Months ago, on the way to work early in the morning I saw a big bird flying above across the street. It did look like the Hornbill and I quickly thought it should be an Oriental Pied Hornbill. But then, a Hornbill in HCMC? No way, that big bird won't escape the hunters here, must be something else, but what can it be? I kept on thinking and forget about that a few days after, till I saw a post on FB about that bird, seen in War Museum with his nest, in HCMC. It recalled the bird I saw months ago and I think that is, that was the Hornbill.
The next day, I went to the War Museum with my Fujifilm which I rarely use because I preferred my Cannon and Sony, before they were stolen (well, I forgot in a taxi), sigh.
I was standing inside the yard of the Museum, drinking a can of juice, and wait patiently. Haven't finished the juice yet, I saw the Coppersmith Barbet feeding the chicks very high up, too high to get a decent photo. While busy watching the Barbet, then I saw a big shape of bird fly over, and landed just behind me, I quickly turned my head and I saw it, the Hornbill, but it flew to the other side of the street right after that. I quickly walked out of the Museum yard and saw Long, the guy who posted first about this Hornbill and joined him to the other side of the street to try to get some photos of this Hornbill.
Chatting with the lady who sells tea and coffee at the pavement there, I was very sad to find out that the tree where the bird nested before was cut, and they took the chicks away. Now the hunters are still trying to hunt them (she saw a pair) but they are not successful yet. I wish that the hunters will never be successful and the Hornbill couple will have their freedom, even in busy noisy Saigon.
Here are some photos taken by my Fujifilm, thanks Long to show me some tricks, learn something new today with my camera :)
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| There are so many of them in Saigon, running on electric cables, so cute and so fast |
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| Try to get a portrait of this Xe Om driver with my Fuji Film, playing with it before my trip to Cambodia, hope I will manage to take some decent photos in that trip |
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| What a coincidence, a heart-shape branch on a Valentines' Day :) |
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| And the shy moon |
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| And the target of this afternoon, the Oriental Pied Hornbill |
