Among the elephants

I had four more days in Chiang Mai after my day trip. I spent most of that time hanging out with traveler friends and being pampered (drinking smoothies and getting massages). The Brits left on Tuesday morning and I wouldn't be leaving until Thursday morning. I debated what to do with the time I had left. At first I thought about just relaxing in air-conditioned places; I felt like I had made a pretty thorough tour of the city's offerings. However, I got a sign -- literally. I was headed to breakfast one day when I saw a sign for elephant training courses. I had already heard about this activity, but for some reason I actually stopped to read more about it this time, and it piqued my interest. Here was something I could do that was very local (elephants are a big part of Thai culture) and was not something I could easily do somewhere else. I investigated and I committed. So, I spent my last day in Thailand canoodling with elephants.

Wednesday morning I got picked up, and on the way to the elephants we stopped at an orchid farm. It was pretty small, but still pretty.

Then came the main event. Only two other people, a honeymooning couple, had booked an elephant day, so we had a nice small group. First we fed the elephants pineapple and bananas and learned that each elephant consumes 250kg  of food per day. After we got on their good side with food, it was time to get up close and personal. They taught us the commands that mahouts use when riding the elephants and then it was our turn to test our skills.

Commands, spelling approximated:

• Bone - raise your trunk so I can put food in your mouth
• Song - help/let me get on you
• How - stop
• Toy - move backwards
• Pai - go forward
• Pe - turn
• Chalon - let me down

The biggest test, though, at least for me, was just getting onto the elephant to begin with.  In order to get on the elephant, it puts out its bent leg and you use its angles as steps, meanwhile using its ear as a handhold. The problem is that the leg only gets you so high, and when you're my height and not a nimble mahout you still need a big boost. I worried about hurting it but then I realized that I am about 1/50 of its weight, and am therefore a fairly insignificant addition. Once on, you sit on the neck so as not to be wobbled around by the shoulders when it walks. In conjunction to verbal commands, you gently use a dull hook on key parts of the head and shift your weight and use your feet, e.g. nudging the ear opposite the direction you want to turn. When you're ready to get off you shout 'chalon!' and the elephant lowers its head until you can jump/slide off the front.

Out of focus but still illustrates my questionable description
of how one gets on an elephant

Attempting to turn right

Preparing for landing

The three of us tried this a few times, and by the time we were done it was time for lunch. In contrast to the questionable buffet lunch provided with my Chiang Rai tour, which I was actually worried would make me sick, this lunch was both abundant and delectable. Spring rolls, chicken and potato curry, noodles and shrimp, and a glutinous rice dessert. Once we were fed and our stomachs were settled we were ready for a jungle walk. Though we had been practicing our commands, we were all relieved to know that elephant control would be up to the mahouts when we went up into the mountain. My elephant and I were clearly meant to be paired together, as she took every opportunity to eat, displaying the impressivene strength and dexterity of her trunk by ripping off the leaves of everything in her path. Most impressive was when we stopped in a bamboo grove and the elephants snapped the plants down to get at the leaves that were out of their reach.

Eating

 

Eating

Eating!

Our walk ended in a river, where we dismounted and washed our respective elephants. I don't know whether the wash made much of a difference, but the elephants certainly seemed to enjoy it.

Don't the elephants look joyful?

Splash!

Then it was time to feed them one last time and say goodbye. We went to visit a week-old elephant nearby and went to a factory that makes paper out of elephant dung, as it is mostly just fiber.

Mom and baby

Baby up close

It was a great, special day. Just in case you haven't seen enough photos of me and elephants, I leave you with one more that sums it all up pretty well. By the time this is posted I'll be in the air and on the way home, but still with more stories coming your way.