Day 8 - Inokashira Zoo

It was cool today but the forecast said no rain, so we headed out for Inokashira Park, near Kichijoji Station. The park is home to a small zoo and nature park. On the way from the station, we walked through the touristy stalls of souvenirs and eyed some crepes that we might need to eat for lunch, and then entered the park, only a short walk from the station.

In just a few steps, the urban jungle disappears and large trees and the sound of water in the lake and fountains takes over. We walked down some steps and first saw a hand-sized black butterfly,

then walked across the bridge to the zoo which is split into to sections divided by a road. First we saw the birds and fish including cool green pigeons. The other half of the zoo is where it got exciting, though, as we walked through the gate and realized we had two minutes before the end of the morning session of the GUINEA PIG PETTING ZOO!!!!!!!!

The girls got their cute fix, and we decided that we could make a fortune if we had 30-40 guinea pigs that people could just come cuddle when they felt down or needed to hold a fluffy rodent.

Speaking of which, the zoo also has a SQUIRREL FOREST!!!! exhibit where you walk through a set of doors designed to keep them from escaping, and then are surrounded by several dozen squirrels running across the path and munching food in the trees just above your head.

We also came across these exotic fennec foxes

And the scariest animal in the park:

                                      

 Off in one corner of the Zoo there were three small buildings dedicated to the work of sculptor Kitamura Seibo, whose most famous work is a sculpture that sits at ground zero in Nagasaki -- here's a copy and some mimics:

I especially loved his sculptures of people which are fairly naturalistic, but with a twist in the way he manipulates the finished surfaces, giving them an otherworldly feel.

All in all, the zoo outing was a big hit. I would recommend it over many much larger and more expensive zoos (it was about $8 for all six of us) because of the intimate nature of the exhibits -- and the fact that we almost had the place to ourself didn't hurt either.

On the way back home we did indulge in crepes - I had a shrimp and avocado salad crepe with wasabi dressing, mmmmmmmm!

モルモットは可愛かったけど、家よりも動物園で見た方がいいと思う。