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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2014 20:54:28 GMT
No, it's not open yet, but why should that stop me? We have waited five long years since the "Zoo de Vincennes" closed, and renovation did not start immediately, because there was no money budgeted for it. The animals were boarded at other zoos around Europe, except for the girafes, which I already mentioned in this report 5 years ago. Three years ago, the renovation work finally began, and the zoo was slowly but surely restructured. Some animals such as elephants and bears will not return because their lifestyles and territorial needs are incompatible. But anyway, now the zoo is ready to reopen. The residents have been returning over the last few months to get used to their new prison home, and they should be ready to face the crowds within two weeks. It has been decided to stress the fact that it is the Paris Zoo and not the Vincennes Zoo, which is the name by which it has always been known to Parisians due to it being located in the Bois de Vincennes. Only time will tell by what name Parisians will call it in the future. A day or two ago, I decided to walk around the outer perimeter of the zoo to see what I could see. This will be the new entrance, closer to the Porte Dorée metro station than the old entrance. There were some "official people" inside taking photographs of the installations. The website claims that people should buy tickets and make reservations ahead of time for a visit. This implies that the place will be overwhelmed.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2014 21:03:38 GMT
There will be a restaurant on the premises. I zoomed in on this map of the zoo through the fence. This used to be a secondary entrance to the zoo, but it does not appear that it will reopen. So I started walking along the outer fence. The fake "rock" has always been the symbol of the zoo. Meanwhile, there were a number of Bulgarian families living in their cars along here. It's frustrating not to be able to get a good look. There's a waterfall here, but I don't know what animals will be trying to escape frolicking in the water.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 1, 2014 21:11:19 GMT
I'll try to visit the zoo before the end of the month, but who knows? Maybe Mrs. FM will beat me there!
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Post by bjd on Apr 2, 2014 8:03:09 GMT
I really don't like the idea of having to program a visit to the zoo in advance. What if it rains? What if it's a nice day and you suddenly think -- Oh, I'd like to go to the zoo.
This seems to be part of the "plan and book everything in advance" mentality so visible by new posters on TT. I should think the zoo is mostly for locals anyway. Kerouac, are there any animals left at the Jardin des Plantes? I think that's the last time I was at anything zoo-like.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2014 13:31:43 GMT
Yes, the quite small menagerie of the Jardin des Plantes has remained open all this time and will continue in operation since it is the second oldest zoo in the world after the Vienna zoo. It opened in 1794. And I think that the Jardin d'Acclimitation in the Bois de Boulogne still has a petting zoo.
I hate all of this advance booking as well and I hope that it will not really be necessary after the first season of operation and the expected huge masses of people wanting to see the new zoo. Visitors to the old zoo had dropped under 1 million a year already back in 1984 and by the time it closed, visits were down to only 300,000 in 2005 after 600,000 in 2004. They didn't even release figures for the final years because the media had begun to mention that a lot of the animals had already begun to be moved out of the zoo, which obviously turned people away from the zoo. Of course the Thoiry animal park in the suburbs has also eaten into zoo visits over the years.
I seem to recall reading somewhere that they are expecting around 3 million visitors for the first full year of operation and that the "normal" number of visitors is expected to be 1.5 million a year.
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Post by tod2 on Apr 3, 2014 7:38:17 GMT
Thanks for the update Kerouac - I always love seeing what is going on in Paris. This make my list of 'places to visit' even longer! Those white flowers you accidentally got in your photo when trying to capture the goings on inside the fence....they look like the ones in my Kruger report.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 6, 2014 16:34:08 GMT
I found this amusing across from the Louvre this morning.
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Post by nycgirl on Apr 8, 2014 0:47:44 GMT
Ha, that's funny. Reminds me of the time a year or so ago when a snake actually escaped at the Bronx Zoo.
I'm curious, what are those odd-looking rodents called?
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Post by tod2 on Apr 8, 2014 6:32:26 GMT
Nycgirl - I recognise them as The worlds largest rodent - the capybara, (Hydrochoerus Hydrocheris). The capybara is found in South America and weighs about 100 pounds.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 8, 2014 9:33:28 GMT
I wouldn't want one as a pet. They look like they would eat all of my furniture from Ikea.
