I love “Ripley’s”! I remember the comic strip well, and have been to two of the museums. The one in St. Augustine is the best, as it was Ripley’s original home. It is amazing, and I spent many hours there, Believe It Or Not! :-)
There is another island dad used to tell me about, and he sang a song:
“Oh the monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga
They were bitten off by whales in Zamboanga!”
There is probably more to that, but most likely unsuitable for children! hahaha!
OMG! Look what I found! hahaha
Lyrics
The Monkeys Have No Tails in Zamboanga[disambiguation needed]
Oh, the monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga,
Oh, the monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga,
Oh, the monkeys have no tails,
They were bitten off by whales,
Oh, the monkeys have no tails in Zamboanga.
Chorus:
Oh, we won’t go back to Subic anymore,
Oh, we won’t go back to Subic anymore,
Oh, we won’t go back to Subic
Where they mix our wine with tubig*,
Oh, we won’t go back to Subic anymore.
* Filipino for water
Chorus
Oh, the carabao have no hair in Mindanao,
Oh, the carabao have no hair in Mindanao,
Oh, the carabao have no hair,
Holy smoke! But they are bare,
Oh, the carabao have no hair in Mindanao.
Chorus
Oh, the fishes wear no skirts in Iloilo,
Oh, the fishes wear no skirts in Iloilo,
Oh, the fishes wear no skirts,
But they all have undershirts,
Oh, the fishes wear no skirts in Iloilo.
Chorus
They grow potatoes small in Iloilo,
They grow potatoes small in Iloilo,
They grow potatoes small,
And they eat them skins and all,
They grow potatoes small in Iloilo.
Chorus
Oh, the birdies have no feet in Mariveles,
Oh, the birdies have no feet in Mariveles,
Oh, the birdies have no feet,
They were burned off by the heat,
Oh, the birdies have no feet in Mariveles.
Chorus
Oh, we’ll all go up to China in the spring time,
Oh, we’ll all go up to China in the spring time,
Oh, we’ll hop aboard a liner,
I can think of nothing finer,
Oh, we’ll all go up to China in the spring time.
Chorus
Oh, we’ll all go down to Shanghai in the fall,
Oh, we’ll all go down to Shanghai in the fall,
Oh, we’ll all get down to Shanghai,
Those champagne corks will bang high,
Oh, we’ll all go down to Shanghai in the fall.
Chorus
Oh, we lived ten thousand years in old Chefoo.
Oh, we lived ten thousand years in old Chefoo.
And it didn’t smell like roses,
So we had to hold our noses,
Oh, we lived ten thousand years in old Chefoo.[1]
Some verses were updated and sung by U.S. Army and Navy personnel and families in Manila, Philippines, and back in the States after WWII. The song mentions islands in the Philippine chain, attributing amusing or unflattering characteristics to their flora and fauna, and humans. As there are many islands, there are no doubt many more verses.
Oh, the ladies wear no teddies in Manila,
Oh, the ladies wear no teddies in Manila,
Oh, the ladies wear no teddies,
They’re a bunch of ever-readies,
Oh, the ladies wear no teddies in Manila.
Oh, the men they wear no pants on Luzon,
Oh, the men they wear no pants on Luzon,
Oh, the men they wear no pants,
They’re afraid to miss a chance,
Oh, the men they wear no pants on Luzon.[2]
Don't remember anything about Zamboanga, tho'! ;)
I've seen Key West, West Palm, driven through Miami (in 1970) and flown through Miami-Dade a couple of times, and past Homestead when it was still an operational SAC base, visited Ft. Meyers a couple of times, again 20 years apart, Orlando once or twice, Jax a couple of times (arrived and left by P-3 one time), and Pensacola and the Panhandle Riviera two or three times. Micanopy once, too, and Kennedy once.