When my wife and I plan trips together, there is a lighthearted tug of war over one topic. My wife will ask “can we go to the zoo there?” and I’ll reply “you only get one zoo trip a year.” We share a laugh and continue on with the trip planning. Sometimes the zoo is a no brainer, like in San Diego. I think technically, I didn’t even count that as the year’s zoo. I’m not dead set against zoos, per se. I’m an animal lover, but with some notable exceptions, once you’ve seen one zoo, you’ve generally seen all zoos.
When we planned out our trip to Kelowna, there were two places my wife wanted to visit that looked suspiciously like zoos. We laughed a lot at exceeding the year’s quota in 5 days and I may have requested 2018 to be a zoo-free travel year. The first “zoo” was fun and had me snuggling with a baby walaroo. The second “zoo” wasn’t even really a zoo at all, and it was probably my favourite part of our Okanagan trip that didn’t involve wine. The Arion Therapeutic Farm, a short drive from downtown Kelowna, was in essence a small working farm and conservation park for animals. Before even meeting any of the four-legged inhabitants, the place had me hooked with its sheer beauty.
Bluenose Traveler 