Heat's a problem, that's all. Review on Arignar Anna Zoological Park

Arignar Anna Zoological Park is located in Vandalur in the outskirts of Chennai. It has been carved out of a vast expanse of hills and forestland. So, is it worth a visit on your trip to Chennai? Let's find out. Well, first things first - travelling. From the heart of Chennai, you have many city transport buses plying either to Guduvancheri - the zoo is on the way to that suburb - or terminating at the zoo. But bear in mind that road travel will take a good deal of time, upwards of an hour at any rate. Since the zoo is vast, that will mean you have to start early. You can also board the suburban trains, alight at Tambaram and then board buses to the zoo or Guduvancheri, which would be faster. If you plan to hire a vehicle, there would be no problem anyway, though cars are not allowed inside the zoo - park them at the spacious parking lot outside. Second, carry loads of water and be prepared to walk around a lot in the zoo. There's no getting away from the heat even amidst all the greenery. The zoo opens at 9:00 A.M. So you can beat the heat to some extent by being one of the earliest visitors of the day. A convenient battery-operated train is available to take you around. But in that case, the driver decides which animal is worth seeing longer - generally the lions, tigers, panthers, jaguars, nocturnal section and aquarium - and getting the best possible angle for the shot may not be easy as you will be given limited time even to view those animals. So, it's your take ultimately - do you want an exhaustive and exhausting trip or a whirlwind, boring one? Now, the highlights of the zoo. I haven't seen such huge enclosures in any other zoo in the country. I haven't seen the zoos in Hyderabad and Delhi, but I have seen the one in Mysore, which is damn good. But the enclosures in this zoo really do give loads of space to their inmates. Especially the one housing the elephants - you can't tell how far away the other side of the enclosure is! The moats housing the lions and the tigers are also vast - a bit too vast infact. They are too far away to scare you. Again, unless you have a camera with a powerful range, you will not be able to get good shots of some of the beasts. Since the zoo houses a wide variety of animals in huge enclosures, you have to walk around a lot. I won't talk about the staple fare of zoos - this one has all the hot favourites, though they still don't have rhinos. But they have some exotic species that you won't find in many other zoos. For instance, they have a herd of rare sangai deer, which are found only in a swamp in Manipur. Jaguars are again not housed in most Indian zoos, though the zoologically disinclined can't tell a jaguar from a leopard. The Indian wild donkey (the English synonym is to be used in place of donkey, but the filter doesn't allow me to write that word!) is another rarity in zoos. OK, so what's so interesting about a bunch of donkeys, you may ask? But I'm sure animal enthusiasts will find this piece of information interesting. They have exotic varieties of monkeys - baboons, macaques and even the golden langur (though I don't know whether they still have those lovely primates). The pair of pigmy hippos is another feather in the zoo authorities' cap. They have a plethora of birds and reptiles too - waterbirds, peafowl, scavengers, predators, crocs and snakes, you name it, you got it. Even the nocturnal section and the aquarium are great. Particularly, the nocturnal section is superbly designed. It's blinding hot at 2:30 in the afternoon and here you are in the cool, dark nocturnal section, watching the animals of the night up and about in daytime. The zoo also has a lion safari, though I never had the opportunity to try it due to time constraints. But with 25 or so lions in the zoo's kitty, the lion safari should be interesting too. When I visited the zoo last, there were plans of starting a bison safari. I don't know if it has since become operational. Overall, this is a great place to while away your day and still take home things about the animal world you never knew. Just take due precautions to tackle the heat and you will surely enjoy Arignar Anna Zoological Park. The Guindy National Park is more convenient from the travelling point of the view, but that place is no longer worth a visit. If you go there, visit the lovely snake park and return with nary a second glance at the children's park, which is pathetic to say the least. When in Chennai, make out time to visit this place, especially if your idea of a zoo is the Byculla zoo back home! And do remember: no handycams allowed inside the zoo! Still camera - definitely on!