Taipei trip

So our holiday is winding down. We have been wanting to get up to Taipei and take the kids to the zoo for a while so we went up last Wednesday. What a great time to go to the zoo...hardly anyone there!!! People queued up for hours to see the Pandas when they first got here and on the weekends it has always been busy but we just went through nice and easy:))

Maya insisted she needed a stroller...big brother lent a hand



Dylan loved the flamingos




The three loves of my life:))

The water buffalo in the petting zoo took a liking to Ciro...it was across the paddock and he said "lai lai lai"" ("Come" in Chinese) it came walking over and then when Ciro scratched it on the back it moved around to make sure he got to where it was itchy. The buffalo looked most forlorn when we left and watched us for a while.My husband...the buffalo whisperer:)



Dylan loved the petting zoo part, took a liking to the pigs. Maya was not so sure about the zoo at this stage..a little nervous.

Inside the Panda enclosure with Panda in the background.



Dylan called Maya and myself onto the suspension bridge so he could bounce us.





This is the first time we have seen the Tiger so nicely..probably as there were no crowds of people he was out and about enjoying the quiet.







The Hippos were putting on quite a show:))








We went to 101 and this time we went up to the top. Ciro went up when the family was here but i was pregnant so did not go, neither did Dylan...so we all went up. Being that i am scared of heights I was super nervous but it ended up not being as bad as I thought it would be.






Happy with our purchases.



The outdoor viewing deck is on the 91st floor.

When people ask if they can take a pic with the kids I always let the kids decide. Maya always says yes, Dylan sometimes does but sometimes opts out....here is Maya with the lady who helped us take the pic above.

Playing with the interactive map.



The view from the top.


The massive wind damper which basically holds the whole structure steady.

At the children's rec area..our favourite place in Taipei which was closed for a while but thanks tot he floral expo it seems to have got new life.



Inside the Science hall

At the playground





On the merry go round....just before the rainstorm!!!



At the astronomical museum which has upgraded a bit since we were last there. It is great to see that during the summer vacation all the museums etc are free for kids under 12 . A really great idea to encourage parents to take their kids to these places!





Getting ready for the space ride. At the children's rec science hall Maya was busy elsewhere when Dylan and i went on the ride and the woman gave him another turn when Maya went. Then on this space ride when it was coming to the end they informed Ciro that the pod had not been working correctly so he and D could go again. Dylan's lucky day for rides:))





Just after getting back from Taipei Dylan's second tooth was so loose, he let me pull it. The tooth fairy delivered the next morning.

Fun today

This is from our walk the other morning...the kids getting sunglasses on.

Maya looking a little Minnie like.

It was father's day in Taiwan yesterday. Happy father's day Ciro!!!

We drove out tot he Taichung Children's Art Museum in Dali today. We have been meaning to get there for a while but always think it will be crazy busy on the weekends so today was the perfect day.
On the way there we passed the hospital where both kids were born...*memory lane*

First up was the Alice in Wonderland room....lots of fun.






The over sized table was in a tiny little room









In another of the rooms was a restaurant and cooking station...Dylan and Maya love playing as chefs so they served us up some lunch:))





The reading room had a replica of Van Gogh's room in it.

Then onto the musical instruments room...lots of fun was had there!! The place was so empty today that most rooms we had all to ourselves.





Back in Taichung we stopped to have a look at the giant stitch...turns out it is a photo studio.

On the way back we passed what i initially thought was a wedding photo shoot but later decided it must be a model's photo shoot. They asked if they could take some pics with Maya...when i asked her she agreed. Here she is with the model.