On The Dinosaur Trail

Will we ever know for certain why these mighty beasts fell? Perhaps, we just have to wait and watch. We are, after all, on the same path.

Touching a fossil was one of the most memorable moments of my childhood. As a child I spent large amounts of time trying to discover why these seemingly infallible creatures were no more. And, when an archaeologist friend of the family gave me a fossil to hang on to for a week I was absolutely delighted! I spent many hours poring over it hoping that it would somehow divulge its secrets to me.

Yesterday, many years after having reluctantly given back the fossil, they finally spoke. It was at a show based on the BBC series ‘Walking with the dinosaurs’ broadcast in 1999, which had come to Rotterdam. The show covers the rise and fall of these creatures in an hour and a half. It featured life size robot dinosaurs that are controlled by a man inside the dinosaur. It’s claimed that these dinosaur robots took a year to create (presumably, that’s why the fight scenes are carried out with almost obscene love and care).

Apart from the dinosaurs the ecology was also simplistically, yet well, depicted. The hostile Triassic era was illustrated with lights reflecting parched lands. After which came the more hospitable Jurassic era, portrayed by large, colourful plastic flowers.

The end of the dinosaur’s 165 million year reign came, all too quickly, with a very touching moment when a mother T Rex saves her child from an angry Triceratops. And amidst the reunion of the killer dinosaur and its baby, came the unexpected meteor represented by dramatic bright flashing lights and crackling thunder. Alas, with loud despairing roars of helplessness the titans exit the stage.

Just then, looking around, I witnessed an exchange of looks between the father and child sitting next to me not dissimilar to the creatures on the stage. Sure, I thought, we’ve come a long way but some things haven’t changed.