Russell Crowe family. Love triangle
The last Sunday of November is a holiday in the monkey city of Lopburi, small town, in central Thailand, 150 km north of Bangkok. The world's wildest dinner party celebrates the long-tailed macaques, who have integrated themselves into the local community despite their pickpocketing and restless nature.
Monkeybusiness
To appreciate the meaning of this festive banquet, it is necessary to understand the role monkeys play in the life of Lopburi. Macaques are an integral part of the community, have complete freedom in the city, enter any public space, and use the roads like any other city resident. Despite the theft from local residents and tourists, the insidious and destructive nature of the tailed scoundrels, the townspeople believe that monkeys bring good luck and wealth (according to at least, in the form of those baht that tourists bring).
The tradition of worshiping monkeys dates back to the divine monkey Hanuman and his army of monkeys, who saved Sita, the wife of Lord Rama, from the clutches of a demon. Since then, Thais have revere monkeys as descendants of the hero god and treat these annoying creatures with respect. Among those who worship monkeys is the owner of the Lopburi Inn. A large monkey statue has been seen at the entrance to the hotel for many years. Once the statue was installed, business began to boom. Attributing this success to the monkeys, he decided to thank them and cover festive table. The first banquet took place in 1989, and it has traditionally happened every year since then.
The holiday begins at 10 am, right at the monkeys’ house, among the overgrown ruins of an ancient temple. Phra Prang Sam Yot Temple is not difficult to find; it is located on Vichayen Road, 200 meters from the train station. The preamble to the banquet consists of musical performances and monkey dances (scenes of which you may have seen in the film Baraka, directed by Ron Fricke). After the Governor of Lopburi's speech, the monkeys are invited to a buffet.
Invitations to the banquet—cashew nuts—are sent out to the tailed guests while the chefs prepare a feast of sweet rice, tropical fruit salad frozen in ice cubes, and an egg yolk dessert known as thong yod. At first, the monkeys behave surprisingly well and even timidly, feeling the gaze of the spectators who have gathered to see what they are eating at long tables wrapped in red cloth.
Frukbattle
Eventually, the lunch monkeys get used to the curiosity of the spectators, and begin to dance on the tables, throw soda at each other, throw pudding and make a lot of noise. The lavish feast soon disappears, mostly into the bellies of the satisfied monkeys, but is enough and simply falls to the ground. It all ends with an afternoon nap and swinging from the branches of the surrounding trees.
The monkey buffet may seem like a bit of an odd celebration, but it is simple, pure, and speaks to a central aspect of Thai culture. The importance of monkeys throughout Thai history and the fact that they can co-exist alongside humans cannot be overstated. In monkeys we see an exaggerated reflection of ourselves, and it reminds us that no matter how different we are, tolerance brings good luck to everyone.
Explore the ruins. Phra Prang Sam Yot Temple will steal your attention for the whole day. The temple was built by Khmer architects, like the more famous Angkor Wat complex in Cambodia. This style is characterized by distinctive Khmer details, bas-reliefs and blind doors and windows. Keep a few things in mind when it comes to talking to monkeys: Don't look them directly in the eye, they perceive it as a challenge or threat (and may attack). Don't carry smuggled food in your bag or pockets, they will still find out. Be supportive and remain relaxed. Animals are very sensitive to emotions, a self-defense stick costs 20 baht, try not to use it. Monkeys may steal your things, but don't forget that you are a guest at their dinner. Watch the movie Baraka, it will set you up for the trip and prepare you for some of the things you may encounter.
Practical questions
Flight to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport. Lopburi is a 3 hour train ride from Bangkok, via Ayutthaya. Celebrations are centered at Prang Sam Yot, a Khmer temple north of railway station. There are several affordable hotels and hostels in Lopburi. Try Noom Guesthouse - traditional bungalows, simple but comfortable.
Taliand is the birthplace of unusual traditions and holidays. One of them is a monkey banquet. Once a year, 600 macaques are invited to dinner - on a table with a diameter of 7 meters, 2 tons of food await them. This is how the residents of the city of Lopburi thank the monkeys for victories in past wars.
According to legend, God Rama gave the land on which the city of Lopburi is now located to his friend Hanuman, the Monkey King. It was with long-tailed macaques that Hanuman was victorious in wars against his enemies. Now in Lapburi, monkeys are a living landmark of the city. They attract tourists from all over the world to this town.
As a sign of gratitude for victories in wars in the past and attracting tourists in the present, the residents of this city annually hold a monkey banquet. On the last Sunday of November, they set a table with a diameter of 7 meters with 2 tons of food. In the vegetarian menu, macaques are offered bananas and other fruits, vegetables, rice, and cola. Once upon a time, a monkey banquet consisted of several small tables with food. However, not all human ancestors remained happy - 5 out of 6 monkeys could not eat well due to enormous competition for food.
