Catching a Moment - From Ragunan with Love
INDONESIA | Monday, 18 February 2013 | Views [233] | Scholarship Entry
With only fifteen thousand rupiah, the family was able to see various species of animals and also youth and adult couples who grope each other, in the corners near the stalls or shamelessly in the middle of the crowd. "Love or lust?" he mumbled.
The Father ungrudgingly spent ten thousand more, to get on the "deelman" or horse drawn carriage for only a few minutes.
The carriage was waving hauled by the coachman. It was only turning around and passing the giraffe stall near the zoo's desolated woods.
The father with his one son and a daughter then got off.
"What is his name, Bang?" (Bang is abbreviation of Abang, the way the Jakartans call a man who deemed as older in age, or men who sell things or provide services)
"Farel!" the Coachman replied.
Farel snorted, his mouth was full of white foams, and his eyes looked a bit emotional. He might be tired.
"Who wants to see the monkeys?" the Father yelled to incite an excitement.
The father and his two children went to the noisy and rip-roaring apes' stalls.
What they saw first was the siamang.
The black ones was a family. The one dangling precisely in front on the cage's iron bars and "in action" was the female siamang, with her son. The male was busy in the corner eating bananas and various fruits. The little siamang was their ducky. He played with his mother. Quite skilful in acrobatics: jumping, hanging, turning, swaying tremendously, due to his sole shape which is very much alike with his big and strong palms.
"Bye-bye monkey!" his daughter yelled.
Some species of animals here are used to interact with the visitors and seem to "enjoy" themselves when being watched with amazement. The ostrich stays unmoving and stares down if we intensely observe its oversized body shape. The black bears: two males, one female, would stand up asking for food. The elephant would raise its trunk and opens her mouth: she wants the visitors to throw some beans. The visitors would gladly do it. If the bean is missed, they remain happy. This is, let say, the language of love between the creatures. They know that the human coming to Zoo, are coming with affection to animals.
In only a few hours those hundred thousands are spent out to pay the coins for the bomb-bomb car, meals and drinks, and others.
"Love takes money too," said the Father, though being tired, is still be able to smile.
Tags: Travel Writing Scholarship 2013
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