The Red Monastery - a little surprise

Right when we bought the tickets and entered the Red Monastery, we saw a few birds of prey: owls, ravens... Please, don't make me name them, cause I suck at that. But if you're an expert or at least know the names of these beautiful birds, feel free to share those names with me. It's always good to learn.

We went a little bit closer to them, to look at them and show them to the kids. Not every day a child gest a chance to stand close to wild birds.

We found out, that there are two shows organised each day (I think that was) and we have just missed one. The other one was to start in two hours (or so). We were sad cause we figured we would not spend that much time in the monastery. And it was so hot that we didn't really feel like waiting.

However, when we finally saw everything there was to see, there was only about 20 minutes left till the next show. So we waited. And we were not disappointed.

The birds were flying right over our heads. And if you were slow at lowering your head, you could get hit. And these birds are so smart. They knew which cup to pick up to find a little something hidden under it.

One of the birds didn't really want to take part in the show. Didn't want to fly. The guys were trying to convince it, but there was no way of doing it. It's predator was flying up in the sky, so it was just too scared. So they left the bird alone.

The guys were telling the stories of the birds, talking about them, about their characteristics. But that was only in Slovakian. So even though we could understand bits and pieces, there was no way to get all the information for me.

The show was free of charge. And you could take a picture holding the birds yourself. Also free of charge. They were collecting voluntary donations, though. But that was up to us whether we wanted to pitch in or not.

It all lasted for about half an hour. And there were just two shows (I don't like this word, but can't think of a better one right now), cause it was already exhausting for the birds. And, as it seemed, they guys were trying to get good care of them. I don't know if the birds were harmed in any way, nor do I know how they came to live in captivity. We did not intend to attend such a show in the first place, cause we didn't know it was happening. At least that was not the reason why we visited the monastery itself.

I loved these yellow eyes.