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Eastern Russia - Vladivostok, Khabarovsk and Magadan
With an incredibly large land mass, Russia is really many countries in one. In this article, we take a look at travel destinations in the Far East.
Vladivostok
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Japanese Garden of Monaco
Have you ever seen an authentic Japanese garden? Well, I had the chance of seeing the one in Monaco and was really impressed too. Wanna taste a little Japanese culture? Stepping on this ground is escaping from the real world into a fantasy land....
Philadelphia Is Hot For a Vacation Spot
Do you and your family love vacations that are also great
opportunities for educating yourself about history and the
pioneers that built this great country? What better way
than a fun vacation that is filled with learning!
And whether you...
Serengeti Safari - Memories of Miscommunications
The scene before me could be matched nowhere else on earth. Parched yellow grass spread out before us as far as the eye could see - broken only by the occasional umbrella tree and a few hundred thousand migrating wildebeest forming a dusty, thin...
The Lowdown On China Travel
The fragrance of fish, lobsters…, the sturdy Great Wall, the broken hush of winds by the Martial Arts, the grand museums and unpretentious down to earth people…welcome you to the third largest country on the globe-China. China is universally known...
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Zoo Use 101
Do you truly see animals at the zoo? A while back, on a visit to
the J. Paul Getty Museum in Santa Monica, I overheard a tour
guide say the average time spent looking at a work of art in the
museum is five to ten seconds per piece. At first this shocked
me. At the time I was standing entranced next to Van Gogh's
'Irises.' I envisioned museumgoers not even breaking their
stride as they blew past. Then I realized it was the "seer
syndrome." Sadly, most people who came here were seers of art,
not observers of art. As it turned out, this was the guide's
point as well.
Unfortunately, in this case 'seer' is not as the word implies.
In fact, it is the exact opposite. Where most of us picture a
seer as psychic or as someone with unique visionary knowledge
and wisdom, the seers I am referring to are the tourist-like
seers. They are a painfully dominant subspecies in our culture.
Tourist-like seers go to the zoo "to see the animals." And, they
certainly do. They glance at each beast, getting no more out of
it than if they had stayed at home and thumbed through the Big
Picture Book of Animals their kids had been given for Christmas.
Too often these days we use our zoos and museums as a means of
fulfilling social obligations. They are classic ways to
entertain out of town visitors or to spend perceived quality
time with friends and family. In the chaos of socialization, the
beauty of the individual exhibit is lost. In order to appreciate
both natural and man-made masterpieces, people need to slow down
and take time to truly appreciate individual works. In short,
they must observe not just see.
THE TRANSFORMATION
Many years ago the San Diego Zoological Society changed me from
a seer of animals to an observer of animals. My transformation
occurred when I started working as working in the society's
Behavioral Observer Program. My tasks were quite simple. I would
watch a single animal for a whole shift, taking note on what my
focal subject did. By the end of the first hour I knew I was
guilty of years of improper zoo use. I was converted.
In my past life as a seer, I would set out to conquer a whole
zoological park in a single day with other members of my species
in tow. Sore feet and pricey souvenirs were frequently the end
result of the journey. As a seer, I would look at the animals in
their cages, read the large print part of some of the signs
(name, habitat, diet, etc.), look again at the subject then
hypnotically proceed to the next cage. All the while I was
socializing with other people. Then this mundane process would
repeat. I could cover smaller zoos in a single visit. Boy, did I
get my moneys worth?
These days I enjoy acquainting myself with a few new exhibits
and visiting friends from past trips. I rarely see more than a
small portion of any zoological park in a single day; however,
the experience takes over my soul. As an observer, I study each
animal and enclosure design, take note and photos for future
reference, then relax and watch my quarry. Through the
development of familiarity, I take away from my visit a truer
knowledge of, and a higher respect for, the animals I have been
watching.
SHOE BILL ODYSSEY
For example, during my work, I came to know and appreciate
watching the most bizarre of animals. At very first glance, this
creature would cause Richard Simmons to become lethargic. The
zoological society had asked me to take observation on the first
Shoe Bill Stork released on an island at the San Diego Wild
Animal Park.
For those of you unfamiliar
with this species, let me just say
this; Shoebills are large, dull gray, prehistoric looking birds
that move somewhat slower than most dead stuff. My first days
notes on a 9 am to 1 pm observation period read "11:08 walked
three step to ponds edge", "11:19 drank (duration 35 seconds)",
"12:01 turned away from water". Try to impress the curator with
that insightful piece.
Fortunately, by her third day on the island my target had
loosened up (now moving nearly every hour) and I had settled
down. The seers would pass us by. Each strained cerebrally
trying to figure out why I was staring at the statue of the
dinosaur bird.
"Are you sketching it?"
"Who is the sculpture?"
"What do you mean it's real?"
"No it isn't."
"Is it?"
The occasional photographically inclined seer would stare
through a telephoto at this photogenic statue. Occasionally, the
laid back statue would turn to stare back. The startled seer
would launch straight backward. The camera would launch straight
forward. Then, the statue would refreeze and I would make my
note for the hour discreetly giggling on the ground. Together we
would await our next victim. As a seer I would probably still be
unaware this species even existed. Thus, how could I appreciate
it? I certainly would not ever have found a Shoe Bill amusing
had I not given it due time.
NEW PERCEPTIONS
A word of warning here, while it is relatively easy to from
reform a seer to an observer; it is impossible to reverse the
procedure. You will never be able to suppress being more
observant and return to the realm of the seers. This is like
trying to stuff a full grown chicken back into its shell. Zoos
as a social event will become a living hell!
Seers will find Observers to slow. Even an Observer that is
moving at his maximum potential speed of 2.5 frustrated minutes
per exhibit will be left in the dust by that average 10 seconds
per exhibit of the stealth-like seers. In turn, an observer will
be disgusted by the seer's lack of interest in and appreciation
for the individual animals. A Seer will find an Observer to be a
know-it-all. An Observer will be resentful of being blatantly
humored.
Seers will smack their lips together in an attempt to get an
animals attention. Don't do this! What are you thinking? "Oh,
animal 2 million idiots a year subject you to this relentless
noise. Now, I am doing it. Come show my friend how special I am.
to be your chosen one." Good grief, give me a break.
An observer will want to slap a smacking seer. The observer must
restrain, for seers travel in packs. The observer is a
zoological loner. A special person to understand and share quiet
time with is hard enough to find in the outside world.
Learning to be more observant is a skill that can benefit
mankind in nearly every aspect of his life. Sadly though, many
will never even attempt to make the change. A natural avoidance
of the unfamiliar will take place. For of the many who hear this
musing, most will not have listened.
About the author:
Zoologist turned satirist Nola L. Kelsey is the author of the
scathingly wicked satire Bitch Unleashed: The Harsh Realities of
Goin' Country. She is also the coauthor of the twisted political
satire Keeping the Masses Down. Kelsey's newsletter, Nomadic
Muse, is tracking her escape from South Dakota normality to her
life as a shoestring backpacker in SE Asia. Excerpts from Bitch
Unleashed and subscriptions to Nomadic Muse are available on her
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