Amsterdam Zoo (Artis)

We got to go to the Amsterdam Zoo. I hadn't been there since I was a teenager and a lot has changed. Many animal cages have been replaced by more natural habitats. I think my favorite was Lemur island. It's small and surrounded by a mote, but the Lemurs move around right before your eyes. It's pretty cool to stare right into the yellow eyes of a Lemur. You could even touch them if it were allowed.

 I remember the Sea Lions always putting on quite a show when thet're being fed. We were a bit disappointed because they had to tone down the performance due to the basin not being completely filled. It was made up for with the lion feeding though.

The Lion keeper put three wrapped pieces of meat in different spots in their habitat. Then he let them out and they ran around and roared and fought. It was quite a spectacle. The females do all the hunting and in this case tore open the wrapping of the meat, but the male gets first pick. He sat down, tearing at the meat while the females decided which package to tear open next. Really cool, I had never seen anything like it at a zoo.
Ian was really fascinated by the vultures.

Kaelyn took almost all the pictures. She especially loved the butterflies.

Opa, Susan, Tirza and Jan all came with us. Luke loved riding on Opa's shoulders. 

Monkeys are always fun to watch.

Baby animals are cute and this baby giraffe was so tall already!