@David Brown: I am not keeping track of all the species I see and have never been a "species spotter". I'm sure that you are correct about the abundance of raccoons, ring-tailed lemurs and llamas...plus I see at least a couple of bobcats every day along with black vultures circling overhead as I drive. I suspect that the vultures are waiting for me to drop dead with exhaustion so that they can pick my bones clean! Just joking, as I feel quite refreshed today and ready to see all that the Dallas area can provide.
@ANyhuis: the smoking regulations in Canada, much like the free health care, is a wonderful example of what is great about my native country. I go into gas stations every single day on this road trip to hydrate and I'm not impressed to see rows of cigarette packages sitting directly behind the cashier. Another thing that is different is that there are now quite a few shops selling e-cigarettes along with booze in regular convenience stores.
@Sooty Mangabey: It would have been far more practical to fly to Texas and then start my trip in a rented car but that would have been FAR more expensive. I'm not sure what the daily charge would have been as I have not looked into car rentals in Texas, but on top of gas there would have been a significant output of cash in terms of insurance coverage. I'd be curious to know if anyone wishes to look it up! I paid less than $300 in gas to drive for those first 5 really long days and a flight would have been FAR more plus the extra money for the car rental. I know that many Canadians drive across Canada to Toronto (which is a 5 day trip) and it is likely $300 or so in gas. A flight to Toronto can easily cost $1,000 and so by driving and taking the 5 full days it can save a person $700. It might be a similar savings for me by driving to Texas. In the future I'd love to go to Florida and spend 20 or so days in that state touring zoos as there are at least 85 "zoos" there. However, for that trip I'd consider flying as it would be significantly farther to drive in comparison to Texas.
"Joe Exotic" is a rather odd character (to say the least!) and I was desperately hoping to meet him to see if his public persona was all an act or if he was genuinely unique in the zoo world. I know that his park has had all sorts of problems with authorities, from a worker being badly mauled, a visiting child being bitten, a million-dollar lawsuit for propaganda against Florida's Big Cat Rescue, for the sheer volume of tigers that the place produces, etc. Joe Exotic is covered in tattoos, he paints his nails, he has long blonde hair and a hair-trigger temper judging from various TV interviews...but is part of it an act? He is a country and western singer with CD's for sale at the zoo and his own music playing on a soundtrack around the zoo. In a couple of his music videos he is associating with scantily clad women and there are many images of him with much younger women in the zoo's gift shop. However, he is a gay 50 year-old man with the same partner for ten years and so his public image might be slightly exaggerated. I would have loved to have met him and we could have discussed ligers, ligons and music!
@ANyhuis: the smoking regulations in Canada, much like the free health care, is a wonderful example of what is great about my native country. I go into gas stations every single day on this road trip to hydrate and I'm not impressed to see rows of cigarette packages sitting directly behind the cashier. Another thing that is different is that there are now quite a few shops selling e-cigarettes along with booze in regular convenience stores.
@Sooty Mangabey: It would have been far more practical to fly to Texas and then start my trip in a rented car but that would have been FAR more expensive. I'm not sure what the daily charge would have been as I have not looked into car rentals in Texas, but on top of gas there would have been a significant output of cash in terms of insurance coverage. I'd be curious to know if anyone wishes to look it up! I paid less than $300 in gas to drive for those first 5 really long days and a flight would have been FAR more plus the extra money for the car rental. I know that many Canadians drive across Canada to Toronto (which is a 5 day trip) and it is likely $300 or so in gas. A flight to Toronto can easily cost $1,000 and so by driving and taking the 5 full days it can save a person $700. It might be a similar savings for me by driving to Texas. In the future I'd love to go to Florida and spend 20 or so days in that state touring zoos as there are at least 85 "zoos" there. However, for that trip I'd consider flying as it would be significantly farther to drive in comparison to Texas.
"Joe Exotic" is a rather odd character (to say the least!) and I was desperately hoping to meet him to see if his public persona was all an act or if he was genuinely unique in the zoo world. I know that his park has had all sorts of problems with authorities, from a worker being badly mauled, a visiting child being bitten, a million-dollar lawsuit for propaganda against Florida's Big Cat Rescue, for the sheer volume of tigers that the place produces, etc. Joe Exotic is covered in tattoos, he paints his nails, he has long blonde hair and a hair-trigger temper judging from various TV interviews...but is part of it an act? He is a country and western singer with CD's for sale at the zoo and his own music playing on a soundtrack around the zoo. In a couple of his music videos he is associating with scantily clad women and there are many images of him with much younger women in the zoo's gift shop. However, he is a gay 50 year-old man with the same partner for ten years and so his public image might be slightly exaggerated. I would have loved to have met him and we could have discussed ligers, ligons and music!