Take a walk on the wild side
By Namrita Sharma (City Weekend)
Updated: 2004-08-25 09:19

Watch out, for Shanghai has roaming white rhinoceros, leopards, pandas and monkeys. They're just not to be found terrorizing the shoppers on Huaihai Lu but instead, run free at the Shanghai Wild Animal Park. The park covers an area of 205 hectares, with more than 200 species of rare animals from all over the world. The park is divided into two main parts: the bus area and the walking area.

The bus enclosure takes you through areas with zebra, yak, deer, giraffe and elephant enclosures. Make sure you get a bus where the air conditioning works, especially in this hot summer weather, as it can get stuffy even on mild days.

Be forewarned though: the bus park is not suitable for all, especially young children or those with a delicate temperament. Before passing into the second enclosure, men with chickens board the bus, tie ropes round the chicken's necks and hang them from the window. The bus drives at speed and the tigers leap at the vehicle to grab the chickens. Occasionally they only manage to bite off half the animal, a gruesome sight.

The drive then passes through the Malaysian bear camp, onto the Lions after which you have a chance to see the fastest animal on land - the Cheetah. You are then dropped off at the place where you embarked. This is a good time for a picnic and a break from the wild animals - just be careful when eating those meat sandwiches, the animals might still be hungry. 

From here you have a choice of either walking or taking a RMB15 open-air golf cart through the rest of the enclosures. This golf cart takes about 35 minutes and seats eight. The good thing about this is you can direct the driver where to go, so you can see exactly what you want.

In the walk able area, you can get close to many gentle animals, such as Australian kangaroos, Asian Sika deer, African ring-tailed lemurs and Latin American yellow and blue macaws. There is also a petting zoo that is usually a hit with the kids, allowing them to get up close with the wildlife. Not something you get the chance to do often in Shanghai's overcrowded streets.

Other attractions include a sea lion show and a racetrack. The racetrack has camels, horses, ostriches (yes, ostriches with riders) and Greyhound racing, where the dogs chase the traditional fake mechanical rabbit around the track.

Entrance costs Y90 for an adult and includes all shows and the bus ride through the dangerous animals enclosure.

Address: Sanzhao Town, Nanhui District, Pudong New Area

How to get there:

By car: The most economical way is to hire a minivan. They seat ten people and cost about RMB150 one way, and it takes about one hour from central Puxi

By bus: Wanye Route: Shanghai Stadium (93 Caoxi Road, the same stop as Bus 42)
Nanxin Route: Shanghai Railway Station (South Square, near Longmen Hotel)

By subway: Take the train to the end of Metro line 2, and then get the Zhangnan route bus to Shanghai Wild Animal Park

For more information, go to the the website:www.shwzoo.com