When driving with a bunch of friends several years ago, we passed a Snake Café on the way to my place, like so often before. When you pass a place that you dont want to be, do you ever feel that if it is done often enough someone in the car is bound to say something about it? Like, Hey look, a Snake Café, lets stop and have some. Its always the loudest voice Ive ever heard.
I wasnt driving so I had to go along. Once inside I made sure we picked the table closest to the exit, just in case I needed a breather. Theyve put some effort to make the place comfortable, but to me, its just a room full of snakes!
There were glass tanks full of snakes of all kinds. And the noisy sound of those black spitting cobras sure gave me the cringe.
As soon as we sat down, my friends started singing a familiar song, about my 14 different backpacks and all the survival gears, spending most of my free time in the wilderness, yet never wanting to take a step closer to a snake. Da...da da .
A friend ordered a Green Viper. He said its the best for him. He said his wife said so. The café owner, obviously a snake charmer, in a smooth motion, opened the cover of the glass container and with his bare hand, grasped a Green Viper almost without looking and placed it on the butcher table. With a wooden cane he quickly hit the snake in the head. The whole thing couldnt last more than 5 seconds. We were all very impressed... :thumbup:
The gall bladder is served in a mixture of local alcoholic beverages. In one go, my friend drank it clean from the glass, and later posted a big smile from ear to ear.
He then started to sing the song again which was joined by everyone in the table but me. I got a break when another friend ordered the King Cobra. Its a little pricier than the Green Viper but he said its the best for him. He regularly eats this since his teens, and back then, it even cured his acne problems forever. Again I said, to each his own
As with last time, the café owner, in one smooth motion opened the lid of the glass tank and with his bare hand snatched a large King Cobra almost without looking, and placed it on the butcher table. With the same wooden cane, he smacked its head. The whole process couldnt last more than 5 seconds, and we were very very impressed. :thumbup:
After swallowing the gall bladder alcohol mixture, this guy posted the biggest grin, of course, directed at me. He was about the start the song again when a friend asked me: I bet you Rp. 50,000 that café owner will not be so fast next time around. Thats an equivalent to about, oohh . $5 (yeah I know). I guess I was getting irritated with the song, and hoping to get a little revenge. I got another friend who is a snake charmer, and he was giggling in the corner of the table, I should have picked up his signal.
The friend turned to the café owner and said satu ular welang, pak as he pointed to a seemingly empty glass tank. There is only a small looking snake there, dark-red (almost black) and white stripes, not even 2 feet long. That instantly put a grin on my face.
The café owner walked to the glass tank, he looked through the glass twice before opining the lid. He then grabbed a metal rod with a clamp thingy on the end and carefully eased it into the tank. When he was sure he got a good grip, he slowly pulled it out and positioned it on the butcher table where his assistant could clobber the sucker to death. The whole process felt like an eternity.
Needless to say, I came out from there with a lighter wallet, by about, oohhh . five bucks.
Note to self: dont mess with the dark-red/black and white snakes.
I wasnt driving so I had to go along. Once inside I made sure we picked the table closest to the exit, just in case I needed a breather. Theyve put some effort to make the place comfortable, but to me, its just a room full of snakes!
There were glass tanks full of snakes of all kinds. And the noisy sound of those black spitting cobras sure gave me the cringe.
As soon as we sat down, my friends started singing a familiar song, about my 14 different backpacks and all the survival gears, spending most of my free time in the wilderness, yet never wanting to take a step closer to a snake. Da...da da .
A friend ordered a Green Viper. He said its the best for him. He said his wife said so. The café owner, obviously a snake charmer, in a smooth motion, opened the cover of the glass container and with his bare hand, grasped a Green Viper almost without looking and placed it on the butcher table. With a wooden cane he quickly hit the snake in the head. The whole thing couldnt last more than 5 seconds. We were all very impressed... :thumbup:
The gall bladder is served in a mixture of local alcoholic beverages. In one go, my friend drank it clean from the glass, and later posted a big smile from ear to ear.
He then started to sing the song again which was joined by everyone in the table but me. I got a break when another friend ordered the King Cobra. Its a little pricier than the Green Viper but he said its the best for him. He regularly eats this since his teens, and back then, it even cured his acne problems forever. Again I said, to each his own
As with last time, the café owner, in one smooth motion opened the lid of the glass tank and with his bare hand snatched a large King Cobra almost without looking, and placed it on the butcher table. With the same wooden cane, he smacked its head. The whole process couldnt last more than 5 seconds, and we were very very impressed. :thumbup:
After swallowing the gall bladder alcohol mixture, this guy posted the biggest grin, of course, directed at me. He was about the start the song again when a friend asked me: I bet you Rp. 50,000 that café owner will not be so fast next time around. Thats an equivalent to about, oohh . $5 (yeah I know). I guess I was getting irritated with the song, and hoping to get a little revenge. I got another friend who is a snake charmer, and he was giggling in the corner of the table, I should have picked up his signal.
The friend turned to the café owner and said satu ular welang, pak as he pointed to a seemingly empty glass tank. There is only a small looking snake there, dark-red (almost black) and white stripes, not even 2 feet long. That instantly put a grin on my face.
The café owner walked to the glass tank, he looked through the glass twice before opining the lid. He then grabbed a metal rod with a clamp thingy on the end and carefully eased it into the tank. When he was sure he got a good grip, he slowly pulled it out and positioned it on the butcher table where his assistant could clobber the sucker to death. The whole process felt like an eternity.
Needless to say, I came out from there with a lighter wallet, by about, oohhh . five bucks.
Note to self: dont mess with the dark-red/black and white snakes.
