Dicing with death in the garden

Looking at pictures of our garden in the glorious afternoon sunshine, you wouldn't have thought that taking a stroll would have potentially life threatening consequences!!!!







But, that is exactly what happened today!!!!

When checking through the sugar cane, what did I encounter? Only a Malyan pit viper, which a cursory check on google will tell you, is highly venomous, aggressive and easily provoked!!! Not to mention that it's responsible for hundreds of hospital admissions every year in Thailand and if you get bitten, you will die without treatment!!!

However, I can tell you that encountering this little fella was marginally less frightening than bumping into my sister-in-law in the dark!!!

Here some links to more information about the Malayan pit viper and examples of what can happen if you get bitten!!!

http://www.siam-info.de/english/snakes_crotalidae.html

http://www.factzoo.com/reptiles/snakes/snake-venom-bite-first-aid.html

http://www.thailandsnakes.com/tag/venomous-snakes/

P.s. I'll give you Bully's special prize if you can name any of the trees or plants that are growing in our garden!!!!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What the fuk?

Image
Before you start writing any letters of complaint or offering to wash my mouth out with soap.....a fuk, is actually a type of vegetable here in Thailand!!!! In Thai script it is written ฟัก and when pronounced, it sounds just like the English swear word. So, as you can imagine, I have had hours of fun with this in Thailand!!!! But, what on earth is a fuk, I hear you cry? It's known as a "winter melon" or "white gourd" in English and is common throughout South East Asia. For those of you, like me, who are botanically challenged, the winter melon is in the same family as honeydew melons. However, unlike the honeydew melon its flesh is not as sweet. It has a very mild flavor and is often used in soups, although I enjoy eating it when it's stir fried with chillis. They are well known for their detoxifying properties and can also be used to make vegetable juice drinks. I have also heard that it is used in China to make tea. Here are some examples of dishes made w...
Read more

Thai Logic

The theme of todays post is "Thai logic"....... But for those of you that have visited the Kingdom this may seem like a contradiction in terms, because the chances are, you have been in situations where there seems to be a lack of "logic" applied. You may think I'm being anti-Thai or trying to create an unfair cultural stereotype but this is not the case at all..... My current girlfriend is Thai as was my ex-girlfriend and I have nothing but good things to say about the majority of Thai people that I have encountered across all walks of life. I believe that the Thai's are the warmest and friendliest people you are ever likely to meet anywhere in the world....however, many lack, what we in the West would call, "common sense". Or as the late grandma Penfold might have said "some of them are as green as cabbage looking". My favourite example is when I checked into a small Bangkok hotel in Soi 4 Sukhumvit and was told the shower in my room wa...
Read more

Book Review: Good Medicine for Thailand Fever

Image
Given that my last book review was so well received by my readers, I thought I would have another crack at this type of post. The book that I have chosen to comment upon is entitled "Good Medicine for Thailand Fever". When I first picked up this book with it's unusual title and garish yellow cover, I must admit that I was intrigued and as soon as I'd read the first few pages, I was hooked. A lot of books which deal wth the topic of Thai-Western relationships, are written by Westerners, for Westerners and tend to be full of hubris and pathos, focusing on how gullible farangs lose their hearts and life savings to devious bar girls. "Good Medicine for Thailand Fever" is a refreshing change from this staid format and far from being a skewed, one-dimensional and one-sided portrait of Thai-Western relationships, the book is bilingual guide, dealing with all aspects of cross-cultural relationships and offering advice and help to both parties. Written by an Amercian...
Read more