Snakes... I hate snakes.

I know I should start off with some awkward introduction - but I'm going to skip the formalities and offer that either you know me already or you will learn about me through whatever I post. Don't worry, we can still be friends - it's me, not you.

So the other day something odd happened at the school I work at in Chiang Mai (I am a dorm parent). One of the kids was walking through the halls on the bottom floor of the boy's residence and saw a dark, two foot long snake slithering on the floor. This is not a typical dormitory moment, even for Thailand. It quickly wriggled itself to the end of the hall into one of my colleague's room. Thankfully, he immediately phoned to let us know that we had unexpected company. I was off campus, so my supervisor hurried over to deal with it. He opened the door and stuck his head in, only to see it quickly slither under the bed.... now what?

You might wonder why this even matters. It's just a snake right? Snakes are generally afraid of humans, and no doubt this particular one had simply gotten lost, or was engaging in some audacious exploration attempt; a slithering Shackleton if you will. The problem was really that it was a cobra, one of the many poisonous snakes in Thailand (I believe Thailand hosts seven). Now you understand.

As it was, my supervisor called some school engineers to come and help him deal with the creature. But by the time they had returned to the room, the snake was no longer under the bed: it was hiding behind the laundry hamper, coiled. It must have realised at this point that it was the centre of attention, because it quickly became aggressive. I don't even think the engineers thought twice about grabbing their machete and summarily decapitating the cobra. There are pictures of them holding the newly deceased snake by its tail, but there is no head.

What's scary is what could have happened: it might not have been noticed. So, for example, my colleague comes home after a night of carousing, doesn't turn on his light, and steps on the thing. Or what if he had been in bed and had felt a small bite whilst slumbering? Pretty terrifying actually. I hear they can climb stairs, in fact, it must have climbed stairs to get into the dorms.

Maybe later it would have visited me...