Recently we went to the National Zoo, and I had a bit of a moment with the tiger. He had been almost hidden at the top of the hill, so far away from the railing that folks without a telephoto lens had no chance of a good shot. Then I spotted a plexiglass balcony that stuck out into the compound for a better view. I joked it was the feeding platform and decided to act as bait. It worked.
First I saw him peeking at me from behind the big tree. Then he came around in front of the tree, still staring me right in the eye.
None of the people who stood on the balcony before me had gotten any reaction from the tiger. I joked that I must smell sweeter because of my diabetes, and tried a “here kitty, kitty.”
He never broke eye contact as he stalked over to the stairs closest to my perch.
For a while, he just sat there, staring at me and I started to wonder just how far a tiger could jump.
Then he decided to show his stripes, AND his length by stretching down the steps. Seeing that, I thought he could have made the leap if he was really motivated. But, boy was he beautiful.
Thanks for the blog-of-the-year nomination!
Wow! Very cool post, Betsy. Love the pictures. They are just amazing. Thanks for sharing them.