Entries this day: Elephants MANA Tiger_buffet Xnakes

Elephants

11:47am ICT Saturday 5 June 2010 (day 14682)

Got to see live performance of elephants kicking balls, painting, and other stuff. Ah dang we're already at our next location (1 minute drive)

I got elephant snot on my shorts, blown with elephant trunk air, etc. awesomely funny! Thanks to peeps for taking pics and video hahahaha.

Feeding bananas was like omg cause they'd eat an entire meal for me in one bite! And then another and another! wow!!

MANA

1:58pm ICT Saturday 5 June 2010 (day 14682)

Mana wears about 9 or 12 coils of metal (brass?) around her neck. I didn't count the coils, and I didn't ask her about them, but I did sit with her for a while because she had her face decorated gently with some concentric circles on each cheek and dots on the bridge of her nose.

She's been there six years, and says though she can't go home, it's better than Burma because here, food and water are readily available, and more tourists, so more income. I'm not sure what she would be doing for sustenance in Burma; we didn't get that far in the conversation. I met her son Gon (?) and she said her husband was working somewhere.

The tribe is Kayan, and speak Kayan together. I got the sense that few people know how to write Kayan. I don't think she knew how. But she did write a phone number and her name in "English." I asked if she had an email address, and she was like, "no," and then explained, "no lights," which pretty much summarized the reason.

I wonder about the plausibility of doing a home stay there for a weekend, perhaps. If I determine it'd be "good" for the village, or for her family, I'd be interested.

Tiger buffet

2:41pm ICT Saturday 5 June 2010 (day 14682)

We're eating lunch buffet next to tigers, with whom I look forward to cuddling soon!

4:47pm ICT Saturday 5 June 2010 (day 14682)

OMG so much fun!!!!!

While Wayne was scoping the pictures on his and Claire's CD taken while with the big tiger, I scoped a stuffed animal that looked cute and unique. Don't have a name for him yet. Dang this zoo is getting out of control!!

Xnakes

5:43pm ICT Saturday 5 June 2010 (day 14682)

Before the show properly started, we got to handle some pythons. Claire was like, "nope. no way," when I suggested she touch it. I kept encouraging her and she got up her courage and gingerly touched its body as I kept the snake's head near Shawn's chest.

Then the staff was like, "aight the show is starting," so we all sat down on the bamboo bleachers. (two levels)

The snake show featured a boa constrictor, two cobras, a king cobra, three little snakes, and a "copperhead jumping snake", a cool snake that seemed to be thin but tall along its neck.

I put Johnny, U-Cow, and their new friend out in the ring before the show started. They were there for most of the first snake, a large boa constrictor.

After the handlers harassed the boa constrictor for a while as it tried to bite them, they were like, "who else wants to come hold it?" and I went out there. They were like, "hold its head" and I did, and got some pics with my stuffed posse.

Shawn, Shane, Wayne, some other guy, and maybe someone else from the audience took their turns holding the snake. Then it was Claire's turn, so I encouraged her again and she was like, "aight," after I was like, "if you go out there, I'll hold its head." She did, and I did, and it was great!

They pretty much harassed the other snakes into striking while just out of range of the strikes, and teased the audience a bit by tossing a rope our way, etc.