🚗… Off to the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in Washington 🐼🦦🐻~

🕐 Summer hours: 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. 🕤 Winter hours: 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. (The zoo is open almost every day, except December 25th. If you’re unsure, you can check the official website for confirmation. Make sure to note the last entry time.) The National Zoo is so much fun; we basically saw everything in one afternoon (except for the reptile house, which I’m scared of). We saw pandas, red pandas, otters, meerkats, sand cats, bears, tigers, lions… Not sure if it was because of the hot weather, but many animals were napping when we visited, especially the panda cubs I was so looking forward to seeing. Mei Xiang and Xiao Qi Ji were both asleep, but Tian Tian came out for a bit of activity. There was a lot of bamboo inside, but no other supplements. Next to the three indoor panda habitats, there’s a large panda monitoring room where staff observe the panda cubs 360 degrees without blind spots. After that, we went to the panda souvenir shop for a little shopping spree. There’s also a small mammal house that’s great to visit, with many cute and fluffy animals like chinchillas, sand cats, meerkats, fennec foxes, and rock hyraxes. Seeing the sand cat sleeping in a cat climbing frame made me think that all cats must love these climbing frames. The meerkat pups had their own little cat beds and toys, looking just like little kids. Overall, the National Zoo is definitely worth a visit! Admission is free, but there’s a parking fee, so it’s advisable to book in advance on the official website. We parked in lot B, and the panda habitat was just a right turn away from there. #WashingtonZoo #DMVArea #DMVActivities