Patara Elephant Farm “Elephant Owner for a Day”

The pictures I’ve posted of me and the elephants received a lot of attention, so I figured I would write a post about it (since this post is image heavy, I made the pictures smaller. Click on them to see full size!)

Up in Chiang Mai there are many available options for trekking and wildlife interaction. There is the Tiger Kingdom where you pay to have your picture taken and pet some tigers (babies or adults). I have heard various reports that it’s either great, or it is very exploitative of the tigers, some people even thinking that they mildly sedate the tigers in order to keep them calm. The treks available usually include a hike up a mountain, an elephant ride, bamboo rafting, and a trip to a tribal village. Again, I felt like some of this seemed like it was exploiting either the people or animals, and I heard the hikes are straight up a mountain, no switchbacks. No thanks.

After doing a little research, I decided to book a day trip to the Patara Elephant Farm. It was the most expensive option, which doesn’t make much sense for a budget backpacker, but when it comes to the welfare of animals,

Nui saying hello!

I’m willing to pay a little more money to make sure I’m not supporting an organization that mistreats their animals. Patara Elephant Farm is actually a breeding camp with a goal to aid in the repopulation of elephants in Thailand. In order to help finance their organization, they have the “Elephant Owner for a Day” program where they teach tourists about the history of elephants in Thailand, general care and upkeep, how to ride elephants, and a few key Thai phrases (that the elephants may or may not respond to). It’s a totally hands on experience where you (with the help of that elephants trainer) are responsible for taking care of your elephant.

Pat, the owner, is incredibly knowledgeable and makes learning about these

Meeting Nui

creatures interesting and fun. After a 30 min. intro, you are given a basket of fruit and led to meet your elephant. As you approach you yell out your elephants name (Nui was my elephant) and say, “CHA!”. The elephant trumpets back to you, and that is apparently the elephants way of saying you can approach. I think they’ll let anyone approach if they see that basket of fruit.

Group Photo

After the feeding, we checked the wellness of the elephant, brushed the dirt off, and led our elephants to the creek for a bath. It’s a little bit of work since elephants have quite a lot of surface area, but it was fun watching the elephants roll around in the water.

The morning routine takes about an hour and a half, and then we were f

Gracefully trying to climb on

ed a delicious snack – coconut and sticky rice – because like the elephants, we were working hard too! Then they showed us how to get on the elephant to prepare for our ride up the mountain. There are three ways: have the elephant lay down and climb up from the back; hoist yourself up from the elephants raised leg; or climb up the trunk. We were required to try two of the three during our adventure, and I was not graceful doing either.

Getting used to sitting on the elephant was difficult, because there is nothing to hold on to, besides elephant ears. You control the movement of the elephant by kicking their ears (like horseback riding, kind of) and yelling a few different commands that we wrote on our wrists to remember. Thai elephants don’t understand English. They don’t really pay attention to Thai words either, as my elephant Nui would always stop to eat (ALWAYS) and my constant yelling of, “Pai! Nui, Pai! Yana!” (Go! Nui, Go! Bad!) didn’t seem to do any good.

After clambering to the top of Nui, my elephant, and getting used to feeling

Going downhill

like I was going to fall off, our group of 12 set off for our elephant trek. They warned us before we started that this might be the most difficult elephant trek in Thailand. I thought they were kidding. The incline of this “hill” was near vertical at points, with a totally eroded path and sometimes nothing but stones for the elephant to step on. We meandered up and down cliffs on paths that were smaller than the elephant, up steps that were a couple feet high, and down some serious drops and across creeks. All without ANYTHING to hold on to. Eventually you learn to trust your elephant (well, most people learn to trust, others have serious trust issues that they probably need to work out with someone other than an elephant) and you realize that they are more surefooted than you will ever be.

At the end of the trail is a small waterfall and a little pond. Time for a delicious lunch of more kinds of sticky rice than you can ever imagine, all wrapped very eco-friendly in banana leaves. What do you do with the leftover food and wrappers? Feed it to the elephants, of course.

Swimming with Nui

We also got into the water on our elephants (they advertise swimming with elephants in the brochure, I just didn’t think the elephants would be swimming while we tried to stay on). Elephants love to lay down in the water, sideways, and roll back and forth. With you on top, or again, trying to stay on top. It’s like a bizarre version of bull riding, and again, not a graceful activity. But it sure is a heck of a lot of fun, as long as you make sure to keep your leg from getting trapped underneath the elephant.