In front of tourists, the monkeys approach the food modestly. A little later, the macaques loosen up and greedily devour everything that is edible. They happily wash down their food with cola from iron cans. The hungriest monkeys chase those who managed to get a huge piece of melon or other food. And the most well-fed monkeys, out of happiness, begin to make love right on the dining table, take pictures on the heads of tourists and throw food and empty cans at them. But people are ready for this behavior of macaques.
| visas | photo The Monkey Buffet festival takes place on November 25 at the Phra Prang Sam Yot temple in Lopburi, north of the capital of Thailand - Bangkok. On the territory of the Khmer shrine they cover one big table, or one huge plate of food, drink and fruit for the local monkeys who live here in a huge number- more than 2000 individuals. The monkey is considered a sacred animal in these parts. Local population and the monks thank the monkeys who attract tourists here. Long-tailed monkeys are especially popular. And tourists believe that the monkey will bring them good luck in business. The organizer of the banquet is the owner of the Lopburi Inn hotel.
A monkey is an unpredictable creature. If at first everything goes orderly and nobly - the sacred animals eat the food and wash it down with carbonated water from cans, then when they are full, they begin to pay attention to the people around this feast. Tourists are happy to attend such an unusual event and therefore quite a lot of people gather. The monkeys begin to throw fruit and empty cans at the spectators, jump on people and grab their hair, and take away bags and cameras. But everything is allowed to them and no one is offended, because monkeys are the main army of Hanuman’s army.
Despite the fact that Thailand is a Buddhist country, there are strong influence Hinduism. Local residents have a legend that their city was founded by Hanuman, the king of monkeys, the hero of the ancient Indian epic “Ramayana”. To the Monkey King for good service God Rama gave land in these places. The owner of the Lopburi Inn not only hosts a dinner party, but also stages a play based on the ancient Indian epic "Ramayana", where the main actors are the monkeys who live next to the temple.
Marina Filippova
Thailand is the birthplace of unusual traditions and holidays. One of them is a monkey banquet. Once a year, 600 macaques are invited to dinner - on a table with a diameter of 7 meters, 2 tons of food await them. This is how the residents of the city of Lopburi thank the monkeys for victories in past wars.
According to legend, God Rama gave the land on which the city of Lopburi is now located to his friend Hanuman, the Monkey King. It was with long-tailed macaques that Hanuman was victorious in wars against his enemies. Now in Lapburi, monkeys are a living landmark of the city. They attract tourists from all over the world to this town.
As a sign of gratitude for victories in wars in the past and attracting tourists in the present, the residents of this city annually hold a monkey banquet. On the last Sunday of November, they set a table with a diameter of 7 meters with 2 tons of food. In the vegetarian menu, macaques are offered bananas and other fruits, vegetables, rice, and cola. Once upon a time, a monkey banquet consisted of several small tables with food. However, not all human ancestors remained happy - 5 out of 6 monkeys could not eat well due to huge competition for food.
In front of tourists, the monkeys approach the food modestly. A little later, the macaques loosen up and greedily devour everything that is edible. They happily wash down their food with cola from iron cans. The hungriest monkeys chase those who managed to get a huge piece of melon or other food. And the most well-fed monkeys, out of happiness, begin to make love right on the dining table, take pictures on the heads of tourists and throw food and empty cans at them. But people are ready for this behavior of macaques.
Russell Crowe was born in April 1964, far from the Hollywood hills - in the capital of New Zealand, Wellington. The boy's parents Alex and Jocelyn are emigrants Scottish origin, worked in the show industry and often moved from place to place. When the baby reached the age of four, the family moved to Australian mainland and settled in Sydney. The lively boy grew up and explored the world under the tutelage of his older brother Terry.
Striving for the goal
The future world celebrity received her first stage experience in early age: while working on one of the television projects, one of the producers close to the family entrusted five-year-old Russell with a cameo role.
A decade later the family returned to New Zealand and organized a business by opening a small restaurant with friends. “The Flying Jug” (that was the name of the establishment) brought in more than modest income and 14-year-old Russell realized that he needed to earn a living himself, he left his studies and helped his father. His main hobby is rock and the band he organized called Russ Le Roc. The group was popular and, after rebranding, existed until 2005, and the young musician, who wrote several songs for the repertoire, continued musical career solo. Many years later, he spoke, not without a bit of irony, about his early work.
The young man did not succeed in becoming a rock idol; he often had to earn extra money by washing dishes in restaurants, working as a waiter, and even keeping company with old people, playing bingo with them for money.
