Kopi Luwak

Today's news presented a couple of interesting articles. President Susilo Bambang YUDHOYONO of Indonesia is making a state visit to Australia. He, like a recent Phillipine President, is a bit of a crooner and Prime Minister Rudd presented him with an Australian electric guitar. BangBang reciprocated by giving the PM some Kopi Luwak (civet predigested coffee beans). Read about them here.

How on earth did he get them through quarantine? The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, Sir Michael Somari had to run the gauntlet when he last made a state visit to Australia and had to remove his sandals at Brisbane airport. I guess Customs thought there might have been a bomb in the soles? The Indonesian population would be a bit cranky with Australia if he was subjected to any Customs scrutiny and they might launch a Jihad.

Another story was about the birth of a baby elephant at Toronga Park Zoo in Sydney. TV footage showed zoo keepers tending the baby whilst mother looked on. The babe was thought to be still -born and the keepers were most surprised when it turned out..literally, to be alive and well. It reminded me of a cow we had when I was manager of Bainyik Vocational Centre in Papua New Guinea. Our cow was the nicest animal and let all the students cuddle her. We had her mated with a Brahman bull and watched as she approached delivery of a calf. One day I was driving past the cow paddock and noticed a newborn calf. Jeep skidded to a halt and I jumped out and climbed through the barb wire fence to congratulate mum. She wasn't elephant-like and put the head down and butted me into the barbed wire fence. Shocked and scratched I made a hasty retreat. I wouldn't fiddle with a newborn elephant within trunk distance from her mum!