Hungry...

This is the look of a Tiger that wanted to kill and eat me. I have no doubt. At the Panaewa Zoo, I approached the big cat enclosure. The White Tiger was sleeping. The Orange Tiger was pacing back and forth along the fence. Despite signs that said not to tease the tigers or walk back and forth, some families were standing right by the pacing cat while their little toddlers ran back and forth, screaming and laughing, while racing the cat. I'm sure it didn't put him in a very good mood. Aside from that, it was around lunchtime and I saw some other animals being fed a meal. I took some photos and then decided that the growing crowd was getting to big so I departed up the hill along the enclosure.

I stopped to see a beautiful blossom on a nearby tree. I opened my camera bag to switch lenses. As I was digging around in my little black backpack, I felt eyes upon me. I turned only to see that the Orange Tiger had also walked up the hill and was intently staring at me through the fence watching my every move. I switched lenses and took my photo. When I looked back, he hadn't moved an inch. Just staring intently. It really was unsettling. I then realized that he probably thought I had food in the bag. I figured his handlers probably brought a similar bag and opened it up to feed him chicken or beef or some type of meat. 

I nervously looked at him and said, "I'm sorry. I don't have any food for you. I know you are probably hungry." With that, he took off further up the hill to the area where you can enter the enclosure through double locked gates. He went to the gate and then turned back towards me plaintively saying with his eyes, face and body, "I am ready to eat. Here I am at the gate. Get up here. Now."

I had made it even worse talking to him about food and being hungry. He wholly expected me to come up and feed him. I sheepishly avoided looking at him and started taking photos again of the plants. I then saw him come back down along the fence. I started taking some more photos through the fence. Right after I shot this photo, he roared ferociously and jumped up attacking the fence right where I was. It startled and scared me. Little children down below screamed and suddenly all eyes were on me. Some European visitors stared at me, like, "What did you do to that Tiger?"

I was a little embarrassed to say the least. I was thinking other people were thinking, "Why does that Tiger hate that man?"

I took this photo, seconds before he tried to claw my face off, bite my throat and drag me down the hill to share his kill with Mr. White Tiger. Mean Respect. Mean Respect...