Les éléphants.

Wednesday, January 21st

Before my trip, I did quite a bit of research to figure out what sort of activities I wanted to do while I was traveling. Due to my love of animals, I was sure that I wanted to do something involving elephants. However, I had heard horror stories about elephant camps in Thailand. Most just seek tourist dollars and treat the animals poorly. Finally, I found a place called Patara Elephant Farm located an hour or so southwest of Chiang Mai in Hang Dong, Thailand. Patara is unique because it is not an elephant camp (where elephants are forced to work) rather a farm where the focus is on breeding elephants. Since the natural elephant population is deteriorating so quickly, the main goal of Patara is to produce baby elephants, not make money. However, as we all know, money is an important part of any business/organization. In order to supplement their breeding program, Patara has created one-day to five-day elephant training programs. These programs are pricey, but allow interested people to get up close and personal with elephants. The elephants do not perform for tourists like other elephant camps (playing soccer, painting pictures, etc.). Instead the elephants go through a normal daily routine and the visitors are taught how to assist. The farm has no more than 20 elephants at a time and had 14 when I visited. Each elephant has its own Thai trainer who lives at the elephant camp. These trainers are so dedicated to their job; they work seven days a week and wake up at 3 or 4am each morning to begin feeding their elephant.

Upon arriving at Patara, visitors are given an introduction to elephant history in Thailand and told about the mission of the organization. Their motto is, “Extinction is forever.” Each visitor is given special clothing to wear; the clothes are familiar and comforting to the elephants. Then, each visitor is paired up with an elephant and its regular trainer. I was paired up with the largest elephant, Maekapov, and her trainer, Pa-tee.

We first were given a basket of bananas and mango to feed to our elephant. To see if our elephant was hungry (I think they always are), we had to hold up the fruit so the elephant could see it and shout, “Bon.” If the elephant made a noise, we could begin the feeding process. Feeding an elephant is quite simple. As for bananas, elephants eat the entire thing. No need to peel. You can put the food directly into the elephant’s mouth, which is easier but messier, or you can hand the food to the elephant’s trunk and it will grasp it and place it in its mouth on its own. The elephants are very gentle and will never chew your hand. One of the trainers was telling me that when the elephants are sick, they put medicine inside of the bananas. However, the elephants are very smart and know which bananas have the medicine in them because they’ve already been peeled. So the trainers will mix up the bananas that have medicine in them (maybe every 3rd banana), but the elephants memorize the pattern and spit out the bananas that have the medicine. Intelligent creatures.

After feeding the elephants, we had to perform a quick health check to make sure our elephant was in good condition. The first thing to check was the elephant’s mood. A happy elephant will swing its tail regularly and flap its ears; a solemn elephant will not make such movements. Next, we had to check for dirt spots on the elephant’s skin. An elephant that has had a good night’s sleep will have patches of dirt on each side of its body from lying on the ground. A lack of dirt patches means that the elephant did not lay down and most likely did not sleep (a sign of sickness). We checked the elephant dung next. First, you must count the number of poops; six or seven indicates a healthy appetite. Next, you must smell it. It does not have much of a smell if the elephant is eating a typical plant diet. You can tell how old an elephant is by looking at the size of the plant fibers in the dung. The longer the fibers, the older the elephant. As the elephant ages, it does not chew its food as well or digest it as well. Finally, we had to squeeze the dung to make sure the elephant was drinking enough water.

All of the elephants were in healthy condition, so we proceeded to bathing. For protection from the sun, elephants cover their backs with a layer of dirt. First, we used leaves to brush off as much of the dirt as possible. We had to use commands to get the elephant to lie down. Then we led our elephants to a small stream near the farm to rinse and brush them. For some unknown reason, elephants love to poop when they go in the water. So it was interesting trying to clean the elephants in a small stream flooded with poop. However, some of the trainers had nets to scoop the poop out of the water. But you can imagine how much elephants poop and when you have nine of them it adds up quickly.

Anyway, after washing our elephants, we posed for some pictures. The trainers secretly positioned us so that the elephants could spray us with water using their trunks. It was cold (and dirty) water, but we got the elephants back by splashing them!

After the bath, we learned three techniques to get on the elephant. The first was to tell the elephant to lie down and simply climb up on it. The second technique was to tell the elephant to lift its leg while standing and use its leg to hoist oneself up. The third technique was to tell the elephant to lower its head and trunk and climb onto its trunk and over its head. I opted to try the second technique. It was not as easy as the trainers made it look, especially since I had the largest elephant to climb on top off. Later in the day, I tried the third technique and it was so fun and easy!

