It’s been animal fever at home. Kids just crazy about anything related to the animal. Two months ago we brought kids to Fuji Safari Zoo, last month we went to Chiba City Zoo and this month they made us promise to bring them to Ueno Zoo and another promise for Yokohama zoo next month. When going out shopping, stop at pet shop is the big moment of the day . On the TV, they want Animals Planet. It’s kinna cool, I think. Instead of crazy for any futuristic and imaginary  hero, mother nature conquers.

Having many pet shop and zoo facilities around in the city, I think we kind of lucky.
Wait, did I say “lucky”? On a second thought, I take that back. Because from animal-exposure point of view, what I’m about to write bellow is what I call lucky.

My father used to work in an oil company which office and housing camp located in the middle of Sumatra island, Indonesia. Tropical forest was a stone-throw away from our home, school and play ground. There are numbers of encounters to forest’s fellow, but let me highlight some of my personal experiences.

One day, when my big sist opened our clothes cupboard at home, she was stunned when a one meter length green snake welcomed her. We ended up calling the pest control department of the oil company who came in 911 speed and took control from there. This department is one of the important emergency line together with the ambulance/fire engine and security.

We had a big mango tree at the right yard of our home. My mother always not happy because we always loose the competition to  harvest the long awaited fruit. Our competitor: a group of wild monkeys who love to play around on the tree early morning and have their mangos breakfast.

Some of the member(or I suspect the king) of the monkey group have really no hesitation to human being. I was in high school age when I was chased, yes, chased = the monkey  ran after me tried to grab (I was in the bicycle) near my friend house. I was scared to death, but my friend succeed to scared the monkey away by threw some stone toward the naughty ape.

My geologist father often had to go on field trip to some oil rig in the middle of deep jungle. On his way, he often spot some wild animal we usually see only in TV or zoo. Sometime he brought home some unique gift for us, the children. Once he brought us a turtle who were slowly  crossed the street when his car came. Another time, he brought us this moisten bundle of soil-ball-like. Later he explained to us that is how the elephant’s poop look (and smell and feel) like.

Though I didn’t see that in real, but I saw at the front page of our camp community newspaper, the news and photo of a tiger whose sitting on top of the air conditioner unit outside of a neighborhood building. It said, it’s been a cold rainy season that the king of the juggle found the comfort of warmth sitting on the unit.

So tell me, who is lucky?

 
(I think it is a great story to tell/to be red by my grand children and generations after one day. Hope at that time, they still get the chance to have some animal exposure)