The Galapagos Tortoise

  Recently I was at Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield, IL.  The last time I had visited Brookfield Zoo was this past spring and I remembered that the zoo had taken in some young Galapagos tortoises.  At the time, I was very excited to see the little guys because we had just gotten back from our Galapagos trip in mid-January.  During our visit a few days ago, the Galapagos tortoises were in the second animal house that we visited.  They had grown some in the last 6 months and were very active.  They were definitely more active then the other types of tortoises that were in displays nearby.  Here are a few photos I snapped of the Galapagos tortoises from Brookfield Zoo.

Here are a few of my favorite young tortoise shots from our January trip to the Galapagos. 

A couple giant tortoise facts:

1.  There were 11 types of giant Galapagos tortoises but with the death of Lonesome George, there are now 10.
2.   They are the world's largest tortoises.
3.   They have common ancestors from the mainland South America and are believed to have traveled to the Galapagos by water.

Where In The World? - November 19, 2012

  Besides my "Did You Know?" posts, I've also decided to do a new type of post called "Where In The World?".  I like to be tricky so look closely at the photos that I have chosen for these types of posts.
  Here is my first Where In The World? photo:

  Initially, one might think that I am in some part of Asia. However those smarties out there would notice that there are a few signs in English including a sign in the lower left corner that reads "Manhattan Bridge".

                                                     I am in Chinatown in Manhattan. 

Croatia - Did You Know? Fun Fact #2

  I previously did a fun fact on Croatia but wanted to add a second one just because Croatia is on my top 10 list of places to visit. 

  Did You Know that the Best Preserved Roman Palace in the World is in Split, Croatia?

It is the Palace of Diocletian and was build in A.D. 295.  The Roman Emperor, Diocletian, had this palace built in preparation for his retirement and because he was originally from Dalmatia. 

This is from Joseph Rosendo's Travelscope "Cruising the Mediterranean".

November 14th Article about the Galapagos

  I just stumbled across an article on MSN and wanted to share.  Click here to read "Rat kill in Galapagos Islands targets 180 million".  It discusses the non-native rat problem in the Galapagos and how it is being dealt with to save the native animals of the islands.  I remember hearing about the rat problems when we were visiting last January, however I did not see one rat while we were there.  I got lucky.  When we were on Isabela Island, we visited their tortoise reserve and there were very young tortoises that were in locked up enclosures.  Our guide said that the baby tortoises had to be protected from rats that would eat them.  If the plan does work for these rats to be exterminated, then I hope it really helps the native species of the Galapagos to keep reproducing and creating more and more generations for all of our human generations to see.

 

Monroe, Wisconsin

  Monroe, Wisconsin, home of beer, cheese, sausage, and everything else that your cardiovascular system loves.  Today I enjoyed a little of all of that.  From Chicago's northwest suburbs, Monroe is between an hour and a half to two hour drive.  We enjoy visiting Monroe before the holidays so we can do a little early Christmas shopping but Monroe is fun to visit any time of year.  Cheese Days in Monroe is every September.
   Both this year and last year we checked out the Swiss Colony Shop and Alp and Dell Cheese Store.  Both have a variety of meats, cheeses, and gifts.  Today we checked out Brennan's Market for the first time.  I tried samples of cheeses and spreads that I had never even known existed.  Have you ever tried Cranberry Cheese?  This is probably nothing new for Wisconsin residents.
   Last year we had a lot of fun at Minhas Brewery.  We tried a bunch of different samples and checked out the beer museum in their basement.  This year we discovered that they opened a distillery with tours.  We found the gift shop and tasting area over-run with people getting out of a tour.  We did another quick run through of the beer museum and then picked out a 8 pack of their Lazy Mutt and two large bottles of Mystical Jack beer and Imperial Jack beer.  They have a variety of beers that are new to most people and kids can enjoy the cream soda and root beer.
   Despite the rainy weather, I enjoyed our day trip to Wisconsin.  If you're looking for delicious gifts or just a day of dairy, beef, and brews, check out Monroe.
   Seize The Day and Travel!