My elephant escapade

Knowing only a little about the program I was already excited about lending a helping hand. Before arriving I knew that it was an elephant reservation of some sort that rescued hurt, abused elephants and rehabilitated them within their compound. But I was appalled by what I had seen and heard over the next week about what happened to these poor creatures. Lek, Volunteers, The Elephant Nature Park and everyone involved fight against logging, street begging, training rituals and poor trekking companies.

Mae Do- Injured ankle from logging

Logging is causing deforestation in all of Thailand and there are only 500 wild elephants left from being threatened with this practice. Not to mention the elephants used in logging generally sustain some sort of injury by being overworked. Street begging has been regulated in major cities but is still happening. It is essentially when owners parade their elephants around bars, streets etc. in hopes the star-struck tourists will pay for photos with the foreign animals. This is incredibly stressful on the young elephants due to the fact that they hold sensory cells in their feet and the infinite vibrations caused by a crowded city street causes confusion. As far as certain trekking companies several of them do not treat the elephants with respect and work them to exhaustion and the seats on their backs can do permanent damage.

The one thing all of these practices have in common is the way the animal is trained, through the age old Phajaan Ceremony. This ritual is said to wean the younger elephants away from their mother as well as train them for their mahouts( each elephant has one, a trainer.) In all reality this ceremony is an act that is incomprehensible. The baby elephants are restrained by ropes and corralled into a small pen that can barley even house the animal. They are left there for days without food and away from their family for the first time. The trainers beat the elephants day in and day out with hooks and also long sticks attached with a five inch nail on the tip. Not knowing what is going on the vulnerable elephant is terrified, crying and from this behavior just receives several more stabs all throughout his body and behind his ears, which are an ultra sensitive spot. Depending how long it takes to beat the elephant into submission he/she could be locked up for several days to several weeks.

Lek is the founder of the Elephant Nature Park/Foundation. Before being recognized by Animal Planet, BBC, and National Geographic; receiving two PhDs; and also being called a Hero of Asia, Lek was just a young girl with a love and passion for these gentle giants.

Later on in life after deciding she was going to strive to be an advocate and a voice for these elephants is where the Elephant Nature Park comes into play. This didn't come without cost on her behalf, being hassled,threatened etc. about trying to change a long-lasting Thai tradition. Overcoming loops and hurdles the park came to fruition in 1995. Their mission is to,' Save the Asian elephant from extinction and to give the domesticated elephant a life worth living by preserving habitat and increasing public awareness on humane treatment practices.'

The sanctuary has acres and acres of free land for the elephants to roam as well as mud pits, for them to apply their mud-screen, and a refreshing river to relax in. There are over 35 rescued elephants residing in the camp and since they can't be completely set free (logging and just being captured again) the ENP is the best alternative. The park has many expenses to keep it going and provide the best care for the elephants. Getting the chance to volunteer and have a unique experience interacting with the elephants is the answer to two questions. How to keep the park going financially? And how to spread the word about the Asian elephant situation in Thailand?

Beginning the volunteer program meant the beginning of seven days without air conditioning. Now that I think about it, it's the longest consistent time that I can remember being without air conditioning in any shape or form ( like walking into a 7/11.) Our rooms were equipped with two beds, a fan and mosquito nets with only a few holes :) Our first task was elephant bathing time and getting up close and personal...even with their poo. This is always a fun time splashing the beasts with water but at the same time seems almost pointless since they cover themselves with dirt upon exiting.

Group C in full force

We came to find out that one of our favorite times was meal time! This always consisted of a large buffet arranged with various foods. Breakfast is always my favorite and made it only a little bit easier to pull myself out of bed at 7 AM every morning. After dinner on our first day we were put into our groups for the week. Group C got stuck with Whitney and I while Mike had to finagle his way into a seven day session after being a procrastinator with paying the moolah.

Mud Brick- We had to slosh around int his mud to get it to the right consistency to make bricks out of. They use these bricks to build various buildings throughout the park.

Each day consisted of a morning chore/project, lunch, afternoon project, dinner, and something happening in the evening. We completed many duties while at the park. Here are some photos of most with a brief description. One that I didn't have my personal paparazzi (Whitney) in tow for was cutting the banana trees. You can go ahead and picture me as badass as possible wielding a machete and hauling huge amounts of banana shrubs on my shoulders across a field...in the blistering heat. Good image?

Shoveling poo- Obviously my favorite part!

