Saturday, January 29, 2005

The Beijing Zoo

Today I visited Beijing Zoo with Wen, YangBo, and a Canadian friend of theirs coming to Beijing on business. The place is rather depressing, mostly because of the sad concrete cages, but also because everything is so dry and grey in the winter. Luckily we had a clear sky today and the sun was shining. I caught a really nasty cough though. Possible because of the fresh air. My system is just not used to it. Hope we get back some of that ol' Beijing smog tomorrow.

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ZhangWen wouldn't let me take a picture of her and the hippo together.
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A "LongNeckDeer".

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Did u see the wretched polar bears in their concrete hell?

Or the humiliated brown bears, begging for scrapes from sadistic onlookers?

Damn I hate the Beijing Zoo.

S

Johan said...

Of course I am. Just like mainlanders really are not at all the same all of them and don't eat the same things. Just like all Americans are not stupid. I know Beijingers that wouldn't never consider eating dog.

Then again. There are quite a few Americans (and even more Chinese) that has little clue what is going on in the world. Just as many Chinese DO eat weird things. Especially in Chinese medicin. Was that bat and pig brain for your brother? Didn't every canteen at NTU serve chicken feet?

Many of them rusty cages in the zoo were empty, making me suspect that they ended up on some big-shots plate. They would probably pay a fortune for some tiger penis too keep up with all the prostitutes.

Johan said...

Oups. That comment ended up in the wrong post. Think you can guess where it should have been.

Anonymous said...

If there's one thing I can't stand, it's cruelty to animals. And to me, if you want to eat something, fine I don't question that, but I question the way that something was killed. Do it humanely - I wish I could kill those who keep honey bears in cage and chop off one paw at a time, and those who eat monkey brains while the monkey is still alive, and those who bash the dogs against a wall so that the meat tastes better. I'm sorry to vent but I really really get upset about stories like these, and unfortunately, more often than not, those doing these things are the Chinese or the Koreans. I'm not racist, but it's a general observation.

Johan said...

I think that feeling particularly sorry for seals, puppies, pandas, koala bears, and other baby-like creatures is quite a distraction from real problems we have on this planet. I'm just expressing my opinion her and in reply to your post. Since I'm not sure what your meaning is, I'm not writing this as some sort of critic of your post. I think almost everybody would agree that unnecessary cruelty to anymals is wrong. What we mean when saying this will differ though.

Worse is the way we alter the whole ecological system so that many spices are dying out and that our living environment is becoming poisonous and unsustainable for us.

I've heard people say that they can't stand cruelty to animals because they are innocent. I don't using that word to animals apply at all. I don't think any human deserves cruelty either, nomatter what that person has done. Some people are dangerous to other people and needs to be kept away, other needs treatment. We don't need to take revenge. That doesn't do anyone good.

The cruelest thing on this planet, i think, is the way the most well-educated and rich people are denying the majority opportunities to improve their lives. (not funding a general healthcare or welfare system, segregate children by sending them to private funded schools, trade barriers, unfair trade agreements, support to corrupt and illegitimate (undemocratic) governments, social dumping in developing countries)

Just a few thoughts...