An Elephant Experience.

It was the most amazing and adventurous day yet. We went on an elephant day which included a lot of different things to do with elephants.

From Chiang Mai we took a minvan further up into the mountains. We stopped by a river and could see a group of elephants on the other side. The only way over was to cross a rickety old bamboo bridge.

We had time to meet the elephants and we could go right up to them and touch them and play with them. It was unbelievable that we were so close to these enormous creatures.

Dad and Maisy were put on the biggest elephant. Mum and I were on a lovely lady called Noi Noi. There was a baby elephant with our group and it was so cute.

We walked slowly along a river and a little way into the jungle. The mahout leading our elephant said I could sit on the elephants neck with him. The hairs were so prickly but it was unreal.

We had lunch on the other side of the river watching the elephants. The little baby kept being naughty and trying to walk away from his mother, the mahouts would go crazy after him and sometimes use slingshots to hit him on the side.

In the afternoon the elephants put on an amazing show for us. There were around 10 elephants, and they all walked in to the area where they were performing. Two of the elephants were holding up a welcome sign for us using there tusks and their trunks. They then showed us how they bowed. They were very good at bowing, then they showed us how to dance to music, and they really got into it. One of them wrapped his trunk around his tusks and swung his head around in circles like a mad thing, whilst shaking his foot.

  Next it was time for a bit of sport so they played soccer and basketball. A male elephant played soccer, and he was surprisingly good. He held onto the ball with his trunk, and would toss it over his head and kick it with his back foot straight into the goal. They even had a goalie elephant, but he got hungry for bananas, and wandered off. Because I don’t really enjoy basketball, the basketball wasn’t that amazing, but it was still really clever what they did.

 Then the elephant mahouts, did some tricks for us. They showed us all the different ways to get up onto the elephants, the elephants could lift the mahouts up with their trunks. Elephants are sooooooooo strong. The little elephants could put hats on the mahouts. It was so cute.
The most amazing thing happened next. They lady who ran the show told us that a 5 year old girl elephant called Suda was going to paint for us. We had seen on TV before elephants painting, and they only did a couple of random splashes of paint. So that is what we expected. But it was nothing at all like that!

Suda started to paint a picture at an easel, and at first it only looked like a scribble. Then she added more and more detail. Each stroke added to make a perfect looking elephant holding flowers. She even included a tail and a trunk and then incredibly she signed her name across the top. Suda. The painting was really really awesome.

Dad was just as impressed and he had to buy it. I think he is missing the car auctions because he jumped up to bid on it.

One day it will be hanging in our lounge room and no-one will believe an elephant actually painted it with her trunk.

It was the best day so far.

By Charlotte