Community Voices for Health

By:  Jessica DiRamio

I would never have guessed that after last year’s winter, we’d be able to head to the zoo on February vacation this year, but we did.  Not having a solid plan for February vacation week, I was determined to create fun for my girls and so we kicked the week off with a visit to the Roger Williams Zoo in Rhode Island.  The day was a balmy 50 degrees and our fun was sweetened by a half-off of the admission promotion.  Our family of four (my oldest is now too cool to go to the zoo) cost only $20 to get in.  That made my day for sure!

I knew we’d have a great time, but secretly was worried about the lack of animals out and about in winter.  I figured we could be guaranteed to see penquins and seals, but what about alligators, elephants and giraffes?  I crossed my fingers and hoped the visit was worth the time and effort.

Boy was I surprised to see just how many animals were out playing in the sun!  I must say the poor little penquins looks a little lost without snow, but every other animal seemed pretty content with the sunny 50 degree February day.  We were able to see the elephants and giraffes in their houses and didn’t really notice the few missing animals like the alligators and a few turtles whom were not in their habitats that day.  The zoo even had a red panda!  This was the most beautiful animal I have ever seen, with a super furry and thick red coat and striped tail.  Just gorgeous!

We had a great time.  The entire visit took about two hours and at the end, both of my girls were exhausted.  In my book, that’s a great way to start a vacation week!  The best part of it all was that I took a bunch of pictures that I plan to enlarge and hang on my daughter’s bedroom wall as both a reminder of some winter fun, but also some great décor!