We booked an elephant tour!!!! With only being in Chiang Mai a couple days-we didn't think we'd be able to do one-I selected a company last night & Chris was able to book it through our hotel this morning. This afternoon was elephants-on to Chiang Mai this morning.
Our hotel in Chiang Mai did not provide breakfast-so we headed out in search of it. Unfortunately, our guide books showed their age (2014)-and we struck out, twice. We passed a bagel place with good prices and stopped before we became hangry.
We stayed in this little bagel cafe, after eating breakfast, and spent the next 2 hours planning out the next leg of our travels. We discovered that beyond Chiang Mai and a weekend in Malaysia-we don't have anything else planned for the next 17 days. There are many adjustments that have to be made along the way-traveling is hard work. Where are we going? What are we going to see? Where will we stay? What local foods should we be trying? What's the exchange rate? We spend about 2 hours per day planning our next journey. Figuring out how to get from Chiang Mai, Thailand to Luang Prabang, Laos proved quite difficult. We had a plan & bought bus tickets. I wasn't dressed appropriately to get into temples-and before we knew it it was lunch time. (Not a single photo of our morning in Chiang Mai.)
We went to eat at a little place off the main road that had wifi. We were the only foreigners in there-but they had an English menu & the price was right. I had pad Thai in Thailand. And a Coke.
We returned to Noble House to change to go see the elephants. 🐘🐘🐘 We had about an hour ride to the elephant sanctuary. As we approached, I caught glimpses of other elephants through the trees. My excitement was building.
We got out of the van but stayed near it, looking at the huge creatures. We've all seen an elephant-maybe even taken a ride on one at the zoo, but to see them in their natural surroundings, their huge footprints in the mud is an entirely different experience.
The caregiver handed me three poles of wood-and the elephants wanted what I had. They were coming near me & I could no longer keep my distance. As I stood in front of these elephants, I experienced a strange emotion: fear. The caretakers moved around the elephants with such ease-but I had no idea what to do. These huge creatures could trample me in an instant. Their massive side & stature was intimidating. The power behind their bodies-this was no petting zoo-these were elephants, in the jungle of Thailand.
A long, worn trunks came to my hands and took the sticks. Their trunks were thicker than my arms. Their long trunks placed the wood into their mouths & I heard crunching. These smart creatures knew something I did not-I had sugar cane, an elephant favorite.
One wasn't enough. She knew I had more & wanted them all. She took the sugar cane one by one & placed it in her mouth. My final stick remained in her trunk-until she wandered over to someone else who had more.
The caregivers called out "bon bon" which meant open mouth-and I reached up and placed the sugar cane sticks inside their mouths. My hand, inside the space under their trucks-I couldn't really see, so I had no choice but to trust the elephants. The first time I sort of threw it. The next time, I was more confident & curious. As they opened their mouths, I could see little short tusks-amid the tucked away sugar cane she was holding in her mouth. The caregivers wanted me to turn around & smile for a photo as I fed-I couldn't seem to turn away from having my hand inside an elephant's mouth. It wasn't until the end of the feeding that I could finally see their teeth. Their mouths were deep-I didn't know what to expect & there wasn't a whole lot of explanation. But they were chomping sugar cane-I knew those teeth were in there.
We continued to feed the elephants sugar cane. I wouldn't say I was comfortable, but I was no longer on high alert. I could see the flecks in their skin and the hair on their foreheads. Elephant ears were flapping back and forth, back and forth, causing a gentle swish, similar to how a dog wags a tail.
The elephant caregivers did not speak English-just enough commands-for us humans. They moved me next to the elephant's trunk and said "huag."
A giant elephant trunk encircled me. I was receiving an elephant hug.
Chris got a hug too-and he quickly picked up the commands the caregivers were using. He spoke with such authority & confidence-the elephants responded well. First time ever: I felt guilty for depriving this man of a pet.
We fed the elephants sugar cane & then changed into traditional Karen clothing. They were one size fits everyone thanks to a draw string. We thought we looked pretty snazzy.
Then we had to go to class, learning a Thai dialect to know how to give commands to our elephants. Our tour guide, Mike, talked about how this dialect was different than what he grew up speaking, that even he has an accent-it's taken him 2 years for the elephants to obey his commands & respect him as a caregiver. That made me really happy-let me explain. If these elephants don't respond to an outsider, it's because they know their caregivers. Like how sheep know the voice of their shepherd, elephants know their caregivers. One guy had been working with these elephants for 30+ years.