Once we were all on our elephants, we rode bareback through the mountainous, jungle-filled area for about an hour and half. Then we arrived at a stream and waterfall where the elephants were able to swim and play in the water (and of course poop in it). We enjoyed a delicious Thai lunch and fed the leftovers to the always-hungry elephants.

Finally, it was time to head back to the farm. We let our elephants eat independently for awhile so we could let our bodies rest (it is physically draining to ride an elephant for so long). Then we mounted our elephants one last time and tried riding them with our legs dangling down their trunk instead of tucking them in behind their ears. This position definitely required more trust that the elephant was not going to lower its head and cause you to slip right off.

View my other photos from Patara Elephant Farm here!!

winter travels.

Greetings everyone! I am freshly back from my two-week winter vacation in Thailand and Cambodia. I had an amazing time and will never be able to relay all of the incredible experiences I had. However, I will do my best to give you a day-to-day synopsis of my adventures and share some of the most memorable moments with you.

Sunday, January 18th

I left the Incheon airport around dinner time and arrived in Bangkok at 9:10pm. The airport is quite large and only two years old. It was crazy thinking about the protests that tied up thousands of travelers for days that happened only several weeks ago. It was nice as far as airports go, but I would not want to spend more than a few hours there.

As soon as you collect your luggage and go through immigration, you are immediately swarmed by taxi drivers and other seemingly nice Thais who want to offer you a ride. I was headed to Sukhumvit On Nut Guesthouse which was about 30km away and I had directions with me. I wanted to try to take the public bus because I knew it was much cheaper than taking a taxi all by myself. This task was not as easy as I had hoped it would be. Finding the bus stop itself was a challenge. Everyone I asked simply offered me their own service or pointed me in the direction of the 150 baht express airport bus (which is about $4 USD). That bus was fairly cheap, but I knew the public bus would be even cheaper and more adventurous! I stopped at a little convenient store to buy water because I was already feeling the sweltering heat. At the checkout, I asked the clerk about the bus stop and she gave me the information I needed. I headed back outside to the correct bus stop and waited about 30 minutes for the free airport shuttle. This shuttle would take me to the nearest bus terminal. It was confusing because I was not sure where to get off, but it became clear once we arrived at the terminal. I was the only foreigner riding the bus, but it didn’t bother me. The Thai passengers were friendly and seemed happy to share their transportation with me. Upon arriving at the terminal, I knew which bus I needed, 552, but it was not there. I tried to ask a man working there if another bus would be coming (it was after 11pm at this point). We weren’t able to understand each other but his profuse head nodding and finger pointing led me to believe another was on its way. Forty minutes later the bus finally arrived. However, I had to sit on the bus at least another 30 minutes before it even left the terminal! The bus driver had surprisingly good English and knew exactly where I needed to get off. The bus ride was at least another hour, but only 34 baht ($1 USD)!

Luckily, the guesthouse that I was staying at had 24-hour reception. When I arrived, it was almost 2am, so I just wanted to sleep. Unfortunately, my roommates had the same idea and were already fast asleep in the dormitory we had to share. This meant I had no light to change, so I just crawled into my top bunk and slept in my clothes.

Monday, January 19th

I woke up bright and early, ready to go. Why change my clothes now? I just had more traveling to do after all. I took the public bus back to the airport for another 34 baht. This time I had a one-hour domestic flight to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand. Chiang Mai is the 2^nd largest city in Thailand, but much less crazy than Bangkok. The atmosphere is completely different; the people are more laid back, the air is clearer, there are fewer traffic jams, there is greenery within the landscape, and gorgeous mountains surrounding the area. Originally, I wanted to go to Chiang Mai to visit Bo Sang during the annual umbrella festival. Later, I found out that I missed the festival by 2 days, but I am so glad that I still went. Chiang Mai is an amazing hub for mountain trekking and other outdoor adventures. The first day I was there, I decided to go to Doi Suthep after checking in at the hostel. I walked toward the mountain and eventually got on a red truck taxi, known as songthaew, which is basically a covered pickup truck with benches. They are cheaper than regular taxis since they can accommodate more people at the same time. The fare was generally around 20 baht (maybe $.60 USD).

Doi Suthep is a beautiful temple on top of the mountain. The drive there was rather long and all uphill and windy. I was the only one on the truck so it was a nice private tour. The driver dropped me at the top and told me to meet him back at the truck in one hour. It was enough time for me to climb the 309 stairs up to the actual temple, look around, and visit the many vendors selling goods in the area. The temple was built around 1383. It was quite a change after seeing so many Korean temples. Although both Korean and Thai temples have Buddhist roots, the colors and architecture are drastically different.

