English practice 59

My Favorite Place

Whenever someone asks me what my favorite place on earth is, I have trouble between two candidates: the American Museum of Natural History and the Bronx Zoo. Of course, there are a lot of obvious similarities between the two—they are both in New York City, and they both appeal to people who are interested in animals—but there are a lot of important differences too, at least to me there are interested in animals—but there are a lot of important differences too, at least to me

Obviously, the zoo is outdoors, and the animals in it are alive, . Being at the zoo feels different: it’s hot, there are bees and screaming kids everywhere, and the smell of the city mixes with the smells of animals and snack food. It’s just so full of life and exciting. Even as a kid, way more exciting than going to a rollercoaster park or sporting event. To this day, nothing fills me with joy and energy quite like a day at the zoo.

It’s just so dark and cool and quiet, high ceilings and long fills me with a feeling of deep reverence, though I’m not exactly sure toward what. Unlike the zoo, which is always changing, the museum is basically the same every time you go. The same in the same positions in their clear tombs since my grandfather was little, and even when the scientific information on the plaques beside them gets outdated, the staff sometimes doesn’t bother to change it. And of course, every trip ends with the dinosaurs on the top floor, their fossilized bones older than anything you’re ever likely to see.

I can remember going to both places often as a child, but even those trips were different. I would go to the zoo in the summer on a car trip, along with my whole family, but the museum was a special wintertime thing between my father and me, and the two of us would take the was exciting in itself—rather than drive.

I’ve lived all over the country, but I’ve tried to visit both places at least once every year for my whole life. I’m a little scared that the museum will change in the future from the way I remember it being, and even more scared that some of my favorite from the zoo, like tigers and rhinos, will go extinct during my lifetime. But how fascinated all the kids always are at both places; it reminds me that, at least when we’re young, we all love animals and learning.