Baby Monkey
Sometimes unexpected journeys are the best kind!
"Oh, the places you'll go!" was the title of one of my favorite books as a child. Despite that, it took me 20 something years to follow dr. Seuss's advice and actually go places.
About a year and a half ago i found myself craving an adventure. At the time, Covid didn't happen yet, and traveling was still very much an option. I made plans with my best friend, and we've decided to visit Australia and New Zealand together, only, due to scheduling differences we started our adventures seperatly.
I should probably mention that up to that point, I have only travelled to big, old cities for a few days at a time. This was my first grand adventure and I wasn't going to miss out on anything! So i decided last minute to make a long stop on my way "down under", and somehow found myself in Thailand.
Now the truth is- i've never been too keen to visit there. Most people I know only went there for the beaches and parties- which isn't really my thing. But I was alone for the first time in my life, and in desperate need for new experiences, so with that in mind I decided to stay there for a month or so.
As an aspiring writer and a full time list maker, the first thing I did was plan out the things I had to see and do before moving on to Australia. I knew right away what activity would make it to the top of the list- I wanted to see monkeys in the wild!
I've always loved monkeys. whether its because Abu from Aladdin was such a tresure or some other reason, I knew I had to see a monkey outside of the zoo. I did my research and two days later I was on a plane to Phuket where I heard there was a great monkey spot.
Equipped with a child-like excitment, and a camera I bought for moments like this, I took a motorcycle taxi (which is a thing in Thailand) to the famous hill. When we got there I didn't know what to expect. the road ended with small barricades, and as I stepped behind them I was in awe.
In front of me there were dozens of monkeys, running around, hanging from trees and playing with each other. I had no idea there were going to be so many! I quickly took out my camera (which wasn't an easy task because the monkeys thought there was food in my bag), and snapped a few shots.
I stayed there for a few hours, watching the monkeys go on with their lives, and taking as many pictures of them as i could. I had the best time watching them interact with each other- from the small ones chasing each other around and pulling on each other's tails, to the older ones picking lice and ticks from one another. It was amazing to see how humane their reactions were most of the times. Their faces were incredibly expressive, which made watching them almost hypnotizing.
Eventually I spotted a monkey-mother that had a tiny baby-monkey hanging from her. I tried to take a shot, but the little one wasn’t having any of it, and had his face buried in his mother's chest the entire time.
I kept sitting there for quite a while, giving them space and time to get comfortable, hoping the little one will finally turn his head around. Lucky for me, waiting paid off because he decided to look around, and I got to take a few close-up pictures of him! I couldn’t have been happier.
As it turned out, this unplanned stop became one of the highlights of my trip, and definetly a memory that I will cherish forever. Fortunatly I have countless pictures from that day to keep me company. All I can do now is hope that this adventure was the first of many.
About the Creator
itan zaken
aspiring writer
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