Time passed, but life still did not get better, his peers entered the prestigious universities, began their career... Many years later, Russell will say that he was simply incredibly lucky when he received an invitation to take part in the show. Having taken part in more than 400 productions, he became, if not popular, then quite a recognizable showman. Having felt the taste of success, the actor became a regular at various acting castings and starred in several Australian films, and was even awarded several awards established on this continent.
But world fame followed on his heels: Sharon Stone saw him in one of the roles, who at that moment was launching a project in which she performed in three roles simultaneously: as a co-producer, performer leading role and the director of the film. She invited Crowe to play the leading male role in the western The Quick and the Dead (1995), and even delayed the start of filming due to the actor's busy schedule. Despite the fact that the film was received lukewarm by the public and critics, Russell's career began to gain momentum, conquering the Hollywood Hills, which, as you know, the whole world is staring at.
In the next film with his participation, Crowe's partner was Denzel Washington, and the music of his band was used as the soundtrack.
He then starred in one of the main roles in the film, which became a two-time Oscar winner and received a number of other prestigious prizes. The action of the film “Los Angeles Confidential”, based on the novel of the same name by James Ellroy, took place in the 50s of the last century, so the actor had to review several films of that time in order to get used to the era and spend certain time on real duty with police officers.
Filming the film “The Insider,” where Al Pacino himself acted as Russell’s partner, required more big casualties, because slim and fit young man I had to play a fat man who had passed his half-century anniversary. As a result, 23 extra pounds and the charismatic tandem allowed the film to receive 7 Oscar nominations, 5 Golden Globe nominations, one each from the Screen Actors Guild and the British Film Academy, but, unfortunately, none of them were realized.
The year two thousand was significant for Crowe not only as the beginning of a new century, but also as a significant leap in his film career. The large-scale historical epic “Gladiator,” where the actor starred in the title role, brought him the long-awaited golden statuette of the American Film Academy for Best Actor. At the 2001 Oscars, the film received seven nominations, five of which were rightfully given to it.
A series of blockbusters followed, in which Russell Crowe starred - the thriller, where his partner was Meg Ryan, "Proof of Life" (2000), the drama "A Beautiful Mind" (2001, 4 Oscars and a Golden Globe for Best Actor) , adventure film “Master of the Seas” (2003, 8 nominations and 2 Academy Awards), sports drama “Knockdown” (2005, 3 Oscar nominations, including for Best Actor).
The adventure drama Robin Hood, directed by Ridley Scott in 2010 and starring Russell, grossed more than $300 million at the box office. The actor was almost the only one who did not have to take riding lessons - practice on his own ranch bore fruit.
The actor is so talented and multifaceted that he manages to create any image - from Noah in the film adaptation of the same name biblical story(2015), to the genius and madness of the mathematics professor in A Beautiful Mind. Crowe films a lot and fruitfully, each of his work arouses genuine audience interest.
Russell Crowe: love is not a crime
Russell Crowe's hot temper periodically becomes the cause of scandals and even fights, however, as his partners testify, working with him film set it was nice and comfortable.
The actor is called a Hollywood heartthrob, with numerous novels attributed to him. The list of women he conquered and left behind includes Jodie Foster, Salma Hayek, Vona Ryder, Peta Wilson and others. Russell himself states that the death of a cow on his ranch touches more than parting with another beauty.
The actor’s personal life became the subject of widespread discussion for the first time after scandalous romance with Meg Ryan. According to some reports, it was the connection with Russell during the filming of the film “Proof of Life” that caused the breakup with her husband Denis Quaid. In one of the interviews, the actor, who does not like to remember this episode of his life, admitted that he was in love with Meg, and does not consider love a crime, accusations of which fell on him as soon as the information became public. But this relationship did not have a serious continuation and seven months later they broke up.
His marriage to Australian actress and singer Danielle Spencer, concluded in 2003, did not last long, and was dissolved nine years later in 2012. During this time, the couple had two boys, Charles and Tennyson. According to rumors, the reason for the divorce was another affair between the actor and the widow of his friend, writer and director of the Australian Zoo, Terri Irwin. It almost came to a wedding, but at the end of 2016 the couple broke up.
Recent media reports include the name of Russell's longtime girlfriend, 48-year-old King Kong star Naomi Watts. After divorcing her husband, she needed the help of a friend more than ever, and gossips they claim that things broke out between the actors whirlwind romance, rumors about which they are in no hurry to either confirm or deny.
His stormy personal life has not affected the actor’s employment; he is mastering the path of directing and producing. According to him, he absolutely does not care about the image and star status, the main thing for him is his work.