant Panda” always lead me to believe these animals were massive, but Ling Ling was quite smaller than I expected. I was so happy to see her walk around. I was so nervous about travelling so far away from my apartment that day, but I knew I was being blessed to have a good day as soon as Ling Ling woke up.

The rest of the day at the zoo was just as exciting. All the animals were awake and happy to pose for pictures. I saw penguins, polar bears, lions, tigers, spider monkeys, rhinos, hippos, huge elephants, and all kinds of crazy birds. The zoo was amazing. All of the vegetation inside and outside the enclosures was real. Walkways were canopied by trees that are who knows how old. The animals all seemed happy and healthy. It was amazing how pink the flamingoes were. Some of the animals weren’t even in cages. The sloth was hanging from a tree out in the open, and there were several porcupines that roamed freely around the zoo. There was also a 600 year old pagoda standing in its original form in the middle of the zoo.

I know. I know. We’ve all been to zoos before. Maybe it doesn’t deserve such a long post, but it was such a wonderful day for me. I spent the whole day out of the apartment. Across town. By myself. In the sun. It was a perfect day.

Torii Tunnel.

My favorite little statue.

"Ling Ling"
This little monkey spent several minutes trying to untwist the wire that held this sign to its cage.



Regal.
Secretary Bird.

So pink.
One of the huge hippos. This is not its real enclosure. He just sleeps here.
Polar Bear.