A Scene at the Zoo

Yesterday we read in the paper that there was going to be an eclipse (did it reach Canada?). The reporter commented that "the best place to be when the eclipse comes will be the Zoo, because eclipses make the animals go crazy." Who could resist such a temptation? So, this afternoon we packed up the camera, the boy, the minidisc recorder (how cool would a zoo-ful of eclipse-crazed exotic animals sound? Elephants trumpeting, lions roaring, monkeys rioting) and off we went.

The Guatemala City zoo is actually a very cool place. I was expecting something somewhat dilapidated, but what we found was a beautiful tropical zoo with Victorian landscaping. Of course, it's completely antiquated in terms of animal treatment (Gaby calls it "politically incorrect" as a zoo) with the enclosures like giant birdcages embedded in the tropical landscape. Quasi-classical statues surround an Edwardian pavilion and overlook palm-dotted lawns and bougainvillea covered trellaces.

And the eclipse? Well, at 4:45 it happened: we peered through darkened glasses and saw it, and I waited, minidisc at the ready, for the mayhem to ensue.

The eclipse happens as scheduled...

...and the animals go bezerk.

The only bizarre behaviour to be seen was the gringo trying to juggle a digital camera and minidisc at the same time—and who tries to record a giraffe, anyway?