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Post by mrsfm on Apr 26, 2014 17:17:12 GMT
Ah, only just found this thread! Then it took me 5 minutes to try and figure out what my username is to log in but here I am! No, I didn't beat you to it, kerouac, I didn't want to go during school vacation and wanted to wait till the vegetation and animals are a little more settled. The advance booking was only recommended for the opening and April school vacation, but you can buy a ticket on site. I doubt there will be lines outside Wednesdays, weekends, public holidays and school vacation. Also the tickets sold online are not dated and are valid one year. At first I thought I would get the yearly pass so I could just walk in during my frequent walks in the Bois de Vincennes but I read the price wrong and it's just too expensive, especially since I get a discount on the regular ticket but not on the pass. I will probably go some time in May or June.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 26, 2014 18:55:44 GMT
I am waiting a bit as well to go for the vegetation to get hold and also because I read that there are a few animals that will not arrive until mid-May.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2014 20:40:49 GMT
I finally went to the zoo this morning. The 22 euro ticket is definitely more than I ever thought I would pay to go to a zoo, although it must be admitted that the Thoiry drive-though safari park in the suburbs is charging 29.80€ per adult, so it is all relative, and the prices that are in my head are probably 20 years out of date. In any case, the new zoo is clean and well organised, and I was quite pleased by the experience. It is definitely designed for the animals to feel as comfortable as possible even when their personal space is a bit limited. But at least there are no "cages" like in the old days. Something that has disappointed some fans of old style zoos is that the animals can hide if that is their wont, and it is up to the visitors to be patient if they hope to get a glimpse of the more elusive residents. However, it must also be admitted that visitors are often given 3 or 4 possible viewpoints at completely different angles to assist them in their viewing.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 7, 2014 20:57:36 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2014 5:03:48 GMT
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Post by tod2 on Jul 8, 2014 14:24:53 GMT
Fantastic! I can't wait to see it! They have done a magnificent job - Never seen a manatee and that blood red Ibis was too beautiful. The vegetation is certainly impressive but it's a pity they trimmed those Travellers Palms" so drastically. Probably because of transport they got damaged. I'm wondering if the have managed to acquire an Aye-Aye in the way of Lemurs. Wonderful photos which proves it's best to go early!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2014 17:37:59 GMT
Some of the little things to see are quite banal, but they are still nice little scenes. But some of the creatures are really splendid to behold, in their totally aloof indifference. Unfortunately, many of the exotic birds love the mist sprayers so much that they stay up there to wallow in their personal pleasure. Okay, time to leave the biodome behind, but I really enjoyed it. However, it was kind of nice to be cool and dry again, too. There were still lots of areas to see. In about 5 years when the vegetation is more mature, it will be great. This woman was waiting to feed the penguins for the crowd. There was also a strange animal in the water to clean the windows.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 8, 2014 18:06:25 GMT
I'd like a mist sprayer too!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2014 19:19:13 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2014 19:39:02 GMT
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Post by mossie on Jul 8, 2014 20:25:30 GMT
That looks to be a super zoo with the animals apparently free.
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Post by lagatta on Jul 9, 2014 0:53:15 GMT
I'm glad that after "Impossible to have a zoo without monkeys/apes/baboons/etc" you showed a group of homo sapiens, as of course we are among the etc primates.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2014 13:02:21 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jul 9, 2014 14:30:34 GMT
Inside the old "mountain" there is a display of the creepy-crawlies of Europe -- snakes, frogs, salamanders, turtles, bugs... It takes a lot of patience to see them, and the place was filling with squealing children by then, so it wasn't the ideal viewing moment. There were also a lot of exasperated parents who cannot fathom how kids can be more fascinated with tiny beetles than with giraffes and lions. I was nearing the exit with just a few more things to see. This is not to say that I saw everything at the zoo, because as they warn everybody, you would pretty much have to spend all day to catch sight of some of the more elusive animals. It is the price to pay for giving the animals bigger spaces with more private areas. At the same time, it is probably a good marketing ploy for return visits, because when you know you have missed some things that you wanted to see, it gives you more of a desire to return in the future. I might go back in about six months, because I think I would really appreciate the biodome on a cold winter day! Anyway, there were a few evil looking wolves. No doggy love in their eyes. A tapir seemed satisfied with life. Finally, there was a sleepy jaguar doing nothing as I headed for the exit. One last comment: the gift shop really has quite a bit of interesting stuff for people who need to buy things, particularly for children.
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Post by htmb on Jul 18, 2014 3:05:40 GMT
I thought this 2007 paper presentation about the master plan for the Paris zoo was interesting. There are details mentioned about combining a mixture of animals in the same enclosures, as well as designating spaces for animals with similar needs, such as baboons and lions, so the animals could switch spaces periodically to keep them from becoming bored. www.zoolex.org/publication/fiby/vienna07/icee.html
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Post by tod2 on Jul 22, 2014 15:00:21 GMT
Lots of Kruger stuff here Kerouac! It certainly is a magnificent place for animals to live without fear of predators. And for those animals who have never known true wild freedom it doesn't matter. The only thing I feel sorry for are those birds of prey who should fly thousands of feet high and circle around on the thermals. Just what those enormous wings were made for.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 24, 2015 13:31:08 GMT
I returned to the zoo last week to see how crowded it was (very) and also to see how the vegetation has fared after about two years of growing. It was pretty scraggly a year ago.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 24, 2015 14:37:56 GMT
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Post by onlyMark on Aug 24, 2015 18:22:32 GMT
I can't now put names to them but several of those antelope/deer, and the ostrich, are very tasty.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 24, 2015 21:09:29 GMT
Zarafa was the first giraffe imported to France, a gift from the Ottoman commander and proclaimed Khedive of Egypt, Muhammad Ali to French king Charles X in 1827. It was the first giraffe in Europe since 1486. Zarafa lived in the Jardin des Plantes for 18 years. It is a sad but fitting homage to have named a zoo café after him.
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