Yesterday I went to the Central Park Zoo for the first time. I’d never been because it’s in the city where I live, and you’re always more likely to see the sights in places you don’t actually inhabit every day. And, although there’s little I like better than looking at animals, I share some common prejudices about zoos: that they’re for children, and that they’re unhappy places of confinement for animals. Given that the Central Park Zoo is run by the Wildlife Conservation Society, I should have known better. They’re one of the premier forces in the world for the protection of species, and, of course, they’d make a place that honored bountiful life. The Zoo is small,but it has a large spirit. The sealions have a circular pool around a fountain. There’s a rainforest biome where the birds fly around from branch to higher branch, and seem mostly quite interested in people; they land on a nearby perch and eye you inquisitively. It’s a delight. —markdoty.blogspot.com