• Welcome to Avian Avenue! To view our forum with less advertisments please register with us.
    Memberships are free and it will just take a moment. Click here

Hi from Shanlung, Tinkerbell & Riamfada

shanlung

Sprinting down the street
Avenue Veteran
Joined
10/17/09
Messages
372
Real Name
shanlung
Hi folks,

I am from the old board.


For those who are new here and do not know of Tinkerbell or me, first
take a look at these collection of photographs.





From mountain tops where we can see for ever



and valleys dotted with hotsprings between those mountains



unequal race at pavilion beyond Dragon Eye



And to seashores such as this in Green Island off Taiwan, another magical nook of paradise that much of the whole world do not know.


This is a love story of me and my Tinkerbell, a free flying Congo African Grey parrot CAG , as we roamed about the mountains and forests and cities of Taiwan. She loves to go riding with me on the motorbike as she sit on a perch on the handle bar.

Full details of that and more are in that webpage, together with URLs to the relevant Webshots folders of hundreds of photos. Without those photos, what I wrote will never be believed

As with all love story, it is happy and sad.

You have a window into life with a flighted bird, and the training that must be done together with your
bird. Enough perhaps for you to decide that you can do the same.

Each refresh of Tinkerbell main URL below will show more photos taken at random

http://www.geocities.com/shanlung9

I am now living in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman in the Middle East. A few months ago, a rescued CAG was given over to my care. I called her Riamfada. Riamfada was a hauntingly beautiful magical entity of David Gemmell, the finest fantasy writer in the world. A name befitting to this grey.


She came to me as a frightened ball of grey and with wings asymmetrically clipped.

Her story started here

October, 2008 - shanlung

Then we became good friends. and she got to understand her wings better.






Riamfada flying up to me on sand dune in Seifa beach in stiff cross winds.



Story in

shanlung: Oman won 19th Gulf Cup//Riamfada outing to Yiti/Seifa beaches // Katie's first 'present' to us




Riamfada flying to me above rampart of Nakhal castle
story in
shanlung: 12 March Nakhal Fort/hotsprings

You can live with a flying parrot at home.
That is the legacy that Tinkerbell will like you to have




 

waterfaller1

Ripping up the road
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
26,782
Real Name
carole
Welcome Shanlung. Your story reads like a fairy tale, how wonderful and delightful!:hug8:
 

Cydney

Rollerblading along the road
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
1,925
Location
Ohio
Real Name
Cydney
I can't get enough of your story. :) I love seeing pictures of Tinkerbell and Riamfada. Always bring a smile to my face!
 

Cynthia & Percy

cockatoo mania
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avian Angel
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
1,000,000
Location
USA bound
Real Name
cynthia
thanks for sharing such a wonderful story I always enjoy your posts
 

Anne & Gang

Riding the Skies
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Avian Angel
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
1,000,000
Location
Caledon, Ontario, Canada
Real Name
Anne
a true life fairy tale which has me weeping from joy every time I read it.
 

suncoast

Cruising the avenue
Celebirdy of the Month
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
13,464
Location
Naples Florida
Real Name
Ginger
Welcome,

I can't believe I never read your story. What beautiful birds you have.

Ginger
 

shanlung

Sprinting down the street
Avenue Veteran
Joined
10/17/09
Messages
372
Real Name
shanlung
My old friends,

Thank you. I am rebuilding my old thread. So that new folks can have the background that you all already knew of me. You knew that in 'real time' and the 'ups' and 'downs' as and when it occurred.

Unlike new folks like Ginger, you saw stuff like that nightmare in Bantienyen in real time and all its pain.

And Ginger, we have a long saga, and a road that you can consider walking on too. Take your time to read , and decide. The dangers are there, nothing is ever perfect and safe, and with it, a magical relationship as well.


I like to introduce you to another of my companion. He is a white rumped shama called Yingshiong, chinese
for heroic warrior. He is a gift from Tinkerbell.








(extracted from a letter written when I was in Australia in 2007)


Shamas are classified as 'aviary birds'. They are among the most timid of birds but
they are also the best song birds in the world.

Yingshiong was borned wild and was old when he came to me.
You can see from the daily blog I kept that he flew to me on recall within a month.
Breeders of 4 decades of experience with shamas told me my photos are the first
ever of a male shama landing on a human. You can see how I adapted what I wrote in Tinkerbell Legacy to work with a shama instead. Why a shama? I just could not get another parrot into my life even then.


Even so, it was another painful goodbye I had to say to Yingshiong which will be apparent in another letter I will attached here later.

Only recently we decide my wife is to join me here even though I been here since Nov 06. If it was just the two of us, she would have been here with me from the beginning. But we have Yingshiong to consider about. If
both of us were to leave Singapore together, that will be the end of chapter with Yingshiong. And he did wiggle into our hearts much as we tried not to let that happen.