I got back to the hostel (Spicythai Backpacker…the best hostel I have ever stayed in) around dinner time. I talked to two Irish guys sitting outside in the hammock and we decided to hang out for the evening. We took a songthaew to the famous Night Bazaar where we ate spring rolls, green curry, and pad thai. There were so many vendors and items for sale. It was a bit overwhelming and since I was with two men, I didn’t actually buy anything. I just browsed and thought about what I might want to look at the following day. We ended the evening by having a drink at a local bar. I ordered a Mai Tai, but it was really strong and did not taste good. I should’ve gone with a beer!

Tuesday, January 20^th

I had not made any previous plans for this day, so I decided to book a tour through the hostel. They set me up on a one-day trekking adventure with Panda Tours. It was about 1,500 baht for the whole day, including lunch and all transportation. I was picked up from the hostel and told that I would be alone for the morning and meet up with others later. So my driver, who called himself “Number 1,” and I set off. Our first stop was the orchid and butterfly farm. It was not nearly as interesting as you’d think it would be. There was no entry fee, but the people there try to get you to buy overpriced souvenirs. The butterflies were lacking, but the orchids were quite impressive.

Next, we drove to see the Karon Longneck hill tribe. You have probably seen photos or watched a documentary about these women who wear brass rings around their necks. As they get older, they add more rings to make their necks appear longer. However, research has shown that the necks are not elongated, rather the shoulders and rib cage are pushed down, creating an illusion. These rings are not only worn for decorative purposes, but also as protection. Some women also wear rings beneath their knees, which served as protection from snake bites.

The area we went to was known as an “eco-agricultural zone.” As I understand, the area is owned by the Thai government, but is neutral land for hill tribe peoples. Many of the Longneck’s, for example, are from Burma. They do not have Thai resident status, but are able to live in this particular area and are protected. I asked my guide if he thought these people were happy. He said that he thinks they are since they do not have to worry about being kicked off this land, civil wars, etc. I do not know if I believe him though. All of the hill tribe people looked so solemn and were passive. The children did not laugh and play as most children do. They simply stared. Or tried to sell their hand-woven goods.

Throughout my trip, I had to get used to being approached by all sorts of people wanting my money: children without shoes, blind women, homeless families, people crippled by landmines, and so many others with various conditions. It is such a complicated dilemma: to give them money/buy their goods or just pass them by. It is a double-edged sword; if you do not buy something, they will continue to suffer and search for money in other, less desirable ways. If you buy something, you help them temporarily, but reinforce their behavior of using tourists as a crutch. I constantly had to ask myself which was best and I have yet to give you the correct answer. I did decide though that these are people who at the very least want attention. So many tourists are rude and completely ignore these sellers. Some even yell at them, curse, or say unnecessary things. I understand their frustration of being constantly approached to buy things that they do not want or need. I tried my best to be polite and compassionate. Rather than just telling someone off, I would ask them how they were doing or why they were selling their goods or what their name was. This approach worked well for me. When I told them I was not interested in buying their stuff, they more respectfully took my response and appreciated being treated like a human. I had some very interesting conversations with several vendors and even played games with street children selling books. At one point, I had a group of about 6-8 pre-pubescent teens around me playing “Johnny, Johnny” laughing and not even thinking about selling their stuff. They were able to act like kids again.

Back to my one-day trek. After visiting the hill tribe villages, Number 1 and I stopped at Tiger Kingdom where I was able to pet/play with tigers! For 500 baht, I was able to spend 15 minutes in a cage with 4-6 month old tigers and 15 minutes with full grown tigers. This facility has only been open for a year or so and they have a reputation for treating the animals well. I was hesitant to visit a place that used animals as a tourist attraction, but I was impressed overall.

Next, Number 1 and I drove to our trekking spot. We parked the jeep and "trekked" to the meeting point. After so much hiking in Korea, I felt prepared for the hike. However, it was simply a downhill walk that was a bit of a let down. The scenery was gorgeous though. We met up with some other tourists who had visited Maesa Elephant Camp in the morning. We ate a home-cooked thai lunch and prepared for the afternoon. First, we went whitewater rafting. It was fun, but not as thrilling as I had hoped. The water was quite low so the rapids were only class I and maybe II. As soon as we finished the whitewater rafting course, we got off the tube and hopped on a bamboo raft. I wasn't anticipating the bamboo rafting to be so exciting. It was one of my favorite parts of the trip. It's a really relaxing way to float down the river and take in all of the beautiful flora and fauna.

Lastly, before heading back to Chiang Mai city, we stopped at another hill tribe village because the people I met up with hadn't visited the one I stopped at earlier. It was a typical hill tribe village, living a fairly normal life, but also trying to sell endless souvenirs to the passing tourists. I bought a small bracelet from the smallest woman. In general, Thai people are short, even compared to Koreans, but this woman took home the grand prize.