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In Our Spare Time

Elephants

In December 2006, my husband Jeff and I embarked on our second trip to Southeast Asia. We wanted to see wats (temples) and also visit various elephant farms. I have included some of the pictures from our trip below.

Our favorite country on the visit was Laos. The people are very friendly (without money-making motives), the temples are really amazing around Luang Prabang, as a UNESCO heritage site, there is much to see. It is very spiritual and lovely there.

However the elephant camps nearby are nothing to write home about and the elephants were hungry most of the time. I do not know who got the bright idea that tourists should ride them, because it is very uncomfortable for the elephants. Although living in a tourist camp beats logging by far, its still not a great life for them. They do not eat during the day, only at night when they are chained in the jungle (if they are lucky).

Hongsa was definitely a nice change. The elephants there are healthier and well-fed. Perhaps it is because there are less tourists who go there. It is a tough place to get to: all day on a tiny river boat or by bumpy road through the jungle.

There are still wild elephants in Laos! And ElefantAsia helps to moderate the interactions between villagers and elephants. Laos is a great place and worth the trip.

We also loved Thailand. It is a very prosperous place and we were shocked how much everyone loves the king there. We only found one elephant sanctuary worth mentioning because it is really amazing! Most of the photos of happy elephants playing in the river where taken at the Elephant Nature Foundation.

Whereas elsewhere in Asia elephants are made to put on shows for the public, watching elephants at the Foundation is much more entertaining. The setting there allows them just to be elephants and for their interactive and vibrant personalities to shine through. You won't see any miserable elephants sucking on their trunks (a sign of hunger) or with sores on their heads from cigarette burns and sticks. It's a completely different feeling from the other camps we visited and just a quick ride from hotels in Chang Mai.

I hope you enjoy these pictures from our trip:

Elephant Safari At the Elephant Nature Foundation in Chang Mai, Thailand, elephants are walked by tourists to the river. It's like being in a National Geographic movie!

Baby bath Elephants love to be bathed, and who better to scrub them in the cool water than humans? Jeff and I had a lot of fun with this "white" elephant.

Elephant bath More elephant scrubbing and interaction at the Elephant Nature Foundation in Chang Mai.

Dirt bath As this young elephant already knows, the best fly repellant is dirt!

Lake play Elephants at the Elephant Nature Foundation enjoy a wallow in the river. This young elephant appears to be imitating the humans by scrubbing an adolescent's back!

Positive training At the Foundation, people are taught that to train the elephants does not equate to abuse any more. Here this baby is being trained to take commands with positive reinforcement (i.e., a banana).

Sad face Elephants kept in typical parks are not as fortunate as those at the Foundation. They are not fed enough and, even as the park claims to be helping them, they are suffering in conditions that are far from ideal. This elephant at a camp in Laos is suffering. You can tell by the discharge and sad look in the eyes.