My Catch-Up Plan

OK so I am officially a whole year behind on my blog. A friend of mine advised me to just skip 2010 and start from 2011 but 2010 was a great year and so much happened that I don't eally want to do that. So, from here on I will be uploading both years simultaneously. Wish me luck - I might just need it!

New Years - Thai Style

Woke up early – cocktails at 11:30am - beach all day – swimming and relaxing - nap time - wonderful dinner with the gang - packed streets and silly string - lanterns on the beach - midnight at the gay bar - call mum and dad - skies are alive – full moon, lanterns and fireworks - cabaret time – everyone drunk – bed at 3am!

Excuse the panic at the start of this movie clip – it was really hot! This was the best part of the night – hundreds of lanterns floating out across the sea – a great sight!

In the midst of all that madness, one thing really hit home. The beach we were at was one of those hit by the tsunami in 2004. Just 5 years ago it was filled with death and destruction and now it is back to normal; filled with tourists and locals, beautiful waters, sunshine and smiles. It was hard to sit there and think that so many people were in my position, enjoying a relaxing holiday, when the wave struck. So many times in history we think we’re invincible and every so often Mother Nature likes to remind us we’re not.

Love to all for the New Year!!

Lazy Days and Cabarets

If last week was the “get to know the real Thailand/working hard week” then this week is going to be the “laze around all day” week. Today we slept in late, got up, went to Subway for lunch, came back, watched TV, went to the movies, ate dinner, went drinking and slept – it was great!

The movie theatres in Thailand are so cheap. It worked out half the price we pay in Japan and that was after we bought the most expensive ticket; not just two seats but an entire sofa to ourselves. I also like the way they play the national anthem before each movie and everyone stands to respect the King. They really love the King out here and whenever you speak to anyone they always refer to him as my King. – so nice.

Another fantastic part of the day was going to see my first lady-boy cabaret show. I honestly had no idea what to expect and I was blown away. Not only do these guys actually look like women but they have made lip-syncing a real art. Since this bar is literally a 30 second stroll from my hotel room, I suspect I will be seeing a lot more of these guys, I mean girls, I mean…..oh whatever!

Sad Goodbyes, Happy Hello's!

Up and out by 6:30am!

We had the final goodbye ceremony at the camp before exchanging present and saying goodbye!

I was so sad to leave because it really felt as though I had known these people or so much longer than a week. It has been an amazing experience and it’s one I know I will never forget.

As Mr. Na arrived to take us to the airport there was just time for final hugs, kisses and tears and then we were off! As we hadn’t eaten breakfast we were feeling hungry on the drive to the airport and Mr. Na was prepared. His wife had packed a whole flask of coffee and various pasties for us. One thing that I have been touched by on this part of the trip is that no matter how little these people have, they are always willing to share it.

The flight to Phuket was OK but I started to freak as we came in to land. Dawn is used to my in-flight panic attacks but I swear we were coming in to land so fast. We bounced back up on the first try before landing safely – thanks for that!!

We were met at the airport by Dawn’s friend Ken, who couldn’t wait to show us around. The hotel he recommended to us turned out to be right on gay-street. I could sugar-coat that a little more but it just wouldn’t give the same impression. Just think of the one main street in Phuket where all the bars are lady-boy bars and where hot pants and glitter are fashion essentials. It was great.

After a quick nap we were met by Ken and his friend Don who took us to dinner in style. Well, we were racing through the streets on motorcycles with no helmets which is probably as good as it gets in Phuket and something I’ll never do again! When we got home not even the blaring pop-music from downstairs could keep me awake as I was asleep in no time!

Final Day at Camp

Today was another slow day and so Pin devised a test for Dawn and I. We had to take each other for a ride around camp and answer questions about the elephants and the area. Unfortunately I was first to go and Pin and Dawn decided to play the role of pain in the butt tourists. Apart from almost knocking them both out as I tried to open the umbrella and a few hairy moments when DP decided she wanted to go the opposite way it was fine and in said I passed.

Dawn also did very well as she has much more confidence than me. I don’t understand why I am such a big chicken. Piccha has really pushed me this week though and I know given the choice I would not have tried half of what I’ve done. He can see through me and so instead of giving me a choice, he just waits till I’m sitting on DP and then tells me what we’re going to do!

The elephants usually go out for 10-30 minutes at a time but one lady booked DP for a whole hour this afternoon. When they came back DP was very grumpy because it was so hot and the lady didn’t even tip! I treated her to a cool bath, long cool drink and fresh leaves so she was soon happy.