Garden Pole- Constructing rock pillars that act as a fence 

Elephant vet- All of the elephants have to be tended to. This one had a nail infection. Two others have feet wounds due to landmines, and many of the elephants are either partial or all blind. This happens mostly from abuse of their owners. They will use slingshots at their eyes when they are not listening.

Collecting animal poo fertilizer

The park was extremely nice and serene. If you had free time you could do what you please; relax, unload the days shipment of fruit and veg, or maybe walk over and listen while Lek is sitting underneath the baby elephants and singing them lullabies. It was a nice escape from the constant movement of backpacking. The whole staff was incredibly helpful and always smiling. We had two main leaders we worked with, one was Bee. She was just adorable and never looked angry. Even when we could tell we weren't exactly completing the project the correct way she would just smile and help you out. Can was our other main leader. He is an awesome guy with a kind/ soft spirit about him. He was very knowledgeable and was always there to answer any questions. There is one more leader that was full of personality and a love for Lady Gage. His name is Chet. Chet always had something to say and it was normally hilarious and in reference to the Mother Monster herself. He will be attending the Gaga Concert in Bangkok. Hope you have a great time my little monster!

The experience I had this week was awesome and something I could never forget about. I had an amazing time with the staff, elephants, and all my fellow volunteers. I hope from this you can take knowledge about the elephants you probably didn't know beforehand, and think twice before that trek or the photo you want so badly. And instead support a good cause like the ENP that encourages through positive reinforcement. Anyone can be a volunteer for different amounts of time, and I would urge anyway that was on this side of the world to swing by and volunteer if only for the day.

Put your paws up

Baby I was born this way

KT

Saving my Tree- The orange cloth is blessed by a monk, so it is protected by anyone who would try to cut it down.

Scam city

So we have been relying on the no plan plan recently, and the same went for when we arrived in Bangkok (which is perhaps the one place we should have planned!) After exiting the bus, stretching our legs, and me getting a piggyback to the nearest sidewalk to retrieve my tennis shoes from my bag after my flip flop experience, we were in search of some answers. Some of our questions were: where should we stay tonight, how do we get there, how do we find a Cambodia 'Angkor Wat' tour, and where the heck is the hospital so we can make sure Whitney gets her fourth rabies shot and doesn't rampage the city? All very legit questions, and all were answered by one taxi driver.

Our conclusion was a 100 baht taxi ride to a tourist center and a drop at whatever hotel they recommended. Easy enough right? Well after talking with one man for thirty minutes we booked a hotel, our Cambodia tour, and even haggled our way of being swung by the hospital on the way. Well this is where scam 1 falls in. I must admit we were in the tourist place and the hospital for a bit but once we were dropped off the driver wanted 1300 baht. After refusing we settled on 800 baht. Acceptable.

Now entering our hotel we were told we had wifi which is a must so I can write and post up here. While requesting the password we were told it cost 50 baht. Scam 2. Not taking no for an answer we calmly but promptly were given the password and then entered our room for the night. Complete with white walls, bars on the windows, and rock hard beds they should have just locked us in and called us prisoners. Good thing we were leaving bright and early in the morning.

After getting rushed out the door and into the van the driver lolly gagged for a good five minutes before we set off (which seems to happen a lot.) We drove for three hours before hitting the Cambodia border. I will just start off saying land crossings are hell. After waiting one hour in a long line in the blistering heat (twice as hot as Thailand in my opinion) we find out that was only the line to get out of Thailand. From there we had to trek across the land border and deal with another queue to enter Cambodia. Now were told because of poor roads taking a taxi was better to get in town faster, we opt for this route. Getting to the station we wait for a taxi, nothing comes, so we hop in a minivan. Arriving 2 1/2 hours later we find out from friends their big bus took the same amount of time. Drum roll please... Scam 3!

Our tour began the next morning with our guide, Saudi. We started off at the Angkor temples. The first was Bayon. This temple is famous for having faces on all of its many pinnacles. Also all around the two levels of the temples were the most amazing carvings. For both this and Angkor Wat the carvings tell a story. As far as Bayon they depicted historical events and everyday life.

From there we visited the world famous Angkor Wat. This temple is just gigantic and coincidentally enough the world's largest temple. There were tourists encasing the temple so I was getting a bit frustrated by not being able to get that postcard image, but what can you do? It was neat that I was standing at these temples that previously I had only been admiring from across the world for so long, and was also interesting to hear all of the history behind the buildings, even if I was getting jumbled Thai English. The building was built under the Hindu religion but depending of the king at the time the main religion varied. Something i found fascinating was that one of the Hindu kings didn't appreciate the newly added Buddha statues and defaced most of them.

