Shutterstock / Andrey Bayda©With more and more restrictions lifting across the UK, every day out feels like a celebration. Especially one at Chester Zoo!
It feels like returning to childhood, when every trip out was an adventure.
We made the most of one of our recent days off, with a trip to the zoo.
It was great to walk around and see all the animals. Sometimes when you look at certain animals you wonder how they can even exist.
If I described a yellow horse-like creature with big brown spots, an extra-long neck and tongue, you’d think I’d gone a bit balmy. But there one was, munching on some leaves as big as itself.
Photograph by Abbie Phillips.
At around midday, it started to rain. We sat under a shelter to eat our packed lunch, thinking it would soon stop.
Before lockdown, I would always be prepared for all weathers. But after being confined for so many months, I’ve forgotten what British weather is like.
It didn’t spoil anything
It rained for the rest of the day, but don’t worry, it didn’t spoil anything.
We ducked in and out of indoor enclosures and found that, as most people had decided to leave, we always had a good viewpoint of all the animals. . .
At least the ones who also didn’t mind getting a bit wet, anyway!
Photograph by Abbie Phillips.
Our favourites were probably the Andean bears.
We reached their enclosure near the end of our trip, and by this time we were wet through.
We were just about to leave when two bears came barreling out of the brush. They went over to the tree trunks and started climbing.
Photograph by Abbie Phillips.
At one point, both bears shimmied up the same trunk and tried to be the first to reach the top.
Andean bears are also known as Spectacled bears, because of the markings around their eyes. The most famous Andean bear is Paddington!
Abigail Phillips Abbie is the newest member of the fiction team at the "Friend." She loves how varied the role is - every day is different and there is always a new story to read. She is keen to work closely with established writers and discover new writers, too.
