Patara Elephant Farm

Patara elephant farm yesterday was the most amazing day of my life. Yes I have had some amazing days but this topped them all!  Morning started with having breakfast at the hotel where I sat and ate with a guy from Alaska.  We talked until I got picked up by Jake, one of the guides from the Patara elephant farm. We drove to another hotel and picked up Laura who is actually living in Bangkok as an expat wife. Her husband owns Colgate toothpaste company and has been stationed in Bangkok for the next four years.  Silva, Laura's friend, just came down for the week to visit. During the 45 minute drive to the farm we swapped stories and really got to know each other. The first thing we saw when we arrived at the farm was a beautiful field with numerous elephants wandering around. It was like a scene out of a jungle movie. Absolutely gorgeous!  

We walked down to a hut where two mother elephants and their babies welcomed us. After we got changed into our tribal uniforms we got to visit with the elephants for thirty minutes. The babies had a habit of wrapping their trunks around you or pulling on your clothes. They even tried to take our water bottles and had a habit of charging you or trying to knock you over.  After a talk from Pat about the itinerary for the day we got split into two groups of six. Once in my group, which consisted of Laura, Silva, Julie, Josh, and his twin brother Michael, we followed our guide Ben up into the mountains. Once there we got paired up with our own elephant depending on age and personality, and their trainer.

My elephants name was MaeThongKham and my trainer's name I could not pronounce, yet alone spell.  Before you approach your elephant to feed them a basket of bananas you must call their name.   If their ears and tail are flapping you are allowed to approach them, since this is a sign that they are in a good mood. After you have finished feeding them, which requires sticking your hand right on their tongue, you do a health inspection. You must check that they slept lying down since if an elephant sleeps standing upright it is a sign of distress. You must also check to make sure they are not dehydrated and their digestion is regular. To do this we check to make sure the eyes and toe nails are wet, as well as how moist their dung is. Yes we checked their poop. 

An elephant eats 10% percent of their body weight a day. We can tell that they have eaten the required amount by the number of droplets they leave behind. Less than six tells them you haven't eaten enough and that they may be distressed. After that we command them to lay down so we can brush their backs with a bundle of leaves which later becomes a snack for the elephant. We then walk them to the river where we actually get in with them and give them a bath. You brush them off from head to toe and command them to lay down, when you can't reach any higher. You then get to climb onto their backs.

The elephants are very gentle and are always aware of where you are.  No one got stepped on or hurt considering there was six of us and our trainers in the water with six huge elephants. It's absolutely amazing how gentle they are considering their sizes. Once we finished bathing them we had a huge water fight and swam in the waterfall. Lunch was served around this time which was a huge feast!  We ate from a hut looking out onto the river where the elephants played till we were finished. Like it was just one of those perfect movie moment days. In no way did it feel like a tourist activity!

Our whole group bonded very well and it was very interesting hearing about their different walks of life.  Once we had finished eating, the elephants came up to the hut and ate the left overs. They just reached their trunks in and grabbed as much as possible. It was so much fun and hilarious to see. Gosh, you had to have seen it in person to understand but it was incredible. The whole day was incredible!  I shake with excitement just thinking about it.

Once everyone was full it was time to go riding . First we learned the commands before learning how to get on them. Depending on where the elephant was rescued from, would determine how you got on. Those that were rescued from the circus could lift you up with their trunk or front leg. Mine, which was rescued from an illegal mining company, would bow his head and I would jump on. Sounds a lot harder than it is. It was actually super easy to get on and off the elephants and even though you weren't held in by anything while riding I felt super secure. We rode the elephants with our knees on top of their ears and our feet resting on their shoulder blades. The higher you sit up on their head the greater the chance of avoiding a Charlie horse. The second time we went riding we sat on top of the elephants head with our legs out in front. Way more comfortable but less secure.

The second trail was through a stream and was pretty flat while the other was steep up and down hill. Not once did I feel there was a possibility I would fall.  Our second ride led us to a temple.  There we fed our elephants again before saying farewell to everyone. No one wanted to leave but we were very thankful for having such an amazing day and could not complain at all.  A few other highlights of the day was when Laura's elephant, which has tusks, lifted us up. During the trail ride Silva's elephant stopped to scratch its ass on a dirt mound.   One of the baby elephants was running around and slipped and fell.  What a thud!  :P

Chai, Josh's trainer, asked me if I was married. When I told him I wasn't, he mentioned my trainer believed I was since I was wearing a ring. A ring that's on my pinky finger. Chai asked me how old I was and couldn't believe I was only eighteen and that I replied in Thai. After explaining why I could speak a bit of Thai and was living in Thailand Chai told me I should teach him English. He also joked about traveling with me for the next two months until I go back to Canada and that when I was done university I should come back to see him.  When I jokingly said I wanted to live at the farm, he told me I could live with him and we could ride elephants together everyday.  Not to bad of a proposal I would say.  He sure was a cutie.
Your trainers are not only there to  help you with your elephant, if needed, but they also look after your belongings and take pictures for you.  Ben is also there taking photos of you from a camera the size of a telescope. At the end of the day you get two CDs, one with photos, and the second with videos.   Again I'm going to emphasize what an amazing day it was and the incredible people I met!!!! <3