A jungle in the city
The latest news we heard about Manila Zoo was the controversy on the welfare of its celebrity elephant Maali. But then again, when was the last time we were there to experience the sights and sounds of the city jungle?
It was a languid Wednesday afternoon when we revisited it. The zoo was brimming with life. It was almost jam-packed with visitors. The air smelled fresher. The zoo is greener, cleaner, and seemingly bigger. Cleanliness after all was the first major revamp the zoo has undertaken after the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) called it a “trash-filled Manila Zoo”.
A dirty old zoo is perhaps hard to imagine considering that Manila Zoo is part and parcel of Manila’s splendor and vibrancy. It was one of the top destination options during the olden times, alongside Luneta Park, when the city was still devoid of the extensive monolith collection of shopping malls that we now see and would rather go to.
Perhaps the biggest challenge that hounds Manila Zoo today is proving that it is still a go-to destination, an oasis amid the hustle and bustle of the metro. And today is the best time to revisit and experience it anew especially now that the zoo is undergoing a major face-lift. For one, golf carts will bring visitors around the zoo this November with a guide introducing the animals and the attractions thereat.
Aside from this, Manila Parks and Recreation Bureau Director James Albert Dichaves says that the animal enclosures will undergo rehabilitation to become bigger and induce a homier feeling and this includes Maali’s.
“It is unfair for us [to say that Maali is being neglected]. In fact, the animals are bigger and happier now,” Dichaves says, who admits to be a pet lover. He adds that Maali plays a big role on her visitors such as helping those with autism and becoming the subject of photography and arts enthusiasts.
Manila Zoo indeed is the perfect hodgepodge for observing live animals that we often only see on television shows and read about. Now that the zoo is currently reinventing itself and gearing up to become an even better jungle within the concrete jungle called Manila, it has been of late welcoming new breeds of animals coming from different parts of the world.
According to Dichaves, the zoo plans to acquire, among others:
Monkeys from Columbia
Giraffes from South Africa
Black Panther
Hippopotamus
Zebra
A lot has definitely changed in the zoo since the last time we were there. Souvenir shops that sell animal stuff toys and key chains are lined up along the sidewalks while a photo booth with an albino python is another added attraction.
Dichaves said he plans to turn the zoo into a theme park (and we are thinking Madagascar!) and injecting zip line and wall climbing spots here and there. After all the oldest zoo in Asia needs to keep up.
He added that he wants Manila Zoo to be one of the greatest achievements of the local government of Manila. “It is a sanctuary for animals and people, as this is one of the few remaining green parts in the metro,” he adds.
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