Travel | Taronga Zoo, Sydney

On the last day that my parents were in Sydney we took a trip across the bay to Taronga Zoo. I went last year with Stew but unfortunately lost all of my photos so I was super excited to get to go again. It was a hot and sunny Sunday so it was packed! The queue to get in was hectic but it was well worth the extra wait.

I know many people aren't huge fans of zoos and rightly so but zoos are a fantastic educational adventure for both young and old. Taronga Zoo has got to be one of the biggest and most beautiful zoos I've ever been too. The park itself and the surrounding areas are steeped in pretty flowers, crystal clear waters and incredible views of the city. It really is a stunning location!

And the varied wildlife is exciting, you get to see animals you would never find in British zoos, like this cute furball of a wombat below. I had no idea they were so fluffy and teddy bear like. And of course what do you come to Australia expecting to see? A koala which they have but are super tricky to photograph! Anddd kangaroos of course. Like the dude above who was lying on his back, scratching his belly and catching the rays.

It's the giraffes though that have the best view in the whole park. To the right of their enclosure you can see the Harbour Bridge and Opera House, in the middle lies the city skyline and to the left is the botanical gardens and harbour itself.

This visit had a few surprises along the way too including these duelling snakes above. It was rather quite scary but fascinating to watch. The pair were wrapped around each other, going for eachothers faces and were scurrying through their enclosure so quickly back and forth. I presume it was fighting as it looked viscous but then I suppose they could've been mating perhaps?! I don't know whether it's mating season but we also saw two very large birds, a lot like turkeys, with one sat down minding her own business and the other hopping from side to side trying to mount her! Haha.

My favourites were definitely the giraffes, the cuddly look tiger above who we caught rubbing his eyes and yawning (so adorable!) and the ridiculous cute baby Asian elephant below. This little guy was playing with this ball and chain for so long and I was mesmerised watching. He then came a little closer for a drink of water in the surrounding pond and I was sure he was going to spray us, we were that close. But luckily he simply drank and bathed himself :)