News on man-eating saltwater crocodiles roaming wild and roaming free in the shallow water of Port Dickson spread very fast of late. Several sightings were reported earlier but this apparently did not make into our local tabloid headline because story of suspicious looking creature lurking in a shallow water won't probably land them an extra profit. Not until few weeks back when an unsuspecting local tourist got bitten on his foot and was dragged down into the deep murky water of the strait of Malacca by one of these monsters, the news began to surface. Luckily he survived. The bite was so severe, he almost lost his foot and will spent his entire life, limping like the famous pirate Long John Silver. Even then, no solid effort has been taken by the local authority to warn people of the imminent danger. Bolehland style, everything goes under the carpet.Whether the news was true or just another smearing-campaign by some irresponsible quarter, I have no way to validate. Since the advent of internet, rumor spread very fast, faster than the speed of a bullet. But ever since last week my email account was bombarded with stories and photos of almost smashed up foot of this unlucky guy. I am more incline to believe the news from the internet. Somehow, I always trust my gut feeling. On second thought, the elusive monsters could also be the infamous local 'skuad skodeng' actively on patrol or look out for their fleshy preys. Anyhow and anyway, just to be on the save side, watch out for any mysterious dark creature that lurk in the water folk!
Back to the main story (got sidetracked a bit by that croc chronicle). I almost had the same Long John Silver experience when I visited our Zoo Negara recently. Well not quite that bad to be frank. It had been almost eight years since the last time I brought my kids to Zoo Negara. So before the end of last school holiday, I bundled everybody into my old jalopy and we gatecrashed into that animal sanctuary very early in the morning. The idea was to avoid the crowd. Yes, we beat the crowd alright but the new entrance fee really beat me flat this time. I had to fork out RM76 for my six excited family members just to see the animals in cages.
If I am not mistaken, last time I paid only half of that amount. That was not all. They charged another RM5 for a ride on a buggy around the compound (which was free the last time) and another RM5++ if you want to enter the insectzoo, their latest attraction. I can't see any justification for those extra charges, in fact the reason to double up the fee too. Zoo is supposed to be a fun place for the public and the whole family. The management can increase the charge but it should be reasonable and affordable, gradually with time. Imagine the lesser mortals with bigger family members. If that was not insulting enough, 'teh ais' in one of the kiosks cost almost the same as the one in a five star hotel. You've got to go there yourself to believe it. I am not exaggerating this time. Doing a simple arithmetic and going by the current trend, I anticipate the cost would be phenomenally outrageous in the next 5 or 6 years time. Now I know the true meaning of inflation. Or was it greed?
I had enough of zoo-keeping to do in my office nowadays. Cubicle-style for staffs' workplace our offices adopted these days resembles much of the zoo habitat. Several office inhabitants even depicting some of the zoo's character - predatory, ferocious, opportunistic and to some extent cannibalistic. So why paying extra for the same show I can enjoy in my own playground. I just fasten my seat belt and finish my popcorn then.
In these modern days, my kid has to pay some monies even to watch a cow grazing lazily in captivity. In the next 20 years or so , my grandchildren probably have to take a bank loan just to see chickens laying their eggs.
Despite a small setback and the global financial crisis, the whole family were having fun as usual. Crisis or no crisis, we managed to stride joyfully along the path learning the intricate relationship between the animals and their natural surrounding 
My youngest feeding the jumbo - trying his best to conquer his fear. 
The new attraction to the visitors - the insectzoo. We didn't go inside as this will incur another charge just to see the creepy crawlies in display. The half-day walking around the compound really took away some of the spirit. 
These migrating birds were the only animal that was not kept in captivity. They can come and leave anytime they like. Not a bad policy - until H5N1 knock out the entire avian population in the zoo I guess.