If you are interested in Tinkerbell Interlude, here is a letter which is a good precursor to that episode.


And also partly explain why I am in Brisbane. And showed even at that time, I thought of Yingshiong farewell.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaa
http://shanlung.livejournal.com/65169.html

2006-11-16

Tinkerbell Interlude photoset and videos, and start of next chapter of life




Hello to all my friends around the world,

The last couple of days were spend in collating the photographs and videos
taken during the Tinkerbell Interlude, a period from 1st November to 8th November
when I was in Taiwan to be with Tinkerbell again.

I sort the photos to cover the day by day with Tinkerbell.

The Livejournal entries now have the appropriate photos in them that
better illustrate some of the events I wrote about. The videos are
also embedded in the Livejournal entries.

You find that in

http://shanlung.livejournal.com/2006/11/


Tinkerbell flights were very weak at the beginning. Yu treated her
too well, taking delicacies and tea to her. As a result, she hardly
had to fly. She never made recall flights to him for a long time. That
led to him not trying to let her fly. That was a sad spiralling circle.
It took me just one morning to put right in my "Retraining the trainer".

Tinkerbell needed to be reminded of the joy of flying, and given the chance
to fly again. In the videos at Chiayi Park Confucious temple, you can hear
clearly the heavy landings she made on me, none of those feather soft landings
of before.

It was only a week later, that I trusted her with longer flights at BanTienYen.
Look at the video where she flew at me, circled off with the leash screaming from
the reel and her breaking off and returning to me.

The photosets can be seen here.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/shanlung/sets/

You can also see the videos here.
http://www.youtube.com/profile_videos?user=shanlung

You should see that from bottom up starting from Confucious temple flights.




Why I went to Taiwan for this short holiday can be told now.
When I left Saudi Arabia, I went to Brisbane Australia and accepted a 4 year contract
to work and live there. I came back to Singapore to do the paper work to get that work
visa for Australia. I knew my time frame will be short. So I had to see Tinkerbell
when I could.

It was lucky that I did so. Yesterday, I received news that the visas for me and my wife Joy
were granted. I hoped to start there early next year. That company then wanted me over asap.
We compromised in that I fly over to Brisbane on 26th November starting 27th November 2006.

My wife will remain in Singapore for a few months until the work and company find us mutually agreeable
for that long term. Then she will fly over and live with me in Australia.

This started when I was working and living in Riyadh , Saudi Arabia. Then I read this BBC article
in June about the Russian tundra melting. We knew that would happen. But I thought that to be a consequence
of global warming. That article then described the CO2 and methane trapped in the past to be coming
out now. So instead of the permafrost melting as a consequence, that might well be a timebomb giving
us even less time in a world and society that we know.

I rather enjoy life with my wife NOW, than to make lots of money in Riyadh for a future rather uncertain.
There were other reasons, but my preference is to enjoy the time that is left to me and my wife. Working and living
in Brisbane Australia will be much better than in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia even if the pay is less.

Perhaps, what I wrote ten years back might make interesting reading for you.
http://www.geocities.com/shanlung9/oldluddite.html

I will not argue if you think differently. In fact, I hoped you are right, for the sake of my son
and your children, that we will have a lot more time in the future. If true leaders are found and all
of us ready and able to accept the drastic changes in our current lifestyles. Rather difficult isnt it?

That bring up what will happen to Yingshiong should and when my wife joins me in Australia.
You note that I deliberately had to fly back to Singapore from Taiwan as my wife flew to UK
to see her nieces.

By the way, Yingshiong is in the PC room with me. He flew in to join me as I wrote this rather long letter.
If I ignored him too long, he would hover over my head. So I do a few recalls for the chance to treat him
with millis.

I love YS too, even if not at the level at the soul as that with Tinkerbell.

Should me and my wife cannot look after YS, I will not allow YS to be back into a round cage.
I had discussed with Taufik with the various possibilities and he agreed with me.

Yingshiong might go into the Jurong Bird Park in the waterfall aviary. This is the largest walk-in aviary
in the world. I have had discussions with the highest level and given an in-principle approval for Yingshiong.
There are 4 resident male shamas there and one or two females among lots of other birds. It will
be a life and death struggle for Yingshiong. But I think YS is a prime 4-5 years old. I believe he will fight
and be dominant or at least carve out a space for himself.

So if anyone go there in future, you might be hearing Yingshiong singing up in the canopy of trees.

My friend BK offered Yingshiong a permanent place in his huge aviary, and beautiful shama wife for him too.
But no one other than me , BK, and a few of his friends will ever hear Yingshiong again. He will be safe there,
pampered for the rest of his life. BK aviary seen here shanlung: BK Aviary

Another option will be to release Yingshiong back into the appropriate forest. This might have the risk that he
is unable to integrate back into nature or capture by other people to be kept in a cage again.

