I absolutely LOVE photography, and if you do too, join me every Friday for a look at some photos! These are my favorites from my trip to Thailand! Please share if you enjoy them!
- With Lam Duan, a 57 year old blind elephant
Friday’s Fabulous Photos!
MUST SEE: Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Thailand
The Thai Floating Markets! Long Tail Thai boats are loaded high with fruits and the smell of cooking fills the air. I have never had fruits that tasted so rich, and I had my first try at Mango with Sticky Rice, topped with Coconut Milk. It is delicious. I don’t even like coconut, and I had coconut pudding and coconut candy. Truthfully, it tasted nothing like the coconuts I’ve tasted before. The watermelon was deep red and reminded me of childhood days when opening a ripe watermelon in the backyard started a party!
There is nothing like the Thai Mango. There are so many different kinds, hybrids developed in Thailand, that I won’t even go into them. Who cares about their names anyway? Luscious, delicious, and heavenly, my daughter and I were there at the beginning of the best season for mango. Mango on sticks, with sticky rice, in drinks, smoothies, fried, grilled…you name it. Incredible. The mango is very important in Thai culture, a part of feng shui philosophy: planting a mango tree on the south side of your home will bring good fortune to the family. After tasting them, I say it is good luck to be able to eat them! It’s not like you can easily buy Thai mangoes in the USA. The best substitute, they say, is Mexican mango.
The floating market will explain itself best in photos. Of course there were snake charmers, but fortunately there were no cobras. Whew. Enjoy the color and the life!
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How to Find Ethical Elephant Tourism in Thailand
Everyone who travels to Thailand wants to trek with the Asian elephants who are advertised for trekking, riding, and shows. Elephants are highly revered in Thai and Buddhist traditions, and were used for warfare, much like horses in prior times. Elephants, thankfully, are no longer used for the logging industry in Thailand, as the country has been overlogged. At that time, the late 1980s, there were elephants and their “mahouts” (handlers, trainers, owners) who were suddenly without work. These mahouts began using their elephants to beg on the streets, they turned their elephants into trekking elephants with a box on the elephant’s back for people to sit in (these are very harmful to elephants as their backs are the weakest parts of their body), or training the elephants to perform in shows. The only safe way to ride an elephant (for the elephant) is to ride on their necks. There are still some mahouts who still work illegal logging camps on the border of Myanmar and Thailand, who give their elephants “speed” to make them work longer and faster, and who abuse their elephants with the tools of the mahout: chains, the thotti (hook), the valiya kol (long pole), and the cheru kol (short pole). These are the traditional tools used to “break” elephants, and to control them. The hook is particularly horrible, and if you see an elephant with scars, open sores, wounds…you’ll know it is being abused with the hook. Using the hook side of the tool is not necessary, regardless of what any mahout tells you, the elephant is hurt by it and it causes them pain and injury. Period.
Where once there were nearly 100,000 wild Asian elephants roaming the jungles of Asia, there are now about 2000 wild elephants left in Thailand. They are terribly endangered as their habitat has been so altered and destroyed; they migrate the same way they did for hundreds of years…only now there are farms in their way. Farmers do not hesitate to take action against elephants who threaten their crops. It is a tragedy that it is really not a question of IF the Asian elephant will go extinct, it is a question of WHEN. With only 2000 left in the wild, and approximately 2000 “domesticated” elephants in Thailand (including those in sanctuaries), it won’t be long until they are gone.
The elephant is a symbol of Thai Buddhism, and considered an animal who brings good luck. When I planned my trip to Thailand I very badly wanted to see and spend time with elephants, but I didn’t want to harm them. I did research, and among the excellent research I found Adore Animals blog on Ethical Elephant Tourism and another blog at Jdomb’s Travel which helped me understand what I needed to look for. Most sanctuaries are located in the Chiang Mai area, quite north of Bangkok, but I did find Elephant’s World in Kanchanaburi City, 3 hours from Bangkok. 3 hours is not super close, especially when you only have 5 days, but Alexandra, my daughter, and I were determined to spend time volunteering with elephants, and it was a enriching, wonderful experience.
Elephant’s World was founded in 2008 by Dr. Samart Prasithpol (head of the Department of Livestock of Kanchanaburi province) to function as a ‘retirement home’ for elephants who were too old to work, too injured, or too ill. Elephant’s World works FOR the elephants, to give them a peaceful, happy life. The elephants at Elephant’s World are well cared for, and enjoy a day of feeding, dusting themselves, playing in the mud, being fed some more, and then, having a lovely wash and dip in the river. (Meet the elephants here.)
