In a dry and thirsty land...

We were on a long journey. Many in our party were tired and hungry. But we pressed on. We were on a mission. We had seen some interesting wildlife along the way - many carrion birds, dangerous reptiles, even large primates. Off in the distance we spotted a tiger. It was too far away for now to be any threat to us, and so we pressed on toward a more important and immediate goal. We had to find water, and fast!

Some locals directed us to what had once been a fairly reliable water source - but to no avail. It was dry. Away from the comforts of home we became painfully aware of our plight. We would normally take these most basic things for granted - but not now. The younger ones in our group were in dire straits. They were seriously fatigued, in need of shade, rest and especially water.

Just ahead, up at the crest of a small hill there appeared to be signs of life-giving water. However, it would be costly. I had no idea just how costly until....I read these signs:

$3.00 bottle!!!!! What a rip-off!

The St. Louis Zoo is a very big place. Not a bad deal either. It has free admission - and if you want to pay, there are some neat attractions - a train ride, a prehistoric simulator and lots of other stuff. However, there is one teensy fly in the ointment. They DON'T have any water fountains that work! We looked long and hard most of the day to even find a water fountain. Then, when we found it - it was turned off for the winter! The cycle repeated itself with every fountain we came across.

Water bottles are expensive - like $3- so what is a large group supposed to do? We sent two of our kids to the car of course and carried it in ourselves. Hey, any responsible safari leader would pack water in for his team don't ya think!

Aside from nearly dying of thirst before we got to the gorilla exibit we had a great time!