As a new resident to the state of Nebraska, what makes me special became an important question to ask. What do I do, and what do I have that makes me stand out? I wanted to find something about me in the state of Nebraska that I could say embodies me as a person: meaning, I wanted to find something special I could share with others that I felt would be of value. Having moved to the fairly large metro area of Omaha, I found something special in Bellevue (the second largest city in the Omaha Metro area) that was being given away for free in the downtown library. I showed up as close to 8am as possible to skip the lines and picked up my free ticket to the Henry Doorley Zoo. I looked forward to the visit.
I parked in the Flamingo lot and entered the zoo with the ticket I got from the library and showed my library card at the entry point. I started with the Desert Dome: The dome is capped inside with free flight birds, hyrax, klipspringers, turtles and dwarf mongoose. Behind glass, black mambas, pythons, and King Brown snakes make the walk mind-bending and exotic. Further along takes the pedestrian to “Sonoran Desert (North America) within the zoo which holds several different planets, rattlesnakes, and sidewinders.
Even further into the zoo, an aquarium filled structure begins the walk with a large concave aquarium and a large, fabricated shark that hangs from the ceiling with blue panels. Soon within, 2 penguin aquariums are to the left as the zoo goers explore further. Ice falls from the ceiling of one of them through 3 holes and pockets in the decorative coral-like walkway allowed me to get close to the glass and see the ocean life closer.
Outside, African Grasslands are populated with meerats, giraffe herds, and elephants walking in the large open-air pens. It was very easy to turn from here to the tiger pen as well. Within the Asian Highlands, a strong, healthy, garish tiger saunters behind glass in an open-air pen for zoo-goers.
A Sloth Bear from India, with a long coat that hangs differently than the North American bear’s coat hangs, I have grown accustomed to this look as an American, invites me to explore my imagination into what is common or normal elsewhere. Further along, Indian Rhinoceroses, Pere’ David’s Deer, Snow Leopards, and Ta-kins can also be found in the Asian Highlands.
I finished my walk with “Gorilla Valley.” Gorillas named, Tambo, Muke, and K’Gosi could be seen behind glass. The enclosure in part hangs from the ceiling where the animals could hide and explore in spite of everything.
I left the zoo with my son and girlfriend feeling grateful to be on the right foot in Omaha. To stay focused on everything I have that represents life’s bounty keeps me on track and right now, life’s bounty is obvious to the zoo-goer’s of Henry Doorley Zoo, here, in the mid-west.