Elephants!!!

This morning, I got what my heart longed for most -- a ticket to Chang Mai. I don't even care that it's on the night train, and that there were no beds left so I'll have to sleep sitting up. But I'll be there tomorrow, and that's all that matters.

But it did present an interesting problem: what to do for the rest of the day? I'm in Ayuthaya, about an hour north of Bangkok. It has lovely ruins from the golden era of Thailand, but I saw them yesterday. Along with everything else that might provide entertainment. Except one thing ...

Ayuthaya Pictures

In a moment, I had my answer: elephants.

Yesterday, I was trudging through the ruins on foot in the oppressive heat and humidity (95 degrees, 88% humidity), cursing myself for not renting a bicycle and muttering at all the tourists who had. Then I saw something I thought might be a hallucination: elephants lumbering through the ruins.

So I stored my bags, rented a bicycle (my knee was ready for it) and set off to find the elephants. It didn't take long. Elephants are pretty hard to hide, after all.

The elephants are from a nearby elephant camp where they promote the best possible conditions for elephants and provide education about how to care for them. Tourists can spend a few days there learning about elephants and how to care for them. But they give rides to tourists to raise money for the camp. As if I needed another reason to ride an elephant!

I was just as excited as a little girl could be. I quickly signed up for a half-hour elephant ride, which was REALLY cool. I got to rest my bare feet on the elephant's back, watched him eat and drink, felt him stop while he did his business ... it was magical. There's even a photo of me sitting on the elephant, but I couldn't get a digital copy so you'll have to wait for that one.

Elephant Pictures

But I also got to:

Feed a baby elephant formula (through a really long straw)


Pose for a picture with the baby elephants

Feed the big elephants (they have the most incredible suction from their trunks!)

And admire the elephant's really cute feet.

Mom, Dad, could I bring home an elephant? We can keep him in the yard. We can call him Bob, as he will have lots of Bob-Knight qualities. He will provide lots of fertilizer for the yard. I'm sure he and the cat will be good friends. Please?