Look deep into Nature,
and then you will understand everything better.
– Albert Einstein.
Faa Mai. Four years old and one of the happiest elephants in the world. Elephant Nature Park, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
Look Deep into Nature…
Tag Archives: Elephant Nature Park
To See the World in a Grain of Sand…
To see the world in a grain of sand
And to see Heaven in a wild flower
Hold infinity in the palm of your hands
And eternity in an hour.
– William Blake
Mae Jan Peng (Full Moon) – one of the oldest elephants at Elephant Nature Park. A hole was made in her ear in her harder days previous to her retiring at the Park. Her mahout now puts a fresh flower in it every day to make her feel more beautiful.
The Way to Love Anything…
The way to love anything is to realize that it may be lost.
– Gilbert K. Chesterton
Chang Yim – young male elephant and all around ratbag. Elephant Nature Park, Chiang Mai, Thailand.
How to ‘Om’ an Elephant and the Boy with the Elephant Tail. Elephant Nature Park – Day 6
Chet featuring a fetching little work outfit.
The chore du jour was peeling the husks off sacks and sacks of corn in the elephant kitchen. The silk from the corn must be removed so it doesn’t disturb the elephants’ digestive systems. For this, Chet wore a lovely little number featuring a net singlet, black shorts, black silver-tipped collar and a beautiful bling ring to suit. Gumboots completed this gorgeous ensemble, and his presence lit up the kitchen in the most glorious, if eclectic, way. More word games helped keep the boredom away while furthering our literary abilities, and we emerged a couple of hours or so later just slightly more educated than when we went in. Continue reading
Unexpected Visitors and the Non-Electric Char-Grilled Toasting Machine. Elephant Nature Park Day Five.
Elephant Bff’s bathing together
You know that feeling you get when two elephants, that you don’t know personally, walk up and tower over you? Well today was my turn to experience it. I was sitting by myself on a wooden seat overlooking the river, watching a couple of elephants bff’s bathing together. Lolling about they were, schmoozing their heads in and out of the water, rolling their bodies this way and that ecstatically, unfurling their trunks now and then to touch each other in silent solidarity. ‘Twas a long, quiet moment with an almost sepia setting – orange and grey elephants, beige water, sandy river bank and a beach of grey pebbles in the foreground.
I pulled out my camera and took continuous shots of them doing their thing in the water, then heaving themselves up and exiting their bath. They walked towards me, getting closer and closer through my lens, Continue reading
The Giant Killer Leech and an Expert Pachyderm Cricket Player. Elephant Nature Park – Day 4
Giant leech attack!
There was no power on this morning, for some reason unknown, so when we arose we had to get dressed in the dark. The Elephant Nature Park Law of Wrongful Zips applied – where you open the wrong zip on your many-pocketed bag every time – and it took a while to get the right garment on the right body part. It would have made a lot of sense to open the window to let the light in, but in this case when I say window, I actually mean a piece of wood. There was no glass in the ‘windows’ of our hut, just wooden shutters. And we were pretty reluctant to open those and put on a reverse strip show for all and sundry walking up the driveway. Continue reading
Elephants Here I Come, or Scrat, Vegetarian Banquets and Killer Elephant Pooh. Day 1 at Elephant Nature Park.
Elephant Nature Park, Chiang Mai, Thailand. The view over my coffee cup.
I’m not one to swan about on deck chairs, sipping cocktails while watching the sunset at a luxurious beach resort. Oh no – I have to go out and punish myself in some strange and unusual manner for being a Westerner whose life is easy compared to many the world over, and who can scrounge up enough spare dollars to jump on a large airplane and fly to foreign climes. Far be it from me to wallow in comfort in pleasant surroundings while locals scurry to and fro with platters of gorgeous food and glasses with wee umbrellas poking out of them. That will not do at all! Far better that I throw myself into yet another deep end, fray my nerves with unfamiliar situations and learn to swim like hell until I’m at the other side of God-knows-what pool I’ve dunked myself into this time. Continue reading
Please Don’t Ride the Elephants – this post is actually serious.
Please Don’t Ride The Elephants – A Serious Note.
Planning on going to Thailand for a holiday soon? Thinking you’d like to have a ride on an elephant or maybe watch elephants paint pictures while you’re there? Consider this first – the elephant you have a ride on may well be living a harsh and lonely life.
I’m writing this from the Elephant Nature Park, an hour or so from Chiang Mai in the North of Thailand. My friend Ursula and I have come here for seven days to help out as volunteers. The elephant park was started in 1995 by Lek Chailert who, whenever she can, rescues elephants from unhappy situations and gifts to them freedom from what is more often than not, a life of slavery. Continue reading
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