April 27th - Day 2 - Sydney Aquarium and Taronga Zoo

Today was filled with animal encounters of all kinds , from sea life to birds and mammals. We started out by walking to the Sydney Aquarium and spent a couple of hours looking at the wonderful exhibits there. There were a few spectacular underwater tunnels where the fish swim all around including above you and you really get to see them up close. We had the good fortune of being able to listen to  a talk on sharks which was really informative and interesting. Out of 400 species of sharks, Australia has 120 and only 4 species are dangerous (to humans) unlike the myth propagated by the news media.

After the requisite souvenir photo (see blog) we took a ferry to another location  and then one on to Taronga Zoo. The ferry ride took us under the Harbour Bridge and right next to the Sydney Opera house so we had plenty of scenic photos taken on that leg.  

The highlights of the zoo for the students were probably the kangaroo and koala exhibits as well as the two shows we saw - the seal lion and bird shows. Two of our students Nia and Dan were chosen from the audience to participate in each of those shows much to their delight. We learned a lot about conservation and the threats facing many species today and also quite a bit about the role of the environment in the evolution of Australian animals. 

Students commented on how friendly and helpful everyone is. People here seem more laid back and less intense, despite the fact that we are in a big city. There is a very strong East Asian influence in just about everything from food and restaurants to stores and even entertainment. You are just as likely to hear Chinese as English on the metro and many of the signs are in both languages as well. 

Tomorrow we head to the Blue Mountains for a day long hike.  More on that later.