A change in the weather brought a day or so of rain and lightening to central Thailand last week. In stark contrast to the snow back in Blight we’ve enjoyed countless hot sticky days of late so much so that I had almost forgotten what rain is.
Days before the skys opened armies of knowing ants from the surrounding area fled their homes to avoid drowing before the downpour. Watching the lines of ants marching across the house is quite the sight, until they stop for a meal with a detour past my biscuit collection – that’ll teach me for being too lazy to move it back the cupboard.
With the changing weather the semi open-plan design of Thai houses makes them refuge for all sorts of creatures seeking refuge from the elements.
One visit to the kitchen in the middle of the night (as standard with The Little One) I felt something turning in shock to see a giant cockroach making fast progress up my leg.
Cue me running away to get a Big Shoe to exterminate the darn thing. Of course when I got back it was nowhere to be seen.
I was comparatively fortunate, the Missus’ sister got back from a late night in town to be greeted by a poisonous snake in the kitchen only to see it again next morning lying near a collection of jars.
I know have a few simple rules I follow when in the house at night:
- Always switch on all of the lights
- Never go barefooted
- Fait du attention at all times – not easy when you’ve just woken up at 2 am
The snake is no more after being spotted and 'desposed of' by someone-far-braver-than-me although I can proudly say I got rid of three (yes, three) cockroaches from the kitchen.
[No frogs were harmed in this story, or any others for that matter]
Now that the weather has returned to its usual stickiness so it is business as usual although I will point out that resident creatures include lizards, frogs, rats (in the garden thankfully), a family of birds nested in the roof and, from time to time, a gecko...a world away from my old place in Southfields.
4 comments:
If you are still alive Johnny then I'm glad you made it through another night. A good spray of ant killer down a few holes should sort out the biscuit munchers and some tap dancing lessons the cockroaches. The geckos are good for the mozzies but leave your plates upside down unless you like eating crap. The snakes scare the hell out of me so try tap dancing very quickly in the opposite direction. The frogs and rats try a nine iron with a three quarter swing. As the song kind of says...I hope you make it through the night.
Yep not sure I could cope with that... although I have built up a strange interst in the spiders that live in Autralian front gardens.
Jon, its funny how the ants always know and make for your home.
In fact of all the pesky creatures here-except snakes-I hate ants the most, they just seem able to get anywhere.
No rain here yet, in fact we are crying out for it.
Sound advice Martyn although I will go easy on the tap - not really my thing!
I'm still fascinated by all the exotic wildlife here but agree with you Mike, ants are the scourge of my existence. I'd class them as a bigger irritant than mosquitoes.
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