52 zoos in 52 weeks takes on the San Diego Zoo

  One of many koalas as the San Diego Zoo.
  Photo: Gabe Taviano

52 zoos in 52 weeks. Whew!

Even a gazelle would be winded.

But the Taviano clan of Columbus, Ohio managed the feat, rolling through San Diego County like a herd of wild turtles July 16-18.

Of particular interest in these parts is their impression of the local highly publicized and hyped zoological collections known as the San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park.

Both are said to be world class collections. But what if you were matching up against another 50 zoos to be visited in another 51 weeks?

Here's the Taviano's collective takes on each, starting with their visit to the venerable San Diego Zoo:

"If only I had a dollar for every time we've been asked if the San Diego Zoo lived up to the hype," Marla Taviano writes. "Our answer? Yes. And no."

She describes the zoo as "impressive," with "more animals than one can count."

They sprung for the double-decker bus tour twice, saving a lot of walking time around the zoo's 100-acre layout.

Baby animals were the favorite, including an okapi and a gorilla.

Their visit to the giant pandas during nap time (rather than scheduled play time which can result in long lines) results in a personal feat of having viewed all in the U.S.

They enjoyed the countless koalas (and who wouldn't?), the monkeys, the apes, the beautiful exhibits, land ush tropical settings.  The sky ride is "fine, but you can't see many animals from it."

And now the proverbial "bottom line" from Taviano:

"Great zoo but probably not our favorite. "

Call it 41/2 out of a possible five grinning monkeys.

Their look at the Wild Animal Park coming soon . . .