The Steampunk World
Today I went to the Kumasi Zoo, intent on seeing a live Apese. The zoo is inside a few square miles of walled bush in the middle of town, a calm and wooded place on a hill that looks out over the vast and chaotic Kumasi Central Market. It is most definitely the old style of zoo, with concrete pits for anything that can't jump, climb, or fly and square iron bars for anything that can. The entrance was at the apex of a V of paths, and beyond that lay a farm where feed was grown.
The place was largely deserted, but way back in one corner I found a small boy who showed me where in the cages each animal was hiding. He could imitate many of them perfectly, from parrot to lion. Obviously he was not a guest, he was the son of an employee or something. I did get to see the Apese, also known as the bush-tailed porcupine, which looked more like a spiky weasel than the massive true porcupines in the next cage.
Way at the other end of the V was an old female chimpanzee, looking bored. The boy went right up and sat next to the bars and she immediately began to groom his arm. Knowing how strong chimps are, I was wary, but this one just seemed desperate for something to do. He told me her name was something like Sister Apea. Of course I've seen all kinds of chimps but I've never had an opportunity to interact with one, and this gentle encounter was the highlight of my day.
She softly took my hand and poked around on my forearm. She had a good eye for every little piece of peeling skin, which she picked off. Her lips quivered like an old woman's as she concentrated on grooming me. I wondered at how humanlike the hands were, and felt the strength in her forearms. Turning her attention to the rest of me, she deftly picked my sunglasses out of my shirt pocket and put them on. Then the boy pointed out that I was wearing a button-up shirt and she started huffing in excitement, quickly undoing all my buttons for a quick search of my chest hair. Finding nothing, she buttoned my shirt back up.
I bought some bananas from a vendor and gave her a few, but put the last one in my pocket. She took the glasses off, obviously catching on that I wanted them back. She seemed reluctant but agreed to the trade.
The place was largely deserted, but way back in one corner I found a small boy who showed me where in the cages each animal was hiding. He could imitate many of them perfectly, from parrot to lion. Obviously he was not a guest, he was the son of an employee or something. I did get to see the Apese, also known as the bush-tailed porcupine, which looked more like a spiky weasel than the massive true porcupines in the next cage.
Way at the other end of the V was an old female chimpanzee, looking bored. The boy went right up and sat next to the bars and she immediately began to groom his arm. Knowing how strong chimps are, I was wary, but this one just seemed desperate for something to do. He told me her name was something like Sister Apea. Of course I've seen all kinds of chimps but I've never had an opportunity to interact with one, and this gentle encounter was the highlight of my day.
She softly took my hand and poked around on my forearm. She had a good eye for every little piece of peeling skin, which she picked off. Her lips quivered like an old woman's as she concentrated on grooming me. I wondered at how humanlike the hands were, and felt the strength in her forearms. Turning her attention to the rest of me, she deftly picked my sunglasses out of my shirt pocket and put them on. Then the boy pointed out that I was wearing a button-up shirt and she started huffing in excitement, quickly undoing all my buttons for a quick search of my chest hair. Finding nothing, she buttoned my shirt back up.
I bought some bananas from a vendor and gave her a few, but put the last one in my pocket. She took the glasses off, obviously catching on that I wanted them back. She seemed reluctant but agreed to the trade.
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