How I ended up taking a selfie with a baby long tailed Monkey on my head? Well, it’s a funny story really, let me tell you…

Breastfeeding is easy I’ve heard…

The Sacred Forest Monkey Sanctuary (Mandala Suci Wenara Wana for the locals) is a must do in Ubud. First, the preserved natural habitat of the forest and the sacred place worth the few Rupiah you’ll give at the entrance. Second, the wild monkeys are wandering around like they own the place. Wait… They actually own it! Third, it’s a unit place to observe humans and their weird behavior when exposed to the wilderness. Let’s be honest, this part is one of the most annoying thus amusing of the travel experience.

What strikes me straight away in the Sacred Forest but you can enlarge this observation to the entire World, is that you’ll always find an annoying-brainless tourist among a group of traveller. He or she is often trying to impress (a girl or a boy, but generally a group of people), has a different conception of humour than the most of us, is very agressive and rude (he or she will consider himself or herself better than you) and doesn’t think before acting.

The easy way to kiss your friends

no poop, no flees but a selfie

I discovered during my research that the same person will sadly be the annoying tourist everywhere he/she goes, until somebody even more brainless or agressive arrive in the group. It can happen that with time and experience, that person will understand how to react differently or will be tired of acting like a stupid person all the time. It can take years. But sometimes, when the annoying person can’t be found in a group, somebody will take that role and that person can be… You!

We all have a role in a group and it will be dispatched naturally when the group forms. Whether you are the leader, the mother, the diplomate, the shy, the handsome or the clown, you will fulfill naturally a role in a group.
But eh, that’s my theory!

Oh here he is!
He is big and he is making big gestures with his arms. Looking straight into the eyes of a little monkey. He is approaching a banana to the wild beast, then when he is sure the monkey is about to grab it, he is taking it back and mimicking an attack. The monkey is obviously terrified and doesn’t know if he has to bite the stupid human now or later.

Obviously, because I endorse the police-role, I go straight away to this blob brained guy and tell him to stop right now.
I found out that I am very good at it and love to see these guys (yeah let’s be honest most of the time they are guys) looking at me like it’s the very first time ever in their life that somebody said no to them.

How to resolve conflicts

I scolded two guys that thought it was hilarious to shake a 1.000 years old statue in Angkor Wat, and I remove with anger the hand of this guy devices at the S-21 Prison in Phnom Penh that was rearranging them.

Somehow, travelling is teaching me how to be more compassionate, but I still have a hard time with those who are not thinking before they act, or the bully, or the mean one…
And if one day, I endorse the role of the annoying one in a group, I hope the police role person will tell me who I am!

Around me, a lot of tourists and monkeys. The interaction is a perfect metaphor of two foreign worlds that suddenly meet: oil and water, light and darkness, the wilderness and the urban citizen.
On both parts there is screams, run, laugh, tension, agression, demonstration of love… We look at each other with curiosity, the most brave of each group tempt a connexion with the others, sometimes it works and the moment seems extraordinary full of good promises, sometimes it doesn’t and hearts are beating faster from fear.

I discovered too late that what this Monkey snack was a spider

After my misfortunate adventure implicating a coconut and a monkey in the streets of Lopburi, I try to be cautious with the bigger animal and I feel contempt by just observing them from afar.
It doesn’t take long before I actually break my promise of not getting close with them, but I let them lead, no way I will actually try to touch them…!

Trying to steel some food

It is so rare to be so close to those animals and it always feel unrealistic. It is oh so amusing to see how human they can be but so terrifying to be so close to these unpredictable wild animals…

There is always one splashing at you when you try to enter slowly in the cold water

Some young one are scare-less and don’t hesitate to jump on people. As I try to take a close up shot of one of them, he decides that my head will be a good resting place. And here he is, on my head.

I think about three things at that second:
1. Will he poop on my head?
2. How many flees will I inherit from this encounter?
3. Will I have time to grab a selfie with my new friend?

Thankfully, the experience ended with no poop, no flees but a selfie.

The Sacred Forest is a place full of surprising, beautiful and sometimes erotic art, surrounded by luxuriant vegetation and architecture and joyfully populated by an army of funny monkeys. You can even try to spot the annoying monkey in their group…!