Zoobic Safari

From Zambales, we headed to Subic where we would spend the night before going to Zoobic Safari. We stayed at the Courtyard Inn in Subic. It's a small hotel, but I like it very much. It had a kiddie playground where Trixi and I played before dinner. Our room was just the right size for the four of us. The only thing I didn't like about the hotel was that there were mosquitoes! Good thing Mama brought our insect repellant. We had dinner in Gerry's Grill which was right across the hotel. Subic Bay was right behind the restaurant. I liked the kiddie meal that I had, which was spaghetti and fried chicken. We had dessert in Aresi's Restaurant, which was just beside the hotel. Everyone slept early because we were all tired from the long day.

After breakfast, we went to the Zoobic Safari. It was still around 30 minutes away from the hotel. We were assigned a tour guide, Ate Maan. She told us a lot of information about the animals in the zoo. She showed us which animals we could touch because they were gentle and which animals to stay away from because they could be dangerous. She knew the names of many of the animals in the zoo.

The first part of the tour was the Petting Zoo. This was different from the other zoos we've seen because some of the animals were not caged. There were a lot of pigs, sheep, goats, geese, and chicken running around. They would keep on going to our group, especially to those who had food.

I learned a lot about the animals from Ate Maan. She warned us not to show our teeth to one of the monkeys because it would think that we are challenging him to a fight. There was another animal (I forgot the name) whose saliva had toxins, so that the caretaker would need to wear gloves while feeding it. I also saw that the alpacas had only one area for their urine and poop. I also saw a bear who could do a high-five. There were squirrels and ferrets in Rodent World. There was a smart pig that could be taught tricks like a dog. I also saw an albino carabao and a miniature horse. It took us an hour walking around the Petting Zoo, but it didn't feel like it because of all the interesting animals around.

From the Petting Zoo, we rode a train to the Serpentarium. They used an old ammunition bunker to hold the snakes and lizards. There were a lot of different snakes, big and small. I learned that of the many snakes, only a few are venomous. One of them looked like Snappy of TLFH.

After visiting the Serpentarium, we were brought to the Tiger Safari. This was the part I was most excited about. In this part of the tour, we rode a specialized jeepney. This jeepney had grills all around to keep everybody safe. There was also an opening in the roof, which was covered with glass and wires.

The jeepney then entered a fenced area, the Safari area. Right after we entered the gate, we saw a tiger relaxing in the shade. It seemed bored. Then the caretaker (who was with us in the jeepney) tied a chicken to a rope and threw it out for the tigers. Four tigers came nearer. One of them jumped for it but missed. The caretaker threw it out again and this time, the tiger caught it. While the tiger was eating, the caretaker threw another chicken to the top of the jeep. Another tiger came and leaped to the top of our jeep. We could see all his very sharp canine teeth - it was so scary! It was the first time I had seen a tiger eat up close. But I wasn't scared because I knew we were safe in the jeepney.

After the Tiger Safari, we had the Tiger Close Encounter. We were brought to the pens where the tigers are kept when they are not in the safari area. We were about 2 feet away from the tigers. There were baby tigers (11 months) and older tigers (George, the oldest there, was 17 years old) - they were all so big! I learned that tigers mark their territory with their urine. Ate Maan warned us that when a tiger raises its hind leg, be prepared to jump away because if you get sprayed on with urine, the stench will last for 3 days! Once we thought that one of the tigers was going to raise its hind leg - everyone ran away, but the tiger didn't urinate.

Next was the Savannah. We drove around to see some ostriches, potbellied pigs and boars. We also saw the Animal Museum. There were real stuffed animals and animal skeletons. The stuffed tiger there was the wife of George.

From there, we were brought to the Aeta Trail. There we saw 3 young Aeta men who showed us their songs and dances. One of them climbed a tall pole so fast, like a monkey would.

After that, Papa and I went through the Hip Hop Bay-a-wak. This was like a maze of logs we stepped on to go down the path. If you fell, you would get wet and huge lizards would chase you.

The last stop was the Croco Loco. We saw a lot of crocodiles lying around in the sun. I had the chance to feed the crocodiles. I was given a chicken on a fishing pole for the crocodiles to eat. Ate Maan brought us to the aggressive crocodiles and gave us a challenge to make the crocodiles jump. I dangled the chicken a few feet away and at first, the crocodile missed. On the second try, the crocodile caught it! I watched the other people feed the crocodiles. You could hear the crunching sound of the chicken bones while the crocodiles ate.

For those of you who are interested in animals, I recommend that you go to Zoobic Safari. You will learn a lot from the guide and the animals. Have fun!