Your image of the snakes in the basket reminds me of a snake vendor's store that my wife and I visited in Macao, about 1986. There were dozens of baskets of snakes, piled three and four deep on the floor. While we watched, an old gentleman, assisted by a teenager, retrieved a lovely speciman, about four feet long, which he held up and displayed to a well-to-do family of four - mom, dad, and two boys. Having gotten approval from the father, the old man stepped on the snake's tail and stretched it upward. With his free hand, he began feeling along the belly plates of the snake. Stopping about a foot from its tail, he handed the head of the snake to the boy to hold, while he took what looked to be a Swiss army knife and pried up one of the belly plates, cutting an incision. He proceeded to twist a finger into the opening and after a brief exploration, dug out a small, wet, slug-like object. This he held in his fingers while he lifted the snake and put it back into its basket. His young assistant brought him a small white bowl, containing about half a cup of water. The family watched raptly as he wiped the small sac onto the edge of the bowl. When he sliced the sac it immediately drained a black liquid. Squeezing it with a finger, he purged the sac's contents into the bowl of water. The blackness of the substance began to turn into a dark green and, as the old man stirred it, a lighter, more uniform green. Now came the fun part: the father brought his eldest son over to where the other man stood, and gestured to his son to take a drink from the offered bowl. With only a little hestation he took a long sip, immediately making a wretching sound as his face broke into a look of utter disgust. He shoved the bowl back. Dad then pushed forward the younger son who, having now a pretty good idea about the nature of the "drink" was having none of it. The ensuing argument and threats, including holding the bowl to his mouth while holding his nose, was not a pretty spectacle to behold.
Ma writes:
The snake like creatures in your photo were eels, not snakes. And the drink that Brian talked about in his article was gal mixed with rice wine. It is believed that this drink can cure some diseases.
Brian Childerhose writes:
Your image of the snakes in the basket reminds me of a snake vendor's store that my wife and I visited in Macao, about 1986. There were dozens of baskets of snakes, piled three and four deep on the floor. While we watched, an old gentleman, assisted by a teenager, retrieved a lovely speciman, about four feet long, which he held up and displayed to a well-to-do family of four - mom, dad, and two boys. Having gotten approval from the father, the old man stepped on the snake's tail and stretched it upward. With his free hand, he began feeling along the belly plates of the snake. Stopping about a foot from its tail, he handed the head of the snake to the boy to hold, while he took what looked to be a Swiss army knife and pried up one of the belly plates, cutting an incision. He proceeded to twist a finger into the opening and after a brief exploration, dug out a small, wet, slug-like object. This he held in his fingers while he lifted the snake and put it back into its basket. His young assistant brought him a small white bowl, containing about half a cup of water. The family watched raptly as he wiped the small sac onto the edge of the bowl. When he sliced the sac it immediately drained a black liquid. Squeezing it with a finger, he purged the sac's contents into the bowl of water. The blackness of the substance began to turn into a dark green and, as the old man stirred it, a lighter, more uniform green. Now came the fun part: the father brought his eldest son over to where the other man stood, and gestured to his son to take a drink from the offered bowl. With only a little hestation he took a long sip, immediately making a wretching sound as his face broke into a look of utter disgust. He shoved the bowl back. Dad then pushed forward the younger son who, having now a pretty good idea about the nature of the "drink" was having none of it. The ensuing argument and threats, including holding the bowl to his mouth while holding his nose, was not a pretty spectacle to behold.
Ma writes:
The snake like creatures in your photo were eels, not snakes. And the drink that Brian talked about in his article was gal mixed with rice wine. It is believed that this drink can cure some diseases.