Different Breed

Different Breed Part Thirteen

**********DIFFERENT BREED PART THIRTEEN**********

Milton got through customs relatively easy. Costa Rica, even from inside of the airport, San José appeared hot and lively. Milton grabbed his rucksack and at a gift shop, bought a £1.00 Spanish Dictionary. Milton then exited the airport and approached a taxi rank. The weather was boiling hot and very bright, it was mid-afternoon, 16:15. People from all over the globe were in attendance for a holiday. A holiday was far from Milton's mind. A welcoming taxi driver waved at Milton. Milton flipped a couple of pages in his dictionary, to the "sentence" section

"Hola, mi amigo. Bienvenidos a Costa Rica, ¿en qué puedo ayudarle?" The taxi driver asked in a deep, baritone voice, as he wiped the sweat from his olive-brown coloured forehead [SPANISH: Hello, my friend. Welcome to Costa Rica, how may I help you?]

Milton froze as he looked through sentences

"¿Cómo te va... Hablas Inglés?" Milton hesitated to say [SPANISH: How are you doing? Do you speak English?]

"Un poco" The driver declared [SPANISH: A little]. Milton nodded. He took off his rucksack to look through it, and found his atlas. He looked at The San José page. His mother didn't tell him where his Dad is in Costa Rica, nor did she give a contact number. Milton decided to view some landmarks whilst he was at San José. He went downtown to look at the numerous tourist attractions that the city had to offer. Milton then came across the San José zoo. He paid the driver and exited. Luckily for him, there was a tourist line for British tourists. He got into the queue

"So is everybody ready so see the zoo?" The lady asked in a sweet-toned, Spanish voice. The queue of people responded "Yes"

"That's good. Now my name is Carmen, and I will be your zoo guide" The young woman smiled as the rays of the sun shone on her tanned-brown skin. She caressed her large, chocolate brown coloured mane, as she looked through the map of the zoo.

"Ok, let's commence" Carmen smiled as the queue followed her inside. The zoo was very exotic; the animals appeared to be in good spirits. Milton and the British tourists visited the snake and reptile house, where they came across different snakes such as the Cobra and the Rattlesnake. Milton almost forgot about why he came, as he was fascinated with the reptiles. The group also came across raccoons and crocodiles, in addition to a range of interesting tropical birds. Milton did not want to leave. As the group visited the mammals, Milton noticed something. He quickly exited the queue of British tourists and saw a beast that was a lion. The lion looked awfully moody. Milton then approached one of the zoo keepers, who was looking after the lion

"¿Hablas Inglés?" Milton asked

"Sure, what's up son?" The zookeeper asked, as he laid the rest of the food for the lionesses to eat

"What's up with that lion?" Milton asked as he stood amazed by the beast

"We're not exactly sure. We've examined him, I guess he's just moody for the sake of being moody" The zookeeper replied as he walked off to feed the monkeys.

Milton then looked the lion dead in the eye, the lion was not defensive, nor was it welcoming. It just started at Milton in a neutral state. Milton reached into the cage and caressed the lion's large, golden brown mane. The lion didn't flinch, and was just stationary.

"What's wrong, boy?" Milton asked. The lion was unusually quiet. Milton looked around, and didn't see anything unusual. Then he did a daring thing by picking up the lion's right paw. It was blatantly obvious, there was a wooden splinter logged in the paw. Milton knelt down to the lion's level and attempted to pull the splinter out. The lion growled in hesitation

"It's ok. You don't know me, but I'll help" Milton advised. It took almost a minute, but Milton managed to get the wooden splinter from the Lion's paw. The lion rose to its feet and yawned. Milton was satisfied. The lion poked its head through the cage and nuzzled Milton's face with its face. Milton looked at the sign