Our day began with a 3 hour drive to the sanctuary, then we met and talked with the volunteers about the elephants. The volunteers were very like those I worked with in Mozambique, mostly young adults who want to see the world and make a real difference, so volunteer tourism is a great way for them to travel. I wish more American young adults would do this type of traveling. We started by learning the structure of the day, then we were given a huge basket of fruits to feed Lam Duan, a female elephant who is about 57 years old who was used in the logging industry, then as a trekking elephant. She is completely blind, and likes to be fed directly in her mouth instead of using her trunk. She also does not like to be stroked or touched. Lam Duan has obviously been worked far too much, and because she is blind she is not readily accepted by the other elephants. Elephants in the wild live in family groups and have deep emotional bonds…but elephants who are in sanctuaries lost their families long ago, and sometimes do not care for other elephants around them. Lam Duan is kept away from most of the others. A mahout would use a hook if Lam Duan was attacked by another elephant (which has happened) but mostly she just stays away from the group. She does like John, a small 7 year old bull who loves to play. Poor John was separated from his mother far too young, and seems to think that he should be able to make little elephants with the 50 and 70 year old matriarchs around him! They seem to just brush him off, but he does get excited!
During the volunteer day one feeds, makes sticky rice balls with protein powder and veggies for the elephants to eat (they eat A LOT). Then you enjoy the show as the elephants have a mud bath, which they really enjoy. After that, it is time for the river, and swimming with the elephants! What an incredible privilege to swim around an elephant, and to climb up on its neck for a ride and a dunk. The elephants really love their river swim and bath! After their baths, once again we fed them baskets of fruit. We fed an elephant who used her trunk, and it was so incredible! The elephant trunk has more muscle in it than the human body does. Isn’t that amazing? They grab that food and stuff it in their mouths very quickly, and if you don’t stuff food in the trunk, the trunk comes looking for you!
Our day ended after feeding time, but there is one thing I want everyone to know: the sanctuary is trying very hard to raise the money to build a fence to keep the elephants out of the sugar cane of neighboring farmers. Until that fence can be built, the elephants have to be chained when they are not being active. They need $20,000.00 to build that fence. Here is the link to donate: http://elephantsworld.org/en/donate. Be sure and let them know Travels with Tam sent you! It really is a good cause…these poor elephants have suffered so terribly, and it would be such a gift to them to be able to roam instead of be chained. I very much encourage you to give, even if it is just a few bucks! You can also volunteer, whether for a day or a month or a year. What a great experience! Do check out Elephant’s World in Thailand! It was one of the best days of my trip to Thailand, and Alexandra felt the same.
One final request: should you go to Asia, please avoid the touristy trekking and shows with elephants and choose Ethical elephant tourism. We can all help make change in our world with just simple, good choices. The “nellys” (nellyphants) will thank you!
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Bangkok: the City of Angels (and Ladyboys)
Bangkok is the City of Angels. Well, it is also known as Sin City, but hey, so is Los Angeles, right? Bangkok needs several blogs to do it justice, but here’s a fact: my daughter and I absolutely fell in love with it. It was not at all what I expected. What did I expect? A smog infested, no emission standards, hot, hellish place. (It was HOT. And humid.) What did I receive? Flowers upon our arrival at the hotel, Thai Wai’s (the Thai greeting), new cars and motorcycles and scooters, and emission standards so black smoke is NOT coming from the vehicles. One can breathe. Bangkok is a pleasant, large city.
Photos of the King, and Queen, are everywhere. Thailand loves their King, known as Rama IX. There are government protests going on right now, but they are aimed at the Prime Minister, not the King. “Lese Majesty”, or disrespect of the King, is still a punishable offense in Thailand. The protests in Bangkok are not easily explained, but have to do with the continued influence of a former Prime Minister. We did hear and even see the protestors once or twice. Since we were there, the Prime Minister of Thailnd has been removed, and a new caretaker Prime Minister has been installed. Here is a link to the news: http://www.cnn.com/2014/05/07/world/asia/thailand-yingluck-abuse-power-verdict/
Bangkok is foodie heaven…the street food is amazing! Mango with sticky rice, grilled banana, chicken satays, pad thai, fruit, fruit, and more fruit….so fresh and sweet, I could not believe it! I have never eaten so much fruit in my entire life. It tastes so good! Mango, watermelon, pineapple, bananas, dragon fruit…. from what I can research, crops are not GMO (genetically modified organisms). If that is the difference in taste, then the USA needs to go back to the “real thing”. Delicious!
There is a shrine, temple or spirit house on every corner. Someone told me there are 30,000 temples or shrines in Bangkok, and I completely believe it! Each one is beautiful. The majority of the Wats (temples) are Thai, but some are Chinese. One can tell the difference immediately as Thai Buddhism is gold, ornate, and intricate. Chinese buddhist temples are very colorful with dragons and Fu Dogs and other creatures.
