Zoo : Day 26 of A-Z Challenge

Life is a zoo in a jungle.

My first memory of our country’s capital, Delhi, is of visiting National Zoological Park.

Mathur aunty use to live in our building that too on our floor. Mathur uncle use to work with my father, while aunty was a homemaker like my mother.

The sad part of their life was that they didn’t have children. They liked my brother but they loved me more. One summer evening she asked my parents whether she can take us to Delhi for a week. My parents were very apprehensive about it and told her that they will think about it. Meanwhile aunty divulged her plan to us and we got ready to accompany her.

My brother insisted my parents to let us go, so after much persistence, they gave in. Our bags were packed, mom gave a long list of dos and don’t s and we happily left our home to explore a new city.

After resting for a day, we went to see the zoo. I still remember the big stone with an inscribed name of the park.

The beautiful small lake at the entry where white ducks were playing.

The different colourful birds sitting on small branches of trees. The hopping monkey’s inside a small cage , where people were offering them bananas from outside. The sleeping crocodile lying in cool pool of water. So many peacocks dancing on the fences together.

The big black tiger with brown eyes staring right back at me. Seeing big lion called bababar sher( the toughest among the lion clan) roaming inside a big area which also had small lake for him. Big fox inside a room which had a small window for peeking visitors. The big rhinoceroses behind a big wall, for showing them my uncle had to pick me up on his shoulders. The lazy hippopotamus inside a marsh.

It is what all I can remember from my first visit to zoo in Delhi when I was four years old.

This all came flashing back when my four-year old nephew recently visited a zoological park in Mysore and came back with interesting stories for me. We discussed how all animals looked like , to the voices they were making , to the activities they were involved in. It was indeed great to go back down the memory lane, once again.

PS: Share your story of first zoological park visit or wild life century?

This my attempt for the Twenty-sixth day of the A-Z Challenge.

 

Day 26:Z(alphabet)