A childhood destination, Longleat is a place that has held fond memories with myself due to its mix of history, British culture and wonderfully kept animal park. Set in the midst of rural Warwickshire, it boasts an extremely large landscape cultivated to contain such a park. Amid this estate stands the rather grand and boasting mansion. With the Animal Park situated behind this building, the grand entrance is warm, impressive and light.
With a day ticket in hand, we pursued the Safari route. This took us to the left of the building past the car park of which had a numerous amount of trees to fit within the aesthetic of the landscape. To accompany this drive in our own car, we received a Narrative CD at the drive through ticket office. This really was a nice touch as the amount of differing enclosures and the sheer size and space they possessed made it difficult for regular signs explaining what species of animals were there. The CD also had geographical information and dietary facts making this freebie a worthwhile listen.
Firstly, we encroached into the African safari. This contained ostrich, giraffe, wildebeest and Zebra. Unfortunately, due to not noticing the smaller paddocks on the left and right, after the African safari we managed to turn around and view giant tortoise, African goat and a fantastic walk through lemur enclosure. After this we continued through many other different sections, all aptly fenced off from one another. Between these sections were middle sections that acted as sort of air locks. These would allow only one gate to open at a time as for the animals not to mix that wouldn’t naturally do so in the wild. These parts were very well staffed. For example, whilst passing through one of the Lion enclosures a gentleman has obviously ignored the 15-mph speed limit and could very easily have been doing nearly 30 on a long straight. This was quickly resolved with the park warden’s jeep driving along side and instructing the man to slow down. Passing through the Lion, Tiger, aviary and middle east enclosures, we took in a lot of the animals as due to the obliviousness to cars, the roamed freely near vehicles without fear or panic. This became extremely evident in the monkey enclosure where maybe around 50 monkeys resided. They were in a playful jovial mood jumping off branches, doing roly polys and being generally silly. As was the tameness of these creatures, we were warned via CD and with signs that the monkeys take a fond interest in the windscreen wipers and aerials of your car. We even had a couple of monkeys sit on the wing mirror of our stationary vehicle.
Now really in the mood to see more animals we parked up and ventured into the bit of the park that allowed us to walk around near the smaller animals. Entering the jungle area, we very quickly discovered two more walk-in sections. One of which belonged to a pack of meerkats. This was very exciting as apart from a shin-high bit of rope, the extremely curious meerkats wandered and meandered between your feet. In comparisons to other Zoos and wildlife parks, this was impressive as the children could learn first-hand about the environment animals such as this inhabit. Another species of animal that had such an immersive experience were the Lorikeets. Walking through their aviary with purchased nectarine, they rather swarmed with around 10/12 birds at most on us. This would be a regular source of food for them and would supplement their diet satisfactorily throughout the day. Passing through the rest of this area was a delight, seeing parrots, porcupines, anteaters and otters. On the other side, we had reached a jungle water safari. Set on a reasonably sized lake, a large boat seating about 30-40 people chugged away down the bay. Seeing large brown objects popping in and out of the water, it became more apparent these were sea lions! Whilst also passing two sleeping hippos and a large open space for the resident gorillas, we had the opportunity to purchase a cup of fish to feed the sea lions. This made them rather loud, bellowing for the biggest amount of fish. Now going at some pace alongside the boat, this bought a lot of laughter and smiles among those feeding and spectating. Included in the day ticket, this was a wonderful experience. Which once again, was very very immersive.
Finally, to wind down, we decided to take in the building that had greeted us that very same morning. The sheer height and size of each room was enough to marvel at. What really caught my attention however, was the intricacy of the ceiling decoration. With artistry woven into the seats, mastered in the painting and the layout, for someone that enjoys a British historical visit, this building specifically represents the wealth and societal changes that have taken place through out the last few centuries. With a mix of rooms including several bedrooms, state rooms and bathrooms, this walk became interesting due to the number of corners and differing colours, textures and materials. You really did not know what would be around the corner.
For the price of a day ticket, it is recommended you arrive soon after the 10am opening time as there is a huge amount of culture and variety of animals and habitats to take in. However, if this is achievable to do then this day out is one that is very complete, smooth and joyous. An immersive experience with expert animal care, I will happily return in the know I am in for a wonderfully busy but interesting day.
Comentarios