LOPBURI, Thailand – The dawn rouses the long-tailed macaques that live atop the Wat Prang Sam Yot, and soon monkeys are starting to scamper down the ancient Hindu temple to begin their daily search for food and fun.
What begins slowly with only a few of the animals turns into a stampede racing through the traffic of Lopburi much like a gang of delinquents. Motorists must swerve or brake hard to avoid hitting them.
Macaques searching for unguarded edibles make forays to hotels and other businesses, drawing swats and curses from shopkeepers.
But not everyone considers the monkeys a nuisance. To many, their presence is considered good fortune for Lopburi, and every year this city about 90 miles north of Bangkok honors the mischievous creatures with a grand feast of watermelons, pineapples and a giant cake.
Looking on during a day trip out of Bangkok, English tourist Carly Swallow watches amazed as a band of chattering monkeys swings along power lines and heads toward the railroads tracks. “This is the craziest place,” she says.
The macaques are on their way to a swatch of sidewalk where “cyclo” drivers park their pedal-powered taxis. There, Panee Thanboosilp is laying out a meal of raw vegetables and fruit for the critters. It’s a job the elderly woman – she’s not sure if she’s 68 or 69 – has been doing for the city the past 12 years.
“Feeding the monkeys is fun,” she says, dumping a basket of cucumbers and fruit on the ground. Instantly, howls and squeals begin as older macaques squabble with younger ones for the choice pieces.
Restaurant owner Noppadon Oh looks on with a smile. For him the monkeys mean money – the annual celebration draws thousands of Thai and foreign tourists. “They make business double during the festival,” he says.
But Noppadon adds that the monkeys aren’t all fun. They sometimes steal women’s purses and attack passers-by.
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