Carnival

            One interesting little aspect of life overseas is play time. It is nearly universal that kids like to go to rides and that eventually someone realizes they can earn money providing those rides. Matt’s time in South Asia exposed him to Ferris Wheels run by human power and a very sketchy looking “Dragon World” amusement park in Kathmandu that looked like a mix between a broken down playground and a death trap. Being single at the time, he never had the joy of participating in these amusements or taking kids to them, but times change.

            Today we have two kids who are old enough to both enjoy rides and know what they are. Michael sees a “bouncy house” as one of the greatest things in existence. Samuel, while a little less sure of the joy involved, is all for following big brother and jumping up and down. In the little village we used to call home, there was a little bouncy house that made an appearance on weekends and we enjoyed taking the boys to it a few times. Now we live in a bigger town, this means a bigger park and a bigger bouncy house, even a little carnival the boys can enjoy during the summer months.

            Now apparently America has spoiled us with expectations of “safety” in enjoyments for children. The threat of lawsuits means everything is designed primarily for safety, enjoyment or even abject terror being less important aspects of the experience. Not so in Central Asia. No, here imminent threat to life and limb is apparently part of the experience.

            Our first exposure to the little carnival of rides was at the local New Year (March 21 around here, doesn’t that make more sense than the middle of winter? It’s a better party for sure.) celebration. Their were a few little merry-go-round style rides that didn’t work yet and a train ride in place. It was crowded, but we made our best attempt to get the boys on the train through the crowd. When they finally got a seat, the train couldn’t handle the weight of the children and stopped after two little rounds. Our poor disappointed boys had to find another place to go, but we promised we would return later.

            From our house on the hill we can almost see down in the park and noticed the erection of a huge inflatable bounce house just after New Year. We made our own little trip down to the park and got to enjoy absolute joy on Michael’s face as he realized what it was and that he got to play on it. That’s the plus side. The down side is this bounce house has, as the main feature, a 30+ foot high ladder and slide. Yes, your three year old can climb 30 feet up a slope and throw himself recklessly down a slide with a crowd of other children of varying sizes to his joy and the near apoplexy of his parents. This kid has a very high pain tolerance and is remarkably good at judging his abilities but it’s a kids-only play area so our supervision was from a bit of a distance. Helps you let go a little I guess. Sam, on the other hand, was less enthusiastic. Sure, jumping is fun, but it’s best to do it within reach of mom and dad.

            Even more fun was to come. We went back to try the train once again. This time it was empty, no one around, and at about 10 cents a kid well within our ability to afford. Michael and Sam got prime seating right up front, the only kids on a mini-train with 4 cars. Now, what this means is that it has the power and speed to carry four cars worth of kids but only bore the weight of our two, collectively about 40 pounds. It showed. This train took off with a jerk, flew around the corners and jerked the boys to the outside, picked up speed on the straight sections and flew around the next corner. I’ve seen roller coasters with less g-force. Sam alternated between wonder and terror; Michael of course had a blast. Mom and Dad tried to decide if we would survive the stress of simply watching the ride.

            Oh, there is more. There are a few little carousel rides with seats that go up and down, some nice and slow, some uncomfortably fast. There is a carousel swing, little wooden seats in a circle, looks nice and fun but they swing fast enough to get the kids nearly parallel to the ground. Oh yes, carnivals in Central Asia have all sorts of fun aspects. 

            Michael still loves the little carnival and as soon it the rain lets up enough we will take the boys back for a little more fun for them and near-death experiences for their parents. The last time we went the train was a bit tamer, Sam is getting a little more courageous in exploring the easier parts of the bounce house, and mom and dad are handling the experience a bit better. I am sure the danger in my head is greatly exaggerated from reality, and it’s hard to find good entertainment around here, so to the park we go, hopefully to all return in one piece. 

Riding the train of death.

They seem pretty calm, this was when it was slowed down a bit.