Tourists Gather For 17th Annual Monkey Banquet

[matcom]

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LOPBURI, Thailand -- These were no party animals: Almost all the guests were too frightened to make an appearance, and the others ate and ran.

That didn't matter to the tourists who converged in Lopburi on Sunday to watch monkeys eat piles of fruits and vegetables during the 17th annual monkey banquet.

The party was thrown by local hotelier Yongyuth Kitwatananuson, who is thankful for the business the monkeys bring his city, 70 miles north of Bangkok.

The long-tailed macaques are regarded as disciples of Chao Pho Prakarn, a four-armed deity whose likeness is enshrined in the heart of town.

With such status, the monkeys are given free rein. They can be seen dropping peanut shells on street vendors, relieving themselves on curious onlookers and making merry on the electrical wires they use as footpaths. A sign at a local park says, "Beware of monkeys snatching your purse."

But Sunday's festival was a bust. The crowds and noise scared the monkeys off -- except for one or two dozen brave ones who stuffed themselves, leaving a terrible mess behind.

http://www.wftv.com/irresistible/5417640/detail.html