La Menagerie de Jardin des Plantes

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When you think of Paris, do you think of green spaces and zoos?  Neither did we, when we first arrived in France.  Now that we have been here a while, we are starting to know better.  A good example green space in the middle of the city is La Menagerie de Jardin des Plantes (The Zoo in the Garden of Plants).

Located on the south side of the Seine river in the heart of Paris, the Garden of Plants is a collection of museums, gardens, and green houses built around the theme of natural history.  There is a museum of geology, the museum of evolution, green houses of the rainforests, expansive flower gardens, and a zoo: La Menagerie.

La Menagerie is one of the oldest zoological parks in the world, started in the 1770s.  As you might expect, the park has been updated over time and now boasts a mixture of displays.  Some are of the "concrete and cage" sort.  Others more open air and naturalistic with room to move and play.  

We visited the zoo on a day when we had originally planned to see the collections of spring flowers.  It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon, a perfect day for a walk in the park with friends.  But then the wind kicked up and the zoo seemed a nice compromise between being outside yet being out of the wind.

It has been said that some of the best experiences are the ones you do not plan.  The zoo was definitely one of these, enjoyed by parents and children alike.

The reptile museum was one of our favorites.  The game of "find the thing" had everyone involved.  It then became the game of "Collect the Disney Characters" as we searched for Timone, Pumba, Kuzko, and their friends.

As you can see from the pictures below, we found a great number of their friends and had a great time doing it.

 

 Rows of Poppies in the sun A wild horse enjoying a snack Laying out and enjoying the heat The Budweiser Frogs do not have it this good! Some REALLY big tortoises Sweaters with legs: Cashmere sheep A frog looking for a song Trying to cool off in the heat A green snake--not too hard to find "I found this one! Did you?" Timon and friends just hanging out Playing king of the mountain Sometimes when you are small you have to work harder to eat A brown bear waiting for dinner A very tall and stocky burro How often do you see a water buffalo in a zoo? This was our first time. A camel enjoying the taste of the spring leaves What a turtle looks like on the inside Kuzko and friend We don't really know. Sort of a kangaroo rat thing. Cute though. Climbing the brass bear A flock of pink flamingos standing proud  

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Page created on 11 Apr 2002