Open Day at the National Zoo and Aquarium

The National Zoo is only a short 10 minute drive from our house and earlier this year we took up the offer of an annual pass. It means we can call in whenever we like and it's a nice place to spend an hour or two. Amy has taken Audrey and Eli a few times since we've signed up for the pass, and the children have now developed their own routine in terms of which animals they see and in which order. Every trip ends in a milkshake in the cafe.

Sunday was an open day for members, which gave you the opportunity to feed a number of the animals. Amy and I fed a (very sedentary) lion with some bits of meat while he lay on the sun.

A while ago someone gave us a giraffe fancy-dress costume which Audrey decided to wear to celebrate the occasion. She got a number of admiring glances and it made a nice change from her usual fairy attire.

me feeding Christian the lion. I opted not to go in the cage and give him a hug afterwards.

Eli by the monkey enclosure

Audrey as a giraffe

Sign reads: Please do not touch the glass - National Zoo and Aquarium a touching experience