From the Orchid and Butterfly Farm, we drove for about ten minutes to Maesa Elephant Camp, one of the most popular tourist attractions in Chiang Mai. They have over 70 elephants under their care, and according to our tour guide Kookie, these pachyderms can perform tricks like playing football, giving a massage and painting. Hmmm...sounds intriguing, eh? Let's go inside and see for ourselves!
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The entrance to Maesa Elephant Camp...
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...where you will be welcomed by the unmistakable "zoo" smell. In other words, amoy poopoo and wiwi!
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We saw a few stalls near the entrance selling elephant figurines along with bananas and sugar cane sticks. Akala ko pasalubong, yun pala, pagkain yun sa elepante. Haha!
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Muntik na kong masagasaan ng elepante na to.
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The show starts with the elephants bathing in the river.
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Soo cute!
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Rub-a-dub-dub
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After watching these jumbo creatures rubbing and srubbing in the river, our guide led us to the showground. But before that, picture muna beside this elephant. If you will notice, natatakot si Yan sa elephant kaya ayaw nya magpa-picture.
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Meet the welcoming parade.
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This baby elephant is so cute!
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Yabang!
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Here's one with a hulahoop on its trunk.
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Ooops! Someone had an "accident". Ninerbyos yata sya. Hehe!
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In this scene, the elephants are putting the hat back on their handlers. Btw, elephant caretakers are called mahout.
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Let's play football!
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Kick that ball!
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The goalie.
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Eto sayo! Umph!
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Now it's time to watch them paint. Each elephant brought in their own painting kit.
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The mahout dips their brush in paint, and the rest is up to the elephant! Galing!
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Elephant massage, anyone?
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There you go, sir! Hope you liked the massage!
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Here, you will see the elephant shoot darts. Mas magaling yung elephant kesa dun sa babaeng naka-pink. Haha!
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After that wonderful show, it was time for our elephant ride. Yey!
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The elephant parking lot.
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The elephant ride costs THB800 per elephant for a 30-minute ride through the jungle.
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I really thought it was going to be a smooth sailing ride, but the ground was very muddy so it was a slow, bumpy and agonizing ride for me. Haha!
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Hindi pala sya nakakatuwa. Nakakatakot sya. Ngii!
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Kapeeett!!
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Hay...I didn't have any choice but to just try to enjoy the rest of the ride -- after all, it's not everyday that I get to ride on an elephant.
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The Valdezes on an elephant.
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Breathtaking.
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We're nearing the end of our trip. Salamat!
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I knew we were back in civilization when I saw this satellite dish. After I took this photo, it began to drizzle so we tucked our camera away so it won't get wet.
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The Elephant Camp was a fun trip! I've seen elephants perform tricks before at the Crocodile Farm, but this was a lot better! I found myself cheering and clapping like a kid. Nakakaaliw!
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Even if the elephant ride was an unpleasant and scary one for me, it was a memorable experience nonetheless. Our whole family enjoyed the show and discovering new things together was definitely a great way for us to celebrate our anniversary.
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We heart elephants!
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