Ocean Adventure Animals Entertain Visitors at Subic Bay

At the Ocean Adventure marine park in Subic Bay in Olongapo City in the Philippines, animals like the trained and talented sea lion above never fail to entertain visitors. This sea lion show (top) gives a message of conservation to visitors by emphasizing to the audience the importance of recycling and proper disposal of trash which can be harmful to animals, especially those that live in the sea.

Discarded nets, for example, only become death traps for mammals like dolphins and other whales when they become hopelessly entangled and fail to surface to breath. The result is that they drown in the very element that they live in. For those of you who are unaware, dolphins breath air through their blowhole. The can hold their breath for a long time underwater, but they still need to go the surface to breath.

The small photograph (left) shows one of the Ocean Adventure dolphins performing for students and their parents on an educational field trip. The fish fed to the dolphins every time they perform is one way to keep them satisfied and make sure they are well rewarded for a job well done. Visitors can have their photos taken with the seal lions and dolphins at very affordable rates.

Schleich Sea Lion Cub Toy Figure

Aetas Perform Native Dance at Zoobic Safari in Olongapo

These are Aeta performers (top) doing their native war dance with their hunting bows and arrows. Usually meant for hunting small animals, these weapons are nevertheless effective and dangerous. Here, they are merely props for a cultural presentation meant for entertainment.

After the eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, many Aetas were displaced from where they used to live away from the cities and the old way of life that they've known for so long suddenly vanished. Gone are the old days when they're ancestors lived at peace in the forests. These days, they're now part of mainstream society and work for a living just like other Filipinos.

The Aetas played a vital role in the training of American soldiers in jungle survival when the Subic Base was still an American enclave. Now, they still take people on tours and do demonstrations on how to make fire and cook using nothing but a machete and bamboo (above, left). Knowing what they know, it's really easy to be comfortable in the forest and live in it for days, months, even years! It's interesting to know that an environment that may be seen as hostile by many is actually a very homely place where everything you need to survive is provided. The Aetas have known this for a long time. Let's hope their knowledge and culture is not lost as their society changes.

The black and white classic photo (below, left) is from The Philippine Islands, by John Foreman; from the Gutenberg ebook files.

Living with the Pinatubo Aetas: A Peace Corps Philippines Journal

Hamsters Are Furball Pillows

Hamsters are strange rodents. In their cages in pet stores in Metro Manila, they are often seen clumping together in a corner among the wood shavings. They'd usually be lying on top of one another either curled up or on their backs. Apart from eating peeing, pooing, and scratching, sleeping is practically all they do day in and day out and still we humans love to watch them. It's why they are so popular.

Hamsters really don't do anything interesting, but some people like it that way. Take one look at these pictures of hamsters for sale at a pet shop in Metro Manila and a lot of you would love them... or hate them.

Plush Brushy Hamster 5"