As we went over the tires to the forest tonight I was not scared but sad as it would be my last time to ride her. There was one final panic moment in store just as I had jumped down and was getting ready to say goodnight. Suddenly there was a loud bang nearby and DP bolted. After riding at her slow pace all week it was amazing (and completely terrifying) to see just how fast they can go.

After making sure she was set for the night we headed back to camp and I was in tears already. Piccha was so sweet and held my hand all the way back. Because it was the last night we had dinner at camp with everyone. Oh performed his elephant song (see the video below) which was so funny and we spent the evening eating, drinking and laughing.

Just before we left we were called outside and the mood suddenly became a little more serious. We noticed everyone had a candle and Arnon told us we were to have a ceremony together. Once everyone had lit their candles all the mahouts began talking about their best memories of the week and their impressions of us. It was clear that this was a very important part of the experience and soon they were lots of tears around the table. It was nice to know that even the mahouts we didn’t work with had noticed us around camp.

After all the emotions of the day I felt drained but we still had shopping to do at Tesco’s. We decided to buy the mahouts thank you gifts and stayed up till 2am wrapping them. After that we had to pack and eventually got to bed about 3:30am!

Argh! Tourists!

I missed Dern Pen so much it was great to see her again and she gave me the usual welcome of sniffing me all over looking for hidden fruits. Piccha also gave me the elephant ring he had told me about. He made it using black and white hairs from her tail. It sounds gross but the ring is so nice. I will definitely treasure it.

Maybe it’s the heat or something but today’s tourists are crazy. One guy from Iceland brought his 5 year old daughter along and after two minutes it was clear he was more scared than the kid. He kept yelling every time Den Pen went an inch off the road, he did not trust me to command her and so kept yelling at Piccha. DP had no idea what was going on and so decided to do her own thing. She got so mad that she ended up trumpeting and so the other Mahout’s came running to see what was going on. I used to think the sound was cute but when you realize they only do it when they are very angry it does become frightening. Luckily she calmed down and as soon as the stupid guy had gotten off she was fine!

The women of the camp have all left to visit family in the north and so the main hut has turned into a boys camp. I thought Reung would be sad without his family but the other Mahout’s are keeping him company. I spent most of the afternoon chilling out on DP, writing my journal and watching her. I have also found myself talking to her which is funny but when I’m just sitting on top just chilling out I feel like I should. Me sitting on her by the way is the equivalent of when a cat sits on our lap so it’s not like she’s bothered by it.

I have perfected my dismount I just need to work on getting up her a little smoother. I am not the most graceful person by any means and I have some horrendous pictures to prove that getting on is harder than you think. Tonight we went to a local market to start buying presents for the mahouts. (I got lots of haggling done – mum would be proud!)

Recovery Day!

Ouch my head hurts this morning!!

Arnon took us to a nearby island to meet another volunteer who was doing the temple tour. We didn’t get to meet him as it was meditation time so Arnon took us to a nearby beach. The plan was to swim, surf, snorkel and relax. All 3 of us girls just about managed to eat lunch and drink delicious fresh coconut juice before passing out on the beach! It was just what we needed!

We made our way back to Pattaya as tomorrow is another full elephant day. Dawn and I were both cranky from hangover/lack of sleep so it was a quick trip to Tesco’s to get food and straight to bed.

A Wild Christmas Day

Christmas Presents

* Sore arms and legs from getting on and off the elephants.
* Fireworks throughout the night = cranky elephants this morning.
* Learned to count to ten in Thai. Piccha knows 1-10 in Japanese so we were having an English/Japanese/Thai test – very cool.
* Piccha measured my finger for an elephant ring he is going to make me – so sweet!

Just to give back we bought every elephant at camp 2 watermelons for Christmas!

Today went into town where the company is based. We had our first experience of Thai buses. They have little to no timetables, might not come at all and can wait anywhere from 0-30 minutes at a bus stop depending on the driver. We also rode our first tuck-tuck (I have no idea how they actually spell it)

We had dinner with Arnon’s family and it was a mix of Korean BBQ and Japanese stew. When you order takeaway in Thailand, not only do you get the raw meat and vegetables but also the coals on which to cook everything – very cool!

It turns out neither Dawn or I listen very well as we didn’t understand that we were spending the night in town and bought nothing with us! It was a good excuse to hit up the local night market and grab a few bargains.

Party Time! Chang beer tower, vodka slide shots, my first experience of seeing lady-boys, crazy DJ, drinking contests, dancing and much drunkenness! Also got to finally speak to mum and dad so as I fell into bed about 3am and the room began spinning I was thankful for a great Christmas!

