More Elephants (and Geese!)

Here are some final pictures from my last week at the elephant sanctuary. Many elephants, and some silly geese that I loved. Enjoy!!

Also, here is a reading piece on elephant abuse in Thailand (what you should know, and how you can help):  http://www.wildlifeextra.com/go/world/thailand-elephants.html#cr

Off to HONG KONG, BABY!!! (And then Singapore :-)!!!)

Eh, 2, enjoys a sprawled out nap in the 104 degree heat!

The ducks make a bee line when the elephants drop their sticky 

rice balls. Hilarious to watch.

One of my permanent roommates in my bungalow

Another one of my roommates

(Thank god there isn't a snake!!)

This is Plara. He is blind, but has a great sense of smell.

 Sometimes the mahouts balance fruits on his head and watch him

try and get it with his trunk. We are all going to hell.

(They give it to him after a few tries!)

Me with my 2 best friends at the sanctuary. I miss these guys.

Putting the silly back in silly goose!!!

I caught one!

Helping me clean out my dirty rice pans

Leisurely jungle swim with Aum Phan the elephant.

Baby Johnny! (Elephant, left)

Love leading tour groups with kids. They were from France!

Hungry for bananas!

Ladies and Gentlemen, that is not a 5th leg...

(Yes, I witnessed 2 elephants trying to mate!)

Name that fruit!

(Answer: Jackfruit)

Eh, wearing Mom's shoes, and her friend :)

Can't believe this wasn't staged. Too cute for words.

Burt carries a banana tree he cut down for the elephants

One of the best parts of the day is riding on the big blue truck!

One of the mahouts and his son riding in the truck

As you can tell, I am obsessed with the 2 geese at the

sanctuary. Because we're friends, I was able to catch him. In the

next few photos I will demonstrate how you "hypnotize" a goose!

Step 1. Lay it on it's back

Step 2: Cover it's eyes with your palm

Step 3: Quietly step away

(The goose will pretend that it's dead!)

Step 4: To "wake" it up, nudge it

Step 5: Say you're sorry to the goose, and give it some treats :)

Me with my favorite elephant, Songkran (what a beauty!)

Truck full of pineapples for the elephants

Eating a warm pineapple like an apple!

Our 3 rescued American cows!

Mahout picture :)

From left: Ouan, Liwik(?), Lulu (Dam's daughter), Yai, Addo, 

new mahout (I don't remember his name!!) and Burt. Great guys

Hill tribe ancestry: Karen

Love this picture

The elephants and the mountains are so great

My kitten friend. Miss her.

I let my Cobra - Catchers sleep in my room as a reward 

for helping me out :)

Thank goodness I only discovered this "Poisonous Animals

to Watch Out For" reference book in my room on my last day!

My true best friends. Goose 1 and Goose 2

Songkran and her beautiful eyelashes

(You can barely see them, but they are super long!)

Cooking hot sticky rice, Thai style, with a visitor

I caught a duck! Much harder to catch than the silly geese

Feeding Wakam, toothless, a sticky rice ball!

Lawa (left), Dam, me and Wasana!

Ice cream motorcycle-truck!!! 

Everyday. Highlight.

Lulu!!!

On my last day, I stood on an elephant!

If you had told me a year ago that in one year

from now I would be mastering the art of bareback elephant riding 

I would have laughed in your face!

Elephant kiss!

Close up shot of an old elephant's trunk.

Beautiful!

This is not a trick picture.

Zoo animal + Farm animal live together!

Dton, Dtom, and Bart.

On the drive to my goodbye dinner (so sweet!)

They even let me sit shotty :)

Top, the man who organized my dinner (Top!) and gave me a 

special Thai hat which extra-protects me from the sun!

Thai BBQ

Very sad. This sick elephant could not get up in the morning...

Some men who were drilling nearby came quickly to help, 

donating their truck for free

Trying to help stabilize Plara so he can stand.

He is up, but not well. No one knows what happened to him.

Saying my goodbyes to the children of the mahouts :)

BACK IN BANGKOK.

Sarah, Gracie, and me before dinner with our Peace Corps friends :)