It is yet too early to decide now.


Warmest regards

Shanlung


aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaa


It was another painful goodbye that I had to say to Yingshiong. That was on the 7 May 07. I flew back to Singapore to be with him, and then to hand him over to the Jurong Bird Park. If you go there, please ask to see Yingshiong at the South East Asia Aviary and listen to him singing there.
Leaving Yingshiong was painful even if not of the magnitude when I first had to say goodbye to Tinkerbell. I was lucky in that I flew back to Brisbane on that same evening. My wife was left in Singapore for a few weeks to be surrounded by YS things and the silence in the apartment.

The only way to prevent that is to close our hearts entirely. Then there will be no pain, and no beauty or magic either.

You can read those last few days with Yingshiong in here. (warning, not happy reading)
http://shanlung.livejournal.com/2007/05/

The leaving of Tink is more than a throbbing hurt. Much of my life still evolve
around her. When I went to work in Riyadh Saudi Arabia, I was hoping that would lead me back to Taiwan. Then I realised that was not going to be the case and my wife understandably refused to live with me in Saudi Arabia. I could not fly back to Taiwan to see Tink and ignore seeing my wife.

Thats why I am now in Brisbane down under. Where my wife is willing to come and live with me here. We can both
visit Taiwan together as Tink is her daughter too.

My wife is here since early June. We just shifted out a couple weeks ago from my old flat to another with a balcony at least where I can interact with birds and beasts.

After YS, we decided we cannot cope with another farewell.
I promised my wife the only birdies that get into the apartment will be grilled, fried or curried.

I hope to make friends with the lorikeets , or pied magpies or cockatoos or anything else outside in the balcony. They first might be attracted by food I place out for them. Then perhaps one might chose to be my companion and bonded with clicker training with me.

Hopefully, future partings with the wild birds might not be so traumatic on us.

I also found some other photos on YS in my wife laptop.

Three are below. I hope you enjoy them. More are in


http://www.flickr.com/photos/shanlung/






 

Billie Faye

Biking along the boulevard
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
7,076
Location
NC
Real Name
Billie Faye
:omg:beautiful, heart breaking:hug8:
 

Birdlover

Avian Addiction!
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/14/09
Messages
14,765
Shanlung your birds are amazing and beautiful. It is an amazing life and relationship you share with them!! :highfive:
 

Thugluvgrl187

Joyriding the Neighborhood
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
20,484
Location
Sunny Fl
Real Name
Miriam
Hello and welcome to AA.
 

Sarin

Rollerblading along the road
Joined
10/19/09
Messages
1,986
Location
Ontario Canada
Real Name
Nicole
Beautiful.. You truely have a deep passion for your birds. I really adore that.. Please keep the stories and pictures coming.. Welcome to the neighborhood. :)
 

calibird

California Bird Nerds
Vendor
Avenue Veteran
Mayor of the Avenue
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
6,783
Location
Palmdale, California
Real Name
Ann
Welcome. So glad you found us.
 

rockoko

Squawk and Meow!
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
39,672
Location
NY
Real Name
Martine
Hi Shanlung!! I am so happy to see your journals and photos posted!!! :dance4:
 

Birdiemarie

Feather Snuggler
Celebirdy of the Month
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/14/09
Messages
42,502
Location
Ohio
Real Name
Marie
Shanlung, thank you very much for adding your adventures to our avenue. I always love reading about you and your wife's amazing life and especially about Tink and Riamfada...not to forget, your cats. :hug8:
 

Birdiemarie

Feather Snuggler
Celebirdy of the Month
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/14/09
Messages
42,502
Location
Ohio
Real Name
Marie
Thanks Shanlung for another fascinating entry. :laughing12:
A warning here for all bird owners, especially new ones. Having birds and cats/dogs in close proximity is dangerous and can result in your bird being badly injured or killed and also can result in your cat/dog being injured. Please be careful. Please be careful Roadies.
 

itzmered

Welcome to Parrotdise
Super Administrator
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/27/09
Messages
25,728
Location
Minnesota
Real Name
Chris
Welcome to the Avenue! I love reading your story
 
M

M.C Bird Rescue

Guest
I always LOVE your photo's, I remember you from the other board and your pictures and relationship with your fids is just breathtaking. Thank you for sharing them. Welcome to AA. :D
 

rockoko

Squawk and Meow!
Avenue Veteran
Celebirdy of the Month
Mayor of the Avenue
Avenue Spotlight Award
Joined
10/16/09
Messages
39,672
Location
NY
Real Name
Martine
Thanks for the new entry!!! :)
 
Top