SNAKES ON A STAGE

Generally speaking, a trip to a snake farm or zoo can be rather dull. Looking at snakes that are behind glass or in a cage is about as exciting as watching paint dry (or grass grow or World Cup Soccer or some other cliche that is indicative of boredom). So with that in mind, I had low expectations for Bangkok's own snake farm, the Queen Saovabha Memorial Institute.

Fortunately, my trip to the Institute (which is run by the Thai Red Cross Society) turned out to be pretty fun, because I got to see a live snake demonstration that features some of Thailand's most poisonous (cobras and vipers) and non-poisonous (boa constrictors) inhabitants.

Having never seen a cobra in person, it was pretty interesting to watch them bob and weave and lunge forward at the slightest movement.

The occupation "snake handler" is not one I aspire to, but thankfully there were several brave gentlemen on hand to make sure these deadly snakes got put back where they belong.

All of the handlers at the Institute have been bitten more than once and one guy there had some visual proof that shows just how dangerous these snakes are.

Throughout the show, a presenter was on hand to talk about the snakes and answer questions from the audience (she also hosted a brief slide show before the demonstration).

Later, they let people touch the snakes (thankfully, these were the non-poisonous ones).

The main reason the Institute exists is to manufacture vaccines and serum for unfortunate folks who are on the receiving end of a poisonous snake bite. This medication is made from actual snake venom and the handlers demonstrated how the snake is milked.


While I found the trip to the Institute interesting and kind of entertaining, it really isn't worthwhile unless you watch the show. It takes place at 11:00 am and 2:30 pm daily, so make sure you plan your trip around those times.

PUT ME IN THE ZOO

As a family, we've been to a lot of zoos over the years. When it comes down to it, they are all basically the same, but the kids like to go and never resist when we suggest another zoo excursion.

The Dusit Zoo in Bangkok has a lot of the same animals that you can see in pretty much every other major zoo on the planet, so I am not going to waste space here with pictures of elephants, lions, giraffes and monkeys.

This is the first time (at least that I can recall) that I have seen a hyena in person, so that fact alone made the trip worthwhile for me.

These really are disgusting, hideous creatures (check out that drool). The head on this one was bigger than mine and the huge teeth made it downright ferocious-looking.

The zoo was a bit run down and several of the exhibits had trash in them from careless visitors. It's really kind of sad to see a majestic creature like this orangutan with a piece of plastic hanging out of its mouth.

It was another hot, humid day in Bangkok on the day we were at the Dusit Zoo, so many of the animals there seemed totally wiped out and were just listless or asleep.

It should be noted that this lack of activity wasn't confined to animal exhibits.

One interesting phenomenon in Thailand for a white family is the fascination that Thai people have with our kids. Everywhere we go - to the mall, grocery story, restaurants, Dream World and the zoo - people are always looking at our kids and trying to take their picture.

You would think that with things lemurs and langurs around, they would have better subjects for their photo albums, but this doesn't seem to be the case. I guess the citizens of Thailand just like collecting images of kids with fair skin and fair hair. Here's a picture of a lady taking a picture of my son with her cell phone:


You can't really tell, but the lady in the striped shirt is videotaping my daughter Julia looking at a crocodile (not the crocodile itself). I'm sure that will make for some fascinating viewing back home.

My kids all react to this differently to this situation. Max (age 8) doesn't really care to be made a spectacle of and usually does his best to make sure the photo he is appearing in doesn't turn out. Julia (age 5) will feign indifference whenever someone tries to snap her picture, as if the whole act is beneath her. Olivia (age 2) loves the extra attention and is never shy about posing for strangers.


As a parent, I have mixed feelings about this custom. I think it's kind of strange. Based on the extra attention we receive, it's almost like hanging out with a bunch of celebrities. As long as people are polite about it (some even have the decency to ask for permission before snapping a photo), I guess I don't really mind, but when they start touching my kids it does kind of bug me. I think the next time I see some stranger pinching one of my children on the cheek or on the arm, I might be tempted to pinch them right back.