Class was about 5 minutes, repeating words 3 times. I could only remember pai pai (forward) & yud (stop). Heaven help me if I have to actually command this elephant. They told me I'd be with Chris, he's the one who's good with foreign languages & animals-I'll be fine.
They explained that they only have female elephants because the males would be too aggressive for tourists or being around the female elephants. We know they must have a male come & visit, as they had a 4 year old & 10 month old. The 10 month old is not trained. The baby stays in a pen with his momma for the first few years. The 4 year old is around the other elephant, but is not ridden. The 4 year old was just learning basics-like how to stay in line with the others.
At this point our guide suggested we put down our iPhones. I chose this particular elephant place because of their photographer-I knew we'd be given a flash drive at the end of the visit. She'd already begun to capture photos.
About this time the family who was with us decided that only one parent would ride-leaving a free elephant. I got my own elephant. I wasn't prepared for that-I didn't remember the commands-but before I could hesitate they called me over & I mounted an elephant.
They taught us how to mount our elephants-you yell out the commands & she lifts up her right leg. Your first foot is on the under-side of her foot, then you step on her thigh, grab her ear & hoist yourself up. They did have a loose rope around their abdomen that you could use to steady yourself.
Getting on was the hardest part. They had my elephant lay down for me to get on-I didn't mind. Her name means millionaire, so I'll refer to her as that from now on. She is 35 years old.
After I climbed on, I had to scoot forward to sit right behind the ears. I could feel when I was far enough forward-there was a natural space. Then Millionaire got to her feet & started to move. Oh man.
With each of her steps, I had to adjust my balance. Although I am straddling her neck, at least 2 feet wide, I struggled for balance. Every step she took, I was convinced I was going to fall off. I had no choice but to trust-that the system worked. I wasn't the first rider-the elephant caretakers knew what they were doing. Stay up there. Take it all in. My bare feet felt her thick skin. I can only see the top of her head-and there are sparse, coarse hairs on it. I was on a full sized elephant, 8 feet in the air, with nothing to hang onto-and she was walking. I am at the mercy of this giant beast. Her caregiver walks alongside us. And we start to move. Electric excitement pulses through me.
Chris is at the front of the pack-he is riding the leader. I am at the rear, behind the 4 year old. We walk in a line-and we're entering the river. The river was brown with a visable current. By this time I've realized my elephant is a bit naughty (I have a history with getting naughty animals). She doesn't want to follow the others. She wants to go her own way. She turns and takes a step (which is a big step) out of line to the right, the caregiver corrects her. She doesn't want to keep going in the line-she hangs back, the elephant caregiver says pai, pai!!
As we enter the river, My elephant caregiver is distracted-and I'm riding my elephant alone across the river, who has decided not to follow and to turn her own way. I am helpless on what feels like a rogue elephant. There's nothing I can do, but enjoy.
As I adjust to her cadance & trust in its rhythm, I look up. I see the lush mountains and stilted huts on the banks of the river. And it hits me: I am riding an elephant in Thailand. I wanted to take a photo-it wouldn't have been of me or Millionaire-but of the scenery I was only able to see while riding an elephant. This is why I travel-to expand my comfort zone and to see how other people live. I can still close my eyes & remember what it felt like to be on Millionaire, uncertain as we crossed the river.
We crossed the river in a line and climbed up out of the river (and I saw the baby elephant poop-wow!!). How was I going to stay on her back as she climbs up the bank? As we get out of the water, I continue to get splashed, it's now raining-and I don't even mind. I'm riding an elephant in Thailand. I make sure to rub her forehead & say Dee Dee which means good job. And she sees some foliage which looks delicious. Don't mind if I help myself-her long trunk grasps branches & she snaps them off, having a snack. The caregiver is helpless to her action-she's already munching on the greens.
I know from watching the guys in front of me when it's going to get bumpy. There's mud & it's rainy season-I can't hang on, just trust. I ask my elephant caregiver how old Millionaire is-he shakes his hand-he doesn't speak any English. I point to her & hold up fingers. She is 35 he tells me. I point to myself & hold up fingers. He points to himself & holds up fingers. I'm able to mime that his face looks good. We laugh. And for the first time after this long year, I feel comfortable in my own skin & who I am.
