You will never get so close to a hippo ever in your leaf. The bizarre spectacle of Jessica lumbering up for her tea and corn is unreal. But I must admit I lost my heart to Ritchie the baby hippo there

I heard about Jessic and you can go on YouTube and see a video. I fed her, she kissed me. It is a bit odd but worth the side trip at least I think.

One of the highlights of our trip was visiting Jessica the Hippo at her home. We had seen videos of Jessica on television and heard the story of Toni Joubert rescuing this orphan and raising her as an only hippo and wanted to see this for ourself. We are so happy that we did. We arrived via a long circuitous route through a corporate orange grove thanks to our GPS so beware. But it was well worth the trouble. We arrived at the gate and welcomed by one of Jessica's caregivers. We were escorted to the dock on the riverbank and were standing there chatting away with Tonie when we look up and see Jessica nimbly trotting down the path to the water. What a sight. She gently entered with barely a splash and swam over to the dock to be granted a snack by my husband and myself. We had a great afternoon talking to Tonie and watching Jessica as she went about her business acting very much like a very large dog who swims. Visiting hours 10 to 12 and 3 to 5. joubert@jessicahippo.com or www.jessicahippo.com. Make time in your schedule to see this. You will be delighted!