Discussing the price of bananas…
Ten days of hecticness until school ends for summer, and I become a lady of leisure once more (well kind of!)…
I still have Budapest to write about, and a weekend trip to Colmar, but to keep you in the loop in the meantime whilst things are so busy, here’s a place you definitely have to visit should you be anywhere near Colmar and its surrounds…
Built as a reserve for the (now sadly endangered) Barbary Macaque, La Montagne des Singes is special in that there are no cages involved, just lots of open space and woodland (over 60 acres) in which these 200 odd monkeys roam freely.
Keeping hold of baby…
Conditions are controlled in that obviously you are not allowed to feed the monkeys any old rubbish, rationed handfuls of plain popcorn are doled out as you enter the sanctuary.
Neither are you allowed to get too close, with a metre being the absolute minimum. You cannot run, shout, or reach out to touch the residents (all common sense!) – but you can see them behaving naturally, running freely, jumping amongst the tree tops, playing and interacting with each other – and also with humans from time to time should they deem you worthy enough (out of pure cupboard love mostly!).
fly-catching
It’s also really interesting to witness their incredibly humanesque behaviour… I sat a fair distance from this couple for a while, and watched as they sat hugging each other.
I hadn’t realised at first that they were new parents completely obsessed with their newborn – Barbary Macaques are one of the few monkey species where both parents usually bring up offspring together…
We loved this place, and it was definitely a highlight of our weekend. It’s not huge, but set aside two hours at the very least to get the most out of it.
Feeding times occur at least a couple of times a day in French and German, but most staff speak English so don’t be afraid to ask questions, they are more than happy to help.
Perhaps my favourite picture of the day. Whilst the crowd stood watching feeding time, nobody spotted this little bystander not sure what all the fuss was about!
La Montagne des Singes, La Wick, F-67600 Kintzheim Tel: +33 (0)3 88 92 11 09
Open from late March to late November (please check site for opening times etc).
What a lovely sanctuary for the monkey’s beautiful photography and I love the one of the parents with their newborn. It shows how closely we really are related to monkeys
Thanks very much Cerys! :)
This sounds like a wonderful place to visit – can’t get over how amazing those pictures are of the newborn and his parents. Absolutely gorgeous! #globalkids
Thanks so much Sarah! :)
This is wonderful – I’ve seen some of their cousins in a similar site in Staffordshire, where the monkeys (two groups) live just as in the wild, and it’s wonderful to see. What gorgeous photos you have as well. #globalkids
Thanks so much Cathy! :)
My animal-obsessed son would absolutely love this! It looks like a wonderful way to see monkeys up close and personal but in a more natural habitat. Sounds like a really good place to visit kids. globalkids
Thanks Katja! It’s a great place. Not huge but fascinating! :)
So jealous! We’ve driven past here before but it was already closed for the day I really want to go though.
Thank you! They do close earlier during the week it seems, but weekend opening hours seem much longer! :)
What a lovely place. It’s great that there are no cages and that little bystander is adorable! Thank you for linking up to #GlobalKids
Thank you! He had to be my favourite that day, so sweet! :D
This is just like Monkey Mountain we visited in Austria. I can fully understand why you loved it – we did too.
Your photos bring them to life for us readers! Thank you! Xx
We need to go there too. Didn’t you go to a gnome museum as well or did I dream that?? :D
I love the first and last photos in this post. What a wonderful place to visit. I once visited a zoo in France where you could go into the animal enclosures and get up close and personal and it is such an amazing experience, I would love to go back there now with my camera. This does look so wonderful and such a great way to see the monkeys
Thanks so much Nikki! :)
I do prefer places where the animals are not in cages and are able to roam around freely. It is interesting to see how much they are like humans.
Me too J. Thank you! :)
So lovely to be able to get up close to the monkeys and watch them move around freely
Such a nice place to visit. Thank you (:
This looks like such a fun place to visit. I adore that first picture, love that they are doing the same hand gestures, it really looks like they’re having a chat – great capture!
Thank you Liz, my monkey meets a real monkey… :D
They are so gorgeous! I don’t know any other animal that is so expressive. And you are right, that last pic is brilliant!
Thank you T! (:
Ohhhh those pictures are so lovely, especially the first one! x
Thanks Mum xx