Thai Christmas Eve

We had an early start today and got to the “forest” just as the first hint of daylight hit the horizon. (It turns out the forest was just a piece of land with a few trees and bushes and lots of rubbish.) It was great to see DP again but I wasn’t as keen to run and greet her as she had given herself a mud bath during the night.

Thankfully the morning is bath time and elephants love water. Dern Pen played around while Picchan scrubbed the dirt off her and Reung Napa (another elephant) loves the water so much that you could only see the top of her head during bath time.

I’m really enjoying focusing on one elephant. They are just like us – things they don’t like, things they like and things they love. Dern Pen loves fruit and cheekily discovered the supply I had hidden under the table so when it came time to hide the medicine in her fruit – I had to get more!!

Spent the morning just sitting in the chair on Dern’s back – it’s so comfy I could stay there for hours but I’m still a little jumpy when she moves around suddenly. Dawn on the other hand has no fear and once she was comfy she fell asleep!

It was a quiet day and all the elephants are a little grumpy. The leaves are not as tasty because they are getting to the bottom of the pile but it was food delivery day today courtesy of the afro-van!

Watching elephants drink is so funny. They fill their trunks with water then throw it all down their throats at once. That’s impressive when you think their trunks can hold 10-15 litres of water. It also sounds like a toilet flushing when they swallow it.



Because we were next in line to be called we couldn’t get ready to go to the forest until the park closed. By the time we were ready the others had left and so Piccha decided we should take a short-cut to catch up. Because he was walking alongside Dern Pen she follows him right over four walls of tires. We would usually go around them but he decided to go over them today without telling me. I was starting to panic as I had never ridden Dern Pen when she was climbing over things but Piccha just said his usual “No problem!”

To celebrate Xmas Eve Pin, Bo, Dawn and I head to a nearby restaurant. The food was great and we decided to finish it off with Donuts from Tesco! Pin is such a riot and after spending the night discussing Twilight, Johnny Depp, Dawn French, roast dinners and English breakfast it was time for bed.

Riding Day

I can’t believe how happy I was to see Dern Pen today – it feels like I’ve known her for ages. Her way of saying hello was to sniff me all over with her trunk looking for bananas!

After our morning chores were done it was time to try getting on her. You just have to trust her and go for it. She lifted her leg, I stepped up her leg to her thigh area but then there’s nowhere left to step so you have to reach over, grab her other ear and pull yourself over. It wasn’t graceful or elegant but on the second attempt I was on!

I was nervous and a little scared at first but she listened well and after a while I had managed to get my bum comfy as I sat on the back of her neck and used my feet to control her. I put off getting down as long as I could and so while she was munching her leaves I just chilled out and admired the view. Picchan knew what I was doing and so he told me it was time to try getting down. You have to put all your weight on their ear and climb slowly. Again the grace and elegance went out of the window and I ended up sliding down her body but I got down!

When we ride the elephants we do it bareback but when the tourists come the mahouts have to put a special seat on the elephant so we can get 2-3 people on at a time. I had just dismounted for the second time when a large group of tourists arrived and all the elephants were required to go out. We were told we would take out tourists later on in the week so I thought this meant I had free time…..boy was I wrong!

Picchan gave me a red t-shirt and told me to go to the platform where the tourists get on and off. Our tourist test had been moved up and I had to get on Dern Pen from the platform in front of the tourists I would be taking around the camp. I swear getting on from the platform is much scarier. You have a two foot gap and you have to just step on the elephant, keep your balance and then get into position.

It was such an adrenaline rush I almost didn’t have time to be scared and before long it was all over and we were done. Thankfully the people enjoyed their time and we even got a tip. The only criticism they had was that Dawn and I were shouting our commands a little too loud and the tourists thought something was wrong. Other than that, we we’re pro’s!

After all that hard work, we had a trip to the local town for some local cuisine -grasshoppers - yummy!

After a relaxing afternoon, dusk started to fall and we were told we could help take the elephants to their sleeping place. We were told the elephants sleep in the forest but they forgot to mention that to get to the forest we would have to battle the busy roads. Luckily the elephants are used to the cars, trucks and motorbikes and Dern Pen carried on as normal.

It was pitch black when we got to the forest but climbing down an elephant in the dark isn’t as scary as it sounds. After saying goodnight we headed back to camp for dinner and then back to our room. I spent the next hour scrubbing my hands and feet; looking after elephants is dirty work!