Something else Bangkok has is plenty of “ladyboys”, or “katoeys”. Alexandra, my daughter, and I decided to go to a cabaret called Calypso, a ladyboy show similar to “The BirdCage” (movie). Ladyboys are men who are transitioning into females, or transsexuals, but also transvestites. In most cases, you would never know in a million years that they have, or had, male parts. Absolutely beautiful! The show was mostly old show tunes, including “Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend” and Ethel Merman’s “There’s no business like showbusiness”, but there were also Thai and Asian themes…the most beautiful was a dance with fans. Headed to Thailand? Be sure to take in a ladyboy show!
From the canals (complete with HUGE monitor lizards!) to the river to the floating market, the temples and shrines and shopping and dining, and the flower and fruit markets, Bangkok aims to please. And it certainly does. More to follow!
Patong Beach, Phuket: PARTY CENTRAL
If you are looking for a quiet beach vacation in Thailand, Patong Beach is NOT for you! Wow! Party, party, party. Patong is busy 24 hours a day. I did find a quiet spot: the Amari Beach Resort in Patong Beach is off of the main party beach, but close enough to walk. Not to mention beautiful and service oriented and clean! Perfect.
I jumped off the boat, said goodbye to my Deep Andaman Queen diving buddies, and rode the minibus (it took forever) to my hotel. Phuket is about the same size as Cozumel Island in Mexico, but here is the difference: Cozumel has about 80,000 people living there….Phuket has over a million! After checking in, showering and relaxing, my daughter, Alexandra, arrived from Dallas via Manila and Bangkok. She had some adventures, which I will feature as a guest blog! So begins daughter and mommy vacation time. We have a full itinerary planned!
We spent a relaxing day at the hotel, and the next morning we went off to Phang Nga National Park, where James Bond Island is located. I didn’t care much about James Bond, but the scenery, canoeing through lagoons and caves, and going to see the Cave of the Reclining Buddha (Monkey Cave) was a draw. We had an absolutely lovely day. We were the only Americans on the boat…it is so intriguing, listening to the different languages. I enjoy meeting people from other cultures. I will do a photo blog tomorrow or the next day on Phang Nga…it is spectacularly beautiful, and what one thinks of when one hears “Thailand”. Ally and I had a marvelous time!
We did spend our last day exploring the city of Patong Beach, a massive tourist attraction in itself. Shopping, shopping and more shopping! Bar after bar after bar! Ladyboy shows! An elephant show we did NOT do, as it is a terrible thing to make elephants perform “tricks” and “play” football. I plan to do a blog specifically on elephants, and the need to do ethical tourism.
Want botox? 200 baht! 7 bucks! Want your lips puffed up? They have that too. There are many, many “massage” businesses, most of which will give you a “happy ending” if you so desire! I don’t know if they perform this “massage” on women, but it is infamous for men. There are so many of them…some of the masseuses are katoeys, or ladyboys. You know, transvestites or transsexuals. Did you know that Thailand is on the cutting edge of transgender surgery? Anyway, massage can be pretty exotic here. I had my massage at the hotel, where the happy ending is most definitely NOT an option. I decided I did not need to do any personal research into the practice!
We especially enjoyed traveling by tuk-tuk!
There are still some pieces of paradise…check out Koh Chang, a blog by Wife With Baggage.
Last 2 dives: Boonsung Wreck, Similan Islands!
The Similan Islands are in Thailand, in the Andaman Sea. Getting back into Thailand was not nearly as difficult as getting into Myanar was. I did get off the boat and wander around Kawthaung, Myanmar a bit, but they have NO emission standards, and it didn’t take long to get sick off of the fumes from the cars and motorbikes. Also, Myanmar is not filled with tourists, and the sight of my blonde hair (I think it was the hair) created a stir. Many stares, and a few people followed me around, which made me a little nervous. I was even asked for my passport! (I didn’t have it, it was still in the immigration office!) Not to mention that it was so hot and humid I couldn’t stand it. I was ready to get back on the boat in half an hour!
Our last two dives of the trip were on the Boonsung Wreck. What a beautiful site! The wreck is a mess…spread out all over the place, but the fish and creatures living there are amazing! I really enjoyed these dives. The “schools” or shoals of fish were so thick you had to wave them away to take photos! I confess that one of my very favorite things to do is to sneak into a shoal and become one of them. They quickly form themselves around you, and you instantly have new friends!
The wreck had so much life! Shrimps, fish, eels, nudibranches, crabs….the list goes on. It was truly beautiful. Enjoy these photos!
