Three Narnians Went to the Zoo
Avilon Zoo Roadtrip Summons: December 9, 2006 :: Narnian Scribe: R.E. de Leon
id you hear the story about the three Narnian royals who went to the zoo?
No, it's not a joke. These were real live Narnians who visited the zoo last December. Specifically, the three highest ranking officers of The Philippine Order of Narnians (TPON) - TPON founder and High King RE de Leon, King of Externals Francis Pasion, and Queen of the Treasury Crissy Montes - scouted out Avilon Zoo in Montalban, Rizal earlier this December.
Just as a visual artist works with palettes, a writer works with themes, and while we are often unaware of them, it is these themes, and the way they are crafted into the writer’s work, that give them their power. The following are some of the themes TPON members noted in Lewis’ writings.
Why Avilon Zoo?
That, of course, begs the question: what on earth were the three doing there? Is it at all connected to Narnia being a land supposedly full of talking animals, and is ruled by the king of beasts - a Lion named Aslan?
Not really.
TPON holds regular get-togethers called summons, and sometimes these summons are designed around specific activities. Ideas for these 'special activity' summons are brought up on the TPON message board, and one of the upcoming ideas for a summons was a trip to Avilon Zoo.
(Other summons suggestions have included a horse-riding summons, an astronomy summons, and even a sword fighting summons. To find out what and when the next summons is, join the TPON mailing list)
Since getting there would be a bit more difficult than a typical TPON summons, the three officers served as an advanced party.
Rare Animals and Good Management
After paying an entrance fee of Php 208 each, the three paid an additional Php 350 to to hire a tour guide who had a thorough understanding of the animals at the zoo. Avilon Zoo apparently requires their tour guides to be Bachelor's Degree Holders. Since TPON scheduled its visit on a Saturday, it took a wait before a guide could be available; they were busy herding large groups of school children through the zoo's exhibits.
One of the Narnians, currently working on a series of stories that requires a good knowledge of indigenous Philippine animals, kept quizzing the guide about animal behavior, especially the timing and sound of the birdcalls. He was quite gratified to note that the guide was able to respond to his queries reasonably well.
The zoo's collection of birds was particularly impressive, and is what the zoo was named Avilon. (Avilon takes its name partly from the latin Aves) One of the Narnians, familiar with a number of raptor centers other than Avilon, noted that Avilon's seemed to be the healthiest birds of prey he had seen thus far.
But of course, the Narnians were most interested in the large cats, of which the Mountain Lion, Tiger, Panther, and Leopard were just beyond an arm's length away from visitors.
Also, they were particularly exhilarated by the chance to feed the eight foot long Arupaima fish, have pictures taken holding an albino python, and (secretly) be allowed to walk right into the tortoise enclosure.
The only disappointment was that a good number of animals were nocturnal and thus could not be seen properly if at all. While a lioness lounged in the sun, its mate was hidden away in its den. And the bobcat and lynx were barely visible at all.
Some of the other more unusual specimens included a very rare type of malaysian tapir, a tree kangaroo, a tarsier, a number of rare marmosets, armadillos, porcupines, and a flock of 29 inches tall victoria crown pigeons.
The Narnians were also particularly fascinated by the Basilisk lizards that were the last animal they saw at the zoo - the animal, as if to give the visitors one last thing to be excited about before leaving, walked on water.
Overall, it was the zoo's management that most impressed the visitors. Carefully designed enclosures allowed visitors to come up close, and it was obvious that the animals were being given excellent veterinary care. The signs near each enclosure were informative and the tour guides augmented the information with colorful anecdotes about the particular animal in each cage.
Roughly half of the 500 species in Avilon zoo, are indigenous to Philippines.
A second trip to Avilon Zoo, this time including more members of TPON, is scheduled for early next year.