Something On A Sunday

St. Louis Zoo 10.30.10

I love St. Louis! I love the St. Louis Zoo! My grandparents on my father's side of the family lived there and I remember trips there as a child. I discovered who Neil Diamond was from my aunts and I listened to all seventeen minutes and five seconds of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" for the first time during a trip there. Even now I still can do a pretty good job of mimicking Ron Bushy's drum solo.

But one of my favorite things about St. Louis is the Zoo. This was Marlin Perkins' zoo from 1962 to 1970. I remember watching him and Jim during episodes of Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom. Whenever I visit St. Louis, I must get to the zoo. And while I am there, one my favorite places to be is on Historic Hill. For an amateur photographer with an eye for architecture, Historic Hill offers many opportunities to find just the right photograph. Whether it is in the 1927 Herpetarium (above), 1929 Primate House, or the 1904 Bird Cage, I find myself taking more photographs here than anywhere else in the park. My one regret is that I am not able to find photographs from when I was younger of the Great Ape House or the Elephant House. Renovation has taken these gems and all I have is what I believe them to have been in my memory.

Nashville has a zoo and I visit there occasionally. But it doesn't offer the architecture found in St. Louis Zoo. So I'll continue to visit there from time-to-time and I'll continue to take more photographs searching for that one elusive shot.

More to follow...