SOMETIMES IT SNOWS IN BANGKOK

Yesterday we took the kids to Dream World, an amusement park that is probably Bangkok's closest thing to Disney World. With a fairy tale-themed entrance, the Disney influence is immediately felt right when you walk up to the place.




The rides are pretty typical of the ones you'll find at any other amusement park or carnival throughout the world, most were designed to whip people around and turn their stomachs inside out.




From the expression on Max's face here, I don't think he was enjoying this particular ride (called "The Spider.")




They even ripped off Disney by naming an attraction "Space Mountain" and calling their haunted house "The Haunted Mansion." It wasn't too scary, just a big dark place with a lot of noises and things jumping out at every turn. You can't even see what they are, unless you have a camera with a flash:


The big drawing card at Dream World is a section called "Snow World" which is a big refrigerated building complete with a hill for sledding. For a Michigan family that's been feeling a bit homesick during the holidays, it was a welcome escape. The locals seemed to enjoy it to, and I'm assuming that many of them have never seen real snow before (technically, this stuff wasn't real either, but it was close enough). One of the funnier stories I've heard here is from my wife's Thai teacher, who thinks she knows what snow is because she's seen the frost build up in her ice box.


Coats and boots were provided, although we just had shorts on underneath, so it was still pretty cold. After six months of sunny skies and stifling humidty, it felt pretty nice for about 20 minutes.


The night wound down with an electrical parade featuring a colorful cast of characters that (surprise) is pretty close to the one that marches down Main Street every evening at Disney World. The music was a techno version of "Jingle Bells" though.




All and all it was a fun time. The kids had a blast and every time we can do something to put a grin on their faces, it's all worth it.

FEEDING FRENZY

Today's excursion was to the Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo.



Almost immediately, I knew this place was going to be a little different. One of the first things you see here is a display of deformed crocodiles. This is the place to go if you want to see crocs with misshapen mouths:





No eyes:



No tails:



Humpbacks:



And various other oddities. This next one was called "Single Tailed Albino" and there was also a six-legged crocodile, but I couldn't get a decent picture of it.



This is the reptilian equivilant of the carnival sideshow. About the only thing missing was was a bearded crocodile and Siamese twin crocodiles. I'm told that these poor creatures are manipulated before they are hatched by heating their eggs. It's kind of sad really.

Another thing that sets this zoo apart from others is the chance to feed the animals. They sell bananas on site to feed to elephants and hippos:





And buckets of chicken carcases to feed to hungry crocodiles:







I'm the kind of guy who wouldn't mind seeing a gazelle set loose in the lion's den at the zoo, so this kind of activity appealed to me.

There were also some friendly orangutans who beg for food, but since they didn't have anything available for purchase, I didn't want to give them anything except some dry grass.



I did see some lady toss an iced coffee (cup and all) into the chimpanzee cage. The whole thing splattered all over the ground. I'm not sure what she was expecting to happen, but the chimp didn't appear too pleased with the situation.

Several brave (or stupid depending on how you look at it) men put on a crocodile wrestling show. This mainly consists of them dragging the beasts out of the water by their tails and then provoking them with a stick so that their jaws snap down. One of the performers even had the guts to stick his hand into a crocodile's mouth. Both guys had all of their limbs and fingers, so I suppose they know what they were doing. If it was me, I wouldn't get close to those things unless I was wearing a suit of armor (all they had on were silky red pajamas without shoes).



Next was an elephant show where four pachyderms performed a series of cute tricks.







Afterwards, they allow kids to get on them for a photo opportunity. Surprisingly, this was free.





There were also chances to get your picture taken with a full grown tiger, but I wasn't goint to let my kids get anywhere near that thing, despite the sign that read: "I won't eat you - you are my friend."



Speaking of tigers, this was the first time I've seen a white tiger in person.



Snakes, turtles, porcupines, and various birds can also be found at the Samut Prakan Crocodile Farm and Zoo. It's not too large of a place, so it makes for a good destination to kill a few hours. My kids enjoyed it and that's always an accomplishment.