Jurassic Park: Grant's Daughter

8: "I happen to be a vegetarian"

Two modified Ford Explorers leap up out of an underground garage beneath the visitor's center. They move quietly, with a faint electronic hum, and straddle a partially buried metal rail is the middle of the road. They pull to a stop where we are gathered. Ellie and i are with Lex and Tim introducing ourselves.

"Hi, I'm Ellie and this is Lily" Ellie introduced us with a warm smile.

"Hello, I'm Lex and this is Tim" lex said.

"Is it true, your Dr Grant's kid?" Tim asked excitedly.

"Yes it is." I smiled. We seperate from each other and sat in the cars apart from Tim and Ellie. I sat with Lex in the front jeep.

"It's interactive CD-ROM. Look, see - you just touch the right part of the screen and it talks about whatever you want." Lex said to herself.

"So how old are you?" Lex asked me, trying to start a conversation.

"I'm 14, how about you?" I asked.

"I'm 12 and Tim is 9." I nodded.

John turns and head back towards the Visitor's Center. A mechanical voice intones.

"Two to four passengers to a car, please. Children under ten must be accompanied by an adult."

Dad comes to our car, opens the rear door, and holds it for Tim, who climbs in the back seat, rattling on and on.

"Then I head about this thing in OMNI? About the meteor making all this heat that made a bunch of diamond dust? And that changed the weather and they died because of the weather? Then my teacher told me about this other book by a guy named Bakker? And he said the dinosaurs died of a bunch of diseases." SLAM! Dad closed the car door on Tim.

"Hey" Tim said smiling at me. I have him a little wave.

"Do you go school?" Tim asked me.

"No, I just moved here. I will go though. Do you?" I asked.

"Yeah, we both go to the same school. I'm in 4th grade and Lex is in 7th." I nodded. With a loud chunk, the explorers forward along the electrical pathway. Donald is with us and Dad, Ellie, and Ian are in the second vehicle. We pass through two enormous, primitive gates, torches blazing on either side.

The Explorer's speakers blare with fanfare of trumpets, and the interior video screen flashes "Welcome to Jurassic Park." A familiar voice comes over the speaker:

"Welcome to Jurassic Park. You are now entering the lost world of the prehistoric past, a world where creatures long gone from the face of the earth, which you are privileged to see for the first time."

The fences and the retaining walls are covered with greenery and growth, to heighten the illusion of moving through a jungle.

"The accident took place in a restricted area. It would not have been available to the public access. So how can the safety of the public be called into question?" Donald asked. The cars come to the top of a low rise, where a break in the foliage gives them a view down a sloping field that is broken by a river. The tour voice continues.

"To the right, you will see a herd of the first dinosaurs on our tour, called Dilophosaurus." Yes! I grin in excitement. Tim, Lex and I slam up against the windows, to get a look.

"The safety. That's the problem I had to answer." Donald carries on talking.
Lex shushes him, annoyed.

"I can't see." Tim moans. There are a lot of beautiful plants, but no sign of a herd of anything. The tour voice continues anyway.

"One of the earliest carnivores, we now know Dilophosaurus is actually poisonous, spitting its venom at its prey, causing blindness and eventually paralysis, allowing the carnivore to eat at its leisure. This makes Dilophosaurus a beautiful, but deadly addition to Jurassic Park."
Corny scary music plays over the speaker.

"There's nothing there!" Tim complains. I nod in agreement, where are the fricking dinosaurs?

We drive along a high ridge and stop at the edge of the large, open plain that is separated from the road by a fifteen- foot fence, clearly marked with "DANGER!" signs and ominous-looking electrical post. We are all pressed forward against the windows eyes wide, waiting for my favourite dinosaur, Tyrannosaurus Rex. Out in the middle of the field, a small cage rises up into view, lifted on hydraulics from underground. The cage bars slide down, leaving the cage's occupant standing alone in the middle of the field. It's a goat, one leg chained to a stake. It looks around, confused, and bleats plaintively.

"What's going to happen to the goat?" I asked.

"He's going to eat the goat?!" Lex widened her eyes at the thought.

"Excellent." Tim grins.

"What's the matter, kid, you never had lamb chops?" Donald asked lex.

"I happen to be a vegetarian." Lex smiled. I can't tear my eyes away, from the poor thing. Finally, the goat lays down. I sit back down, disappointed again, as the cars pull forward to continue the tour.