Dubbo

 My last stop on the silo art tour was the city of Dubbo, the city where my Dad grew up (though it was a town then) and I wanted to see Western Plains Zoo.

There is no silo art in Dubbo but it was a great place to end a good trip.

There were issues with my hotel booking, which I guess is what you get when you book the cheapest place during school holidays. I'm trying to get a refund because I ended up paying for 3 nights instead of 2. If I lose the money it's not the end of the world but if I'd known I could have gone somewhere a tiny bit ritzier.

Dubbo is a big regional centre but when I went to get myself dinner I was a little intimidated by the people I saw on the street because there seemed to be some addicts around, or maybe it wasn't the addicts but the fact that I didnt see many other people at all.

The car park of my hotel was locked at night, which I thought was just a standard precautionary thing but I later learned there is quite a bit of theft from the car park. 

Anyways, that's all just to say I was a bit surprised.

These sculptures are wildebeest, right? I didn't see signage to confirm that but they were all through the "African Savannah" display at the zoo. I really loved the way they were placed, it felt real.

 

Przewalski's Horse. I thought they were the fore runner to the moden horse but no, they have a completely different number of chromosomes. They are also from Asia, not Europe as I assumed from the name. And the guy who named them wasn't Polish but Russian. 
I made a lot of bad assumptions but what I got right was enjoying them.

This is the view from my car window. Just fabulous. If zoos can inspire people to care just a little more, I think there's a place for them. If they are done right.

Blackbuck Antelope.

Banteng

Outside the Afican Wild Dogs

More Wildebeest

I love elephants. They were good to watch soon after the zoo opened but as the day went on, they stood at the gate, waiting to go back to their private space. I wonder if they have an indoor space and wanted to get in where it was warm or if there's something else more attractive about being back there. This is when it would be good to ask a keeper.

I took this photo for Dad. It would have been the only bridge over the river when he was a boy. Now there's a four lane concrete bridge. It's a gorgeous bit of parkland but theres a whole lot of construction and road work going on just out of shot so not really an enjoyable place to be at the moment.

Zoo tickets allow entry on two consecutive days, which I thought was a great deal. I went expecting to spend one whole day but it was very cold and I decided to make it a half day and come again if I felt like it. In the end, I did just that. The two half days also meant I got to see the animals on two mornings around feeding time. I don't know for sure but I suspect you get a better view that way. 

It was too cold for the meerkats to be out but the sentry was taking the job seriously.

There was a whole garden bed full of this fungi. It looked fabulous.