Finally, you learn another riding method, legs over the front of the elephants

Saying goodbye to Nui - who will be having a baby in 14 months!

head. Nicer on your knees, but scarier in terms of stability issues. One more ride through a river and along rice paddies, and your day owning an elephant is over. It’s one of the most fun experiences I’ve had traveling, and this entire (long) post can’t even do it justice. If you are ever in Chiang Mai, I would highly recommend that you spend the money (about $200) and learn about the amazing elephants of Thailand.

Check out http://www.pataraelelphantfarm.com or go to TripAdvisor and search for it (It’s the number one attraction in Chiang Mai!)

What kind of vacation can you afford in Thailand?

So you’ve seen some of my pictures from the islands in Thailand and you are in desperate need of a vacation (who isn’t?). You’re tempted, but wondering how far your money can actually get you in Thailand. Is it really as cheap as people say?

Yes and no.

Bungalow and Hammock, primitive but steps from the beach!

I’ll use Koh Lanta, since it is an island without a stereotype, so it caters to everyone. The cheapest bungalows on the island run for 300 to 350 baht (9-10 USD), but are located on a not-so-nice strip of beach. If you stay on Long Beach, as I did, you can get a bungalow for 400 baht (12 USD) per night. This includes your very own porch with hammock (the best part!), woven bamboo walls, fan, a very springy bed with a mosquito net, and a bathroom with shower (not a warm shower, but a shower nonetheless) and a toilet that you have to pour water down in order to “flush”.

Inside of the bungalow, your own bed and mosquito net!

Bungalow with a great patio. Room inside was spacious, but not too clean.

Thinking that might be slumming it a bit too much? Try a nearby “resort” with a pool, air conditioning, hot water, and working toilets. Not the cleanest rooms, but a pretty good deal for 1100 Baht (33 USD). Good for flashpackers to midrange travelers who wants a little nicer set up. This would also be good for families on a budget. Rooms were spacious and the pool would be great for kids. Not a bad deal! They told me this was a special price for me, but I’m sure anyone could work out that special price if you’re willing to negotiate a bit (maybe even get lower!).

Pool and lounge areas at an upscale resort

Thailand, however, has seen a huge increase in upscale hotels and resorts, especially on the islands. A little farther down the beach you have a very posh resort. With a spectacular infinity pool and a posh looking restaurant, I knew I had stumbled upon a fancy place. When I asked to see an available room, I was picked up in a golf cart and driven what would have been a one minute walk to a condo-like building. The room was spectacular,

A $517 room with a great balcony

flower petals on the bed and in the sunken bath tub. A beautiful seating area outside, huge bathroom, and extremely comfortable-looking furniture. Sounds nice, right? This room can be yours for only 17,000 baht per night, or 517 USD. The look of shock on my face when told the price might have given me away for a backpacker. That or the fact that I had wild looking hair, a swim suit, and no shoes on. I’m surprised they even let me in the room.

Bathroom, with sunken tub (filled with flowers) and shower

These three options were all located within a half mile from each other. All share the same beautiful beach with the same warm, turquoise water. You can be a budget backpacker or you can be a high-end tourist, all in the same place, so its up to you how much money you want to spend.

A beach anyone can enjoy!

A Travel Quote

A friend of mine sent me a quote that she thought related to my traveling experience, so I decided I would share it. Maybe this will make up for my huge delays on writing blog posts!

“Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things – air, sleep, dreams, the sun, the sky – all things tending toward the eternal or what we imagine of it.”

I like it, and I think it is very accurate. Thoughts?

Back Stateside

Major fail in not updating. Sorry!

Update: I’m back in the States now after flying out of Bangkok on December 8th. Took a few days to readjust to pacific time, but it was great catching up with friends and eating Mexican food for every meal.  I will be spending the holidays with my family then looking for a temporary job to save up money before heading to South America!

I have a few posts I’ll be adding in the coming days about the last few weeks of the first part of my trip. Things to look forward to: elephant ownership, accommodation in Thailand, and my favorite activity in Thailand: SHOPPING.

It’s good to be back (for just a little while), but I can’t wait to head out to South America as soon as I get sufficient funds. Speaking of which…I’m now accepting holiday donations

Thailand Island Edition pt. 2

In search of something a little more quiet and relaxing? Try going to Koh Muk. The main beach, commonly referred to as Charlie beach, is a decent sized strip of powdery soft white sand and clear turquoise water nestled into a peaceful bay.

