Toronto Zoo (Giant Pandas)

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 2000 Meadowvale Road
Date: May 2013
Website:  www.torontozoo.com

Back in 1985 the Toronto Zoo had Qing Qing and Quan Quan for several months.  Now it is Da Mao and Er Shun who pay the zoo a visit.  We are sure to stop by and see them whenever we can, as we know that their time on loan from China is limited.  They are expected to remain at the zoo until 2018 and then move on to the Calgary Zoo, unless they breed successfully.  If that should happen then their departure date will be re-evaluated.

 

   Pandas spend most of their time either sleeping or eating massive amounts of bamboo.  On our visits they have usually been sitting back enjoying a good chew on a bamboo stick.  Despite being known for being cute and cuddly, pandas have big claws and sharp teeth that help them with this task.  We would expect that 10 out of 10 dentists don't recommend that you try this at home.

The two pandas are kept separate unless it is during the mating period.  They spend a lot of time apart since that period is only for a few days each year.  Da Mao is the male panda and he usually spends his day in the larger outdoor area of the enclosure.  His name in english is 'Big Fur'.  Er Shun is the female and she has a smaller area on the other side of the exhibit.  Her name means 'Double Smoothness'.  Both pandas weighed roughly the same amount shortly after their arrival.  Da Mao was 98.8 kg and Er Shun had a slight advantage over him at 100 kg.

 

  We have also been fortunate enough to see the pandas do something else besides eat.  Da Mao often takes a walk around his pond area to help him digest before his next snack.

   During one visit Er Shun treated us to quite the acrobatic display as she did somersaults, commando moves and spent some time swatting at a big giant mirror.  We were lucky enough to have recorded this and you can see the highlights in the video below.

We hope that the pandas will be with us for quite some time and maybe if we are really lucky the Toronto panda population is on the rise.

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Click here to take a virtual tour and see our collection of Toronto Zoo animal photos.

Map of Our World
Toronto Zoo (Giant Pandas)

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Post # 16

12 Apostles

Location: Victoria, Australia
Address: Great Ocean Road
Date: May 2012
Website: parkweb.vic.gov.au

  The Great Ocean Road runs along the southern part of Australia in the territory of Victoria.  One of the highlights of this drive is the 12 Apostles. These are tall rock formations that were caused by the giant ocean waves eroding the limestone coast.  They are called the 12 Apostles but when we visited there were only about 7 still standing, and we believe there may have never been more than 10.  We were informed that another one had fallen just the year before.

  As you stand on the coast and face south you really feel the awesome power and beauty of nature.  With the wind blowing in our faces and the waves crashing against the rocks we really felt like we were at the edge of the world.  Since at this point we were just west of Tasmania, there was truly nothing but ocean between us and Antarctica.  Amidst all of this the Apostles stand there just off the coast, braving the elements.

  The wind began to pick up and darker clouds were moving in.  We were still about a 3 hour drive from our hotel in Melbourne so our Aussie family tour guides wisely decided it was time for us to go.

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Map of Our World
12 Apostles

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Post # 15

Warner Bros Studio VIP Tour

Location: Burbank, California, USA
Address: 3400 West Riverside Drive
Date: Feb 2014
Website:  vipstudiotour.warnerbros.com

 The Warner Bros. Studio Tour is a must for any TV or movie fan.  Since we are both big TV and movie fans we had to pay the studios a visit.  We went on a Sunday afternoon and not much was happening as far as productions on the lot, but we had the opportunity to see many of the places from productions in the past.

  You go around the studios in small groups riding in a cart like the one pictured above.  The tour guides don't follow any set pattern around the grounds so they can customize the tour based on your group's interests.  Be sure to talk to them and let them know what you like.  The highlights of our tour included a trip around the Backlot, some time to explore the Warner Museum and Picture Car Collection, a visit to the retired Central Perk set from Friends, a drive through The Mill and a visit to The Big Bang Theory and Pretty Little Liars sets.

  You get a glimpse of just how fake everything is, because movies are always just concerned with what you see on screen.   Our guide was telling us how they use pull ties to put branches on the trees depending on what season they need it to be.  It is interesting to see how this all comes together in the finished product.  Even more exciting is knowing that you have been in the same exact spot where your favourite shows and films were created.

To see more of our trip to Warner Brothers, check out this permanent page of
Productions filmed on the Warner Bros. Backlot.

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Map of Our World
Warner Bros Studio VIP Tour

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Post # 14