The final temple we visited on this part of the tour was Ta Prohm. This particular temple was my favorite and in my opinion the most beautiful. The ruins of Ta Prohm are left in mostly the same condition as they were found. The jungle and strangle trees are growing around and in between the buildings and rubble of the ancient temple and create almost an erie atmosphere. Ta Prohm became popular when Angelina Jolie's movie 'Tomb Raider' was filmed there, and I could positively see why they thought it would be fitting scenery.

Us being ridiculously tired from walking around temples all day.

Now one thing I can't forget to mention is that Cambodians will try to sell you anything and everything. It's unlike anything I have ever seen before. I have seen the bartering and market stall owners begging you to buy from them and that whole stick, but I haven't seen the children getting into the action. Leaving each temple we were harassed by children aging from 4- 10 wanting to buy items from them. And it doesn't end there, there is no taking NO for an answer they will grab you, sell their pouty eyes and literally follow you back to your car and sit on your lap if you allowed it. We gave in a couple times and I bought five bracelets for 100 baht($3) but then she turned around and sold Whitney five for a one dollar bill!! Scam 4...taken by a little girl. It is actually sad that their parents train them to do this. When asked why and told they should go to school they answer they can make better money begging on the streets.

From here we stopped to talk about some of Cambodia's recent history and the meaning behind 'The Killing Fields. This event happened between 1975-1979 right after the Cambodian civil war. These fields are beyond numerous and where an amazing number were killed during the Khmer Rouge reign. Basically the Khmer Rouge was capturing and torturing anyone suspected of being affiliated with the former government. And unfortunately for the Cambodian population this was a majority of their professionals and intellectuals: professors, doctors, monks, and all political leaders. If you can imagine Pol Pot has been described at ' the Hitler of Cambodia.' The executions were things most of us could never think of,  and the total death is argued but somewhere in the early millions.

Our last stop of the tour was to board a floating village. Not knowing what to expect we hopped onto a small boat to coast down the river until it opened up to a large lake area. Now one surprise I had was turning around to see a small girl at the back of the boat. The curious thing about it is we didn't have her on the boat to begin with. She had jumped from her small motor powered canoe onto the boat to sell us overpriced drinks. Being highly impressed with her leap the whole boat enjoyed a cold beverage before she waved to her mother and was gone in a snap.

When entering the lake I was surprised to see exactly what it sounded like. But I never imagined it would actually be the size of a small village. Literally these people were living on this lake, houses, schools, markets, and I'm only assuming toilets were all there in that area. We stopped at a small market and you would never guess but.... We were surrounded by little kids asking for more things! This time they were luring tourists in being cute and young while holding a snake, something obviously we have to fall victim to.

I asked and apparently most of the people occupying the village don't have permission to live on land and this is their only option. Once they obtain a proper ID card of some sorts I believe that option opens up to them.

Being tired out from days of sweating and learning far more than our brains can handle we were pumped about getting back into Thailand to rest for a bit. But as the story is added up you can probably guess this doesn't happen and the day does not go smoothly at all. Being rushed out thirty minutes before we were told the van was arriving made us all frustrated and on edge. Expecting to mayyybee get to the border fast was far to much to ask as well. For the couple days of being in Cambodia I think I have met whoever our bus driver's family is multiple times. And this is because they stop an annoying amount of times for gas and breaks that just so happen to be next to a market or shop that they know everyone. By the time we reach Thailand were all unhappy campers and barley talking to each other with being so miserable.

Finally making it back to Bangkok after about eight hotels we find one that offers what we are looking for and head to the night market for a quick stroll. The next morning you'll never guess what I'm missing...my wallet! Either scam 5 or my forgetful memory. I'm not going to say I was for sure pickpocketed by I will say we were on Koh San Road and it's a number one spot for this sort of thing to happen. Losing my debit, credit, insurance card and license this turns out to be a proper nightmare. On the upside though these are all things that can be replaced and are almost at this point ready to be mailed to Australia.

Our last day we toured Bangkok and were you guessed it scammed again number six to be exact. Keeping this story short we hired tuk tuk to take us around to some major spots. We agreed to go to some tourist tux stores and jewelry stores because if we did our driver received a coupon for gas. After only visiting one of our stops and three of theirs they dropped us at a temple and put the pedal to the medal saying they had to go. Over it. I'm so happy to move onto Chiang Mai its ridiculous, and now so happy to be done writing this blog! It's taken me forever, hallelujah!

Tricks are for kids