Lumpini Park: Pics and Stories

I was strolling with my two-year old son, enjoying the monuments and architecture in the sweltering heat along the lake of Bangkok's Lumpini park. With our backs toward the lake, the corner of my eye caught what I thought was a huge boa constrictor coming over the lake's retaining wall. We turned to learn it was not a behemoth snake, but instead, I thought at the time, a Komodo Dragon, famous for eating whole goats and celebrities' toes. Needless to say, we quickly put some distance between us and the beast. Later, while explaining our brush with death with a few locals, they explained the lizards were not Komodos but Monitors, and were indeed used to being hand fed, but with picnic food rather than actual hands.