I went to a petting zoo and came out ALIVE!

The World's Most Dangerous Zoo...Lujan

I don’t know about you, but after the many times of watching lion king as a kid, cuddling with a lion cub and hugging the king has always been on my top list of things to do in my lifetime. So after hearing about a zoo 2 hours from Buenos Aires that allows you to get in the cages with the animals and do just that…there was no doubt that I was going to end up there at some point in this South American journey.

When we arrived, we decided to start with the tigers. One of the tigers was rolled over on his back and reminded me of my old dog Shadow, aching for a belly rub. As I switched from stroking his belly to scratching it, all of a sudden the tiger quickly moved his head to gave me a piercing glare. I guess he didn’t like that…and it freaked me out. My heart started racing and I quickly moved away from the cat as my friends were laughing at what they had just witnessed.

Now I’m not a woman of many fears (thanks to my father) and thought I’d be hugging the lion as soon as I entered the cage with him, yet that idea quickly left my mind as I entered the cage with him roaring. The warning from the worker saying not to touch his face or feet didn't really help me with feeling any more comfortable either.

It was at this moment that I realized my life could end at any moment in this cage.

Oh yea...we also met a guy that looks exactly like Harry Potter.

Then we rode a dromedario (NOT a camel). Camel's have 2 humps, these guys only have 1.



Fed some elephants


Played with some bunnies and ducklings...


(When do you ever get the chance of holding a duckling without the fear of being attacked by mama?)


Laughed at some Alpaca's (the FUNNIEST looking animals.)


And posed with some donkeys.

LA CASA ROSADA (Casa de Gobierno)

 La Casa Rosada is basically Argentine's version of the Whitehouse and is where the president works out of. So me and some of my friends from the Iguazu trip decided to take a tour and check it out. In it I got to cross off yet another thing on my bucket list: Kiss a royal soldier in the palace and get one of them to smile (forreal...they never do).

 The President's Office. I actually made friends with a Secret Service guy in here when my group left.

Afterwards we checked out Puerto Madero (the most modern area of Buenos Aires which shows the direction they're headed in), ate some choripan for about US $2 (which I am REALLY going to miss when I return to the states), danced in a park where a DJ was playing electronic music and found a playground with a see-saw in which I was able to let my inner child out.

 

We then went to the San Telmo Feria where we were able to experience some live jazz, art and Argentine Culture before ending the night with a tango class.