Beautiful sandy beach

There aren’t a lot of options for accommodation on Ko Muk. Charlie’s Resort takes up the beachfront and a ways back, and you need to walk through the resort to get to the few other places on the island, which are located just outside Charlie’s overpriced walls. If you head to the end of the island there is a very nice resort located on a pure white sand spit, but be prepared to empty out your wallet on that one.

The small entrance into Emerald Cave

There also isn’t a whole lot to do on Koh Muk. The most common thing is to take a long tail boat on the Four Islands tour. It starts with a visit to the Emerald Cave which involves a swim through a pitch black cave that empties out into a beautiful sinkhole. The rest of the trip includes a couple snorkeling stops (visibility was pretty poor) and lunch on the beach of Koh Kradan with a few hours to lay out on the white sand.

When you get back to Koh Muk, be prepared to turn in early. Everything closes around 11 (and even then you will be the last patrons in the establishment). It is more of a place for families with young kids, not much of a backpacking place. It is, however, a nice stop in the Trang Islands, and if you are staying at Rubber Tree Bungalows (an actual rubber plantation), you’ll be treated to top notch staff that bend over backwards for you. Mr. Odd (I think that was his name) takes typical Thai hospitality and blows it out of the water. It’s almost amusing how enthusiastically he greets you every morning, noon, and night.  And the cutest kitten ever lives there, which was maybe my favorite part of Koh Muk (crazy cat lady alert!)

My kitten friend at Rubber Tree

Help Build a School in Cambodia

When I recently visited Cambodia, I felt a lot of frustration about some aspects of the country. A lot of social problems can be fixed with an efficient and successful education system.

A coalition of travel bloggers have formed a website called Passports with Purpose which raises money and awareness for a different international project each year. This year, the money being raised is going to build a school in a rural village in Cambodia. While education is common in the Cambodian cities, it can be very difficult for rural children to have access to school, and the American Assistance for Cambodia is helping change that.

For every $10 you donate, you will be entered into a raffle for the prize of your choice. The prizes have all been donated by fellow travel bloggers.  This year some of them include a Casio 10 megapixel digital camera, a 5-night stay at a resort in Costa Rica, a bunch of backpacking gear, gift certificates, and MUCH MORE.

If you can spare $10, or $20 or $30, I urge you to donate to this campaign. After visiting Cambodia, I saw the need for help, and this is a great way to contribute to the Cambodian people who have long faced suffering, hardships, and poverty. The children are the future for the country to overcome its troubles, and they need schools to help them do that.

Thank you for your support!

www.passportswithpurpose.com

The King of Fruits

The fruit in Thailand is incredible, as to be expected. The pineapple is delicious and sweet, I actually like the papaya (I’ve never encountered a papaya I’ve liked until Thailand), and the mango is to die for. Yet perhaps the most unique of Southeast Asian fruits is what the Thai refer to as the King of Fruits: Durian.

The outside of a durian

Durian is big, looks a little like a pineapple in its golden brown shell and spiky husk. What most people notice most about it, however, is the smell. Described as smelling like rotten meat, sewage, skunk, or as travel writer Richard Sterling said, “its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock.” The odor is so strong (even without cutting into the fruit you can smell it) that it has been banned from many hotels and forms of public transportation.

The seriousness of bringing durian into a building

Yet the taste of durian is completely different. Breathe through your mouth as to avoid smelling it, and grab one of the doughy but a little slimy, custardy, flesh covered seeds, and suck off the fruit. It’s creamy, a little nutty tasting, and sweet. Not bad, but in my opinion, takes some getting used to.

The flesh of durian (from Wikipedia)

The interesting thing to note is the dire warning imparted on all farang (tourists) from the locals that serve durian, “Don’t mix with alcohol”. Nobody could explain to me why you should not drink and eat the fruit, so I turned to the internet. According to Wikipedia information, it seems to be just a local myth, although it may cause indigestion and bad breath. I think you’ll suffer from bad breath no matter what you drink after eating durian. A study done by University of Tsukuba showed that the high sulfur content of the fruit caused a 70% reduction of the ability to clear toxins from the body. I dared to be a rebel and had a Singha beer after my durian. No harmful side effects noted.

 

Everyone should try durian once, even though it is the strangest fruit I have ever seen. Anthony Bourdain loves it, and whatever Anthony Bourdain likes, everyone else should like, right?