Went to the zoo, zoo, zoo....

Mrs ERJ and I went to the Grand Rapids zoo today.

The high point of the visit came after we left the aquarium. At a loss for where to go next, we spotted three young ladies doing face painting in the shade of a food kiosk.

One of the young ladies, Madeline, took us firmly in hand. "I have been thinking about this all summer" she declared. "And you are the first people to ask my opinion."

She drew arrows on our map and wrote down numbers to indicate the preferred order. Her two buddies nodded in agreement.

Mrs ERJ and I were done after two hours in the 90 degree heat. We could have pushed on but it was getting close to not being fun any more. We got half-way through Madeline's itinerary. 

Grand Rapids has a very nice zoo. It has many water features where water is pumped up and then rushes through exhibits. Even the sound is refreshing. The zoo is spread out enough that there are few "animal smells". The only place that had a distinct smell was the barn-yard that had domestic goats.

Lots of trees for shade. Beautiful landscaping. Places to buy food, ice cream or drinks every three hundred yards. Benches. Lots of water fountains to refill your bottle (of water).