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14 FOUR SEASONS BREEZE | APRIL 2022 In January, I went to Thailand to do some scuba diving. Because of the very low number of tourists, the diving boat availability was limited. That gave me some unexpected spare time so I decided to take the train north to Lopburi to see "the monkeys." Lopburi is one of the oldest cities in Thailand and a former capital during Khmer rule. Like any visitor I bought a bag of bananas and mangoes and went to feed my new friends. I received the standard warning about not wearing a backpack or carrying any loose bag or camera, but despite that, I was mugged twice in the first hour! The first fruit bag was snatched before I even had time to open it. I held the second bag close to my chest so they went for my cell phone as a distraction. They got the second bag when I grabbed the phone with both hands. I thought no monkey was going to get the better of me — so I bought my third bag of fruit. Only later did I wonder if maybe the fruit vendor had trained this local troop in this criminal behavior. I finally managed the art of holding the bag and feeding the monkeys under my control and not theirs. That had won their respect. Some of them were certainly smart. One was really trying to impress me, but I noticed he actually had his newspaper upside down so he didn't fool me. As the day progressed, I began to see more and more monkeys — first, just individuals, then families, then complete troops. The temple complex of Wat Phra Si Rattana Mahathat was built in the 12th century as a Hindu temple but later converted to Buddhism during the Khmer period (as was the famous Angkor Wat in Cambodia). Offering food is one of the oldest and most common rituals of Buddhism. Food is given to monks during alms rounds and also ritually offered to tantric deities and hungry ghosts. Offering food is a meritorious act that reminds us not to be greedy or selfish. The offerings are often fruit, vegetables, and rice. The monkeys themselves are not Buddhist but they certainly agree with the ritual of food offerings. In fact, they like attending the ritual on a daily basis. As 4 pm approached, they all flocked to the temple. I was really impressed because none of them wore watches but they all seemed to know the time. When the 4 pm food offerings were put out, I think 100 percent of the local monkey population was at the temple. They looked like good Buddhists attending a 4 pm temple service. The next morning I woke to loud banging and crashing at 6 am. I thought hotel staff were moving some heavy furniture outside my room so I walked over to the window and opened the curtain. Six inches from my window was a huge monkey face. I don't know which of us was more surprised. I jumped back and he scampered up a drainpipe and ran across my roof and jumped over to the adjoining building. There were four other monkeys in the courtyard dragging large potted plants around and knocking over patio tables and chairs. Soon I spotted the noisy one; he was on the roof banging the sheet metal with what looked like a long, swimming-pool-cleaning brush. A hotel staff member shouted at the monkey who responded by throwing the pool brush at the man. From the look on his face this was obviously not the first time this had happened. When I checked out later, I told the manager that I had really enjoyed the early morning show. He replied that this morning had been relatively quiet! Back home I would have paid way more money for a Motel 6 and not have been privy to any kind of live exotic animal performance show before breakfast. Colin feeding baby crab-eating macaques (Macaca fascicularis) More Monkeys than People! As soon as travel restrictions were lifted, Colin set out for a new adventure. Enjoy his experiences as a local traveler… RESIDENT SPOTLIGHT By Colin Taylor, resident and CEO of Taylor Adventure Tours

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