Student Bloggers
Oh, Taronga
Date
June 13, 2016
By Chamira S., Sydney Internship Program Summer, Australia
Today I decided to take on Sydney alone so I headed to the Taronga Zoo. Now the ultimate reason for my attendance was because of their giraffe encounter and if there's one fun fact about myself, it's that I'm in love with giraffes! They're my favorite animal. So I bought my general admissions ticket for the zoo and when I arrived I bought my giraffe encounter ticket with only 15 minutes to spare. Because we had to meet there at 11:30am, I zoomed through majority of the zoo so I wouldn't miss my chance to meet the one animal I've been dreaming of meeting my entire life.
As I approached the giraffes my heart instantly began to melt. There were only 7 individuals that bought tickets for this encounter so I stood in line and waited my turn to experience the sweet and innocent interactions between human and animal. As I watched the young boy in front of me feed the large giraffe carrots, I suddenly started to feel nervous. I didn't know why; it almost felt as if I was meeting the love of my life for the first time ever. It was then my turn to feed and interact with 2 of the giraffes so she handed me a handful of carrots, I stared the giraffe in the eyes and began feeding her. The tongue felt so thick and slimy and it wet my entire hand. It was also very rough along with their skin. At that moment I couldn't believe that I was experiencing something I've only seen in movies, something I've wanted to do my entire life and something I was able to enjoy by myself.
So many people assume that going out alone is boring and that you have no one to "share" the experience with. Honestly you don't need anyone for that. Memories are memories whether you're alone or with friends. Sometimes, the best experiences are the ones you seek out and engage in alone. Oh Taronga, you allowed me to step outside my comfort zone by engaging in adventure alone and allowed my dream to come true so I thank you!
Cheers
Chamira is a student at the University of Illinois, Urbana and is blogging from her summer abroad with the Sydney Internship Program Summer, in Sydney, Australia.