Feb 11 - Elephant Camp, Orchid Farm, Farewell Dinner

Ganesh shrine

I never knew I would be such a push-over for elephants - yeah, those big things you see in zoos. In Thailand, elephants are very, very special - the most spiritual of animals derived from Ganesh, the Hindu god of knowledge and the remover and creator of obstacles. Ganesh is often portrayed as a young boy with the head of an elephant.

The wild elephant population was been reduced to a few thousand due to deforestation and poaching. And as logging is now prohibited and trucks and tractors more versatile, they are no longer used in the forests. Needless to say they are no longer useful in battle.  But they have found a new home in the tourist industry.

The trip to the elephant camp was an optional offering, but everyone on the tour signed up for it. So we all piled onto the tour bus and headed to the Maesa Elephant Camp outside Chiang Mai. This camp is one of the largest. Their philosophy is to create a natural and healthy environment for the elephants while working to conserve and breed them,due to the dwindling number of Asian elephants left in the wild.

And it turns out that elephants are very, very smart and trainable, albeit very large. 

First we rode an elephant, and I can't say I recommend it.  It's a rough, tilting ride as the elephant lumbers along.  I have no idea what would happen if it were to run.

We watched the elephants bathe in the river

Here's a video of part of the elephant performance

We enjoyed the elephant show.  Elephants dancing, playing soccer and painting.  Rather amazing.

 Then off to an orchid farm for a good buffet lunch.  Food in the north of Thailand is less spicy than the south so I was able to eat quite a bit of it.


Back to the hotel for a bit then off to an "authentic experience of dinner in a local Chiang Mai family home" and a cooking lesson.  I don't know how typical this house was but it certainly was lovely, and the hostess very gracious.

After dinner we lit and launched hot air paper lanterns into the sky.



So very lovely, and I'm sure guaranteed to bring us good fortune and future visits to Thailand.