Palau & Australia 2000: Sydney Taronga Zoo

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Sydney Taronga Zoo

One of the highlights of our visit to Sydney was a quick trip to the Taronga Zoo just across the bay. To get there you take a ferry from Circular Quay in downtown Sydney. The trip is only about 15 minutes. Be sure to buy a ticket that includes the ferry, gondola and zoo entry on one pass. I bought my ticket at the kiosks at Circular Quay.

The zoo itself is on a hill. Once the ferry drops you off you can either take a shuttle bus to the top, but take the gondola instead. You will see spectacular views of Sydney on the way up. Once there we focused our visit on seeing local Australian animals even though the zoo is very comprehensive. You start the tour at the top and slowly work your way back down the hill back to shore where you pick up the ferry back to downtown Sydney.

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The ferry finally shows up to take us to the zoo.
Viewed: 53 times.
Lily taking in the views on the way.
Viewed: 23 times.
Approaching the zoo.
Viewed: 50 times.

Catching a ride to the top of the hill.
Viewed: 48 times.
Taking in the views on the way up.
Viewed: 70 times.
The zoo has a parklike setting with exotic plants all over.
Viewed: 59 times.

Click on thumbnail for a full-size picture
The ferry finally shows up to take us to the zoo. Viewed: 53 times.	Lily taking in the views on the way. Viewed: 23 times.	Approaching the zoo. Viewed: 50 times.
Catching a ride to the top of the hill. Viewed: 48 times.	Taking in the views on the way up. Viewed: 70 times.	The zoo has a parklike setting with exotic plants all over. Viewed: 59 times.

The coolest part of this zoo is a Koala exhibit where for a nominal charge they allow you to get up close and take pictures of have the staff take pictures of you. They have a strict no touching policy and they limit the area to only four tourists at a time. What's strange is they allow you to spend as much time as you want but they won't let anyone else in until you're done! The line was pretty long and slow moving but was well worth it!

The line runs along another exhibit of uniquely Australian animals. The Shortbeaked Echidna is a small porcupine-line animal found all over Australia. The Quokka is a small Kangaroo-like animal found is southwestern Australia. The Quokka is threatened with extinction as it is hunted by non-native animals introduced by the Europeans.

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This female looked quite comfortable on her branch.
Viewed: 100 times.
Here was one also holding on to a baby.
Viewed: 87 times.
Lily posing with a Koala.
Viewed: 63 times.

And there's me with two Koalas.
Viewed: 40 times.
A couple Echidnas looking for food.
Viewed: 70 times.
A better shot of an Echidna.
Viewed: 79 times.

The best shot I was able to get of a Quokka.
Viewed: 86 times.
Here is some info about those animals.
Viewed: 46 times.

Click on thumbnail for a full-size picture
This female looked quite comfortable on her branch. Viewed: 100 times.	Here was one also holding on to a baby. Viewed: 87 times.	Lily posing with a Koala. Viewed: 63 times.
And there's me with two Koalas. Viewed: 40 times.	A couple Echidnas looking for food. Viewed: 70 times.	A better shot of an Echidna. Viewed: 79 times.
The best shot I was able to get of a Quokka. Viewed: 86 times.	Here is some info about those animals. Viewed: 46 times.

We then walked around and checked out the various other animals. The other uniquely Australian animal we wanted to see was the Duckbilled Platypus. I couldn't get any pictures because the Platypus is nocturnal and the display was kept very dark. Other things we saw was Kangaroos, an Emu, a large aviary with native Australian birds, Dingos and even a Tasmanian Devil.

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I took a picture of this sign mostly because Lily's sister works for Johnson Wax. Viewed: 52 times.	A Wallaby enjoying some corn. Viewed: 76 times.	The Emu looks somewhat like a smaller Ostrich. Viewed: 51 times.
Another sleeping Wallaby. Viewed: 70 times.	Some Pelicans. Viewed: 43 times.	A sleeping Tasmanian Devil. Viewed: 74 times.
The Tasmanian Devil woke up! Viewed: 120 times.	Looks kind of cuddly to me. Viewed: 56 times.	Dingo ate my baby! Viewed: 96 times.
Looks like a regular dog to me. Viewed: 74 times.	Some of the birds found in the aviary. Viewed: 51 times.	Looks like a Pigeon. Viewed: 42 times.
Probably a Topknot Pigeon. Viewed: 55 times.	A Parrot-like bird. Viewed: 37 times.	Another Parrot-like bird. Viewed: 52 times.
Hmm, I didn't think the Kodiak Bear was native to Australia. Viewed: 68 times.	Nope, it's native to Alaska. Viewed: 41 times.	This Sun Bear is native to southeast Asia. Viewed: 70 times.
More info on the Sun Bear. Viewed: 57 times.	These Chilean Flamingos aren't Australian either. Viewed: 55 times.	The Royal Spoonbill is a native Australian bird. Viewed: 41 times.
More info about these birds. Viewed: 38 times.	There was another Koala exhibit elsewhere in the zoo that focused on their diet. Viewed: 65 times.	Lily was busy looking at the Koala when I turned around and found this Lizard scurrying between some bushes. Viewed: 57 times.
There were several Peacocks roaming around the zoo. Viewed: 30 times.	Wow, that's a big Tortoise! Viewed: 79 times.	More info about the Aldabra Tortoise. Viewed: 48 times.
On the ferry ride back we enjoyed a great view of the Harbor Bridge complete with Olympic rings. Viewed: 69 times.

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