He later says only 1-2-3. I teach him 4-5. When the photographer counts 1-2-3, he chimes in 4-5. I tell him Dee Dee & give a thumbs up sign, we laugh. At the end we took a photo together with Millionsire. He was surprised I wanted a photo with him.
Naughty Millionaire has to be encouraged to keep going-I later realized I was supposed to nudge her with my feet when giving the command pai pai.
We arrive to the far side of the river. Our guide has stayed on the other side with the family who did not want to ride. Chris & I are across the river with the elephants & the caregivers-we don't speak each others' language. They mime undressing, so we take off the traditional Karen clothing-exposing our swim suits. We're each given a scrub brush and get back up on the elephants. (I'm in my bikini on an elephant!!)
Must be bath time.
Oh Millionaire, she doesn't want to get back in the water. The gentle commands of her caregiver urge her in (Chris is already in the water as are all the other elephants). The 4 year old elephant is loving it, splashing around like a child. Once in the water, the caregiver gives a command and the elephant bends down & rolls over-so we fall off. And thus the water playtime begins.
We splash them with water & scrub their tough skin. I pat her & say dee Dee. She stands up again & doesn't want to lay down. I continue to tell her Dee Dee. I want her to know its OK if she doesn't want to lay down. I'm still enjoying her & like her just the same. With more coaxing she lays down again. I splash her & scrub her. They showed me to scrub her near her eyes & told me to scrub harder. I scrub and am reminded of washing my mom's van as a kid. The skin is so thick. She is so massive-am I making an impact? I keep splashing her until she stands up. Millionaire has had enough.
Our photographer was there with the GoPro and they had us pose for many photos. As Millionaire was done for the morning, the caregivers directed me in front of another elephant. Suddenly I am lifted up into the air by a trunk. I am balancing on a trunk-but this time I'm not afraid & I don't even hang on-I've learned to trust these creatures & more importantly their caregivers.
Again they have me stand in one place-another strange command is given & I'm showered by their trunks. I'm officially soaking wet-and loving every minute.
We put back on our Karen clothing & mount our elephants again to cross the river. Millionaire cooperates. I soothe her with pats & low grumblings of Dee Dee.
The family who didn't ride has a 12 year old daughter-I was sad for her that she didn't want to ride-as we crossed the banks & headed back to the elephant camp she asked if she could ride. She rode in front of me and I had such joy watching her step outside her comfort zone & try something new. I delighted in a child enjoying herself-welcome to adulthood.
We dismounted the elephants & fed them bushels of sugar cane-no longer the best sticks, these included leaves. One elephant stole the entire bushel from another.
They brought out the baby elephant. I fed her-she sucked feed out of my hand. It felt so funny. The baby was huge for 10 months-she was born weighing 140 lbs. that's a big baby!! Look how fuzzy she is. She doesn't know how to behave yet-so we had to watch our feet.
I also fed the 4 year old. You call out Bon Bon & she opens her mouth & I put my fist full of food pebbles in her mouth. Her tongue is massive & warm & I giggle as a natural reaction. What a fun way to end the day-playing with the little elephants.
We arrived back into Chiang Mai and showered off all the everything. We did some laundry in the sink. I washed, Chris rinsed & wrung out. Out bathing suits turned the water murky brown-three times.
For dinner we went to the night market & ate street food. I finally had mango sticky rice which is just that-sticky rice with a mango & a sweet coconut milk drizzled on top. It was delicious.
We walked around the market-full of food stalls & tourist trinkets. We made our way to the food section. Chris had pad Thai-it was a bit of an buffet for what you wanted.
I'm not sure what I had. The vendor had 5 crock pots of food. I told him not spicy-which I was. He gave me another taste of something that was less spicy & I took it. Chicken in red sauce with onions & potatoes over rice-it reminded me of middle eastern food by its flavor. The side of cucumbers & purple onions was a bit pickled, but too spicy with the chiles in there.
It was a wonderful day in Chiang Mai-a frustrating morning blossomed into an incredible afternoon-once in a lifetime experience. (Technically all of travel is, but with so many temples and stupas & same items in a night market, we tend to adjust to traveling and certain aspects become the norm.) We went to bed exhausted and content. Today was definitely one for the books.
Side note:
In Chiang Mai they have cups of water. You poke a thin straw through to drink. We found them entertaining-thought you might too!!
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