Have just returned from a few days in Chiang Mai, where I learnt two very useful new skills – firstly, how to give an elephant a mud bath, and secondly, how to wash the mud off again.
The elephants at the rescue centre have been rescued from performance venues in Thailand – all except the baby, who is three months old and was born there –
– he’s absolutely adorable.
First, we had to feed the elephants with pieces of chopped up bamboo … and that was when I felt something long, sinewy and warm snaking around my waist …
… they have no qualms at all about invading your personal space if there’s food involved.
Then we took them to the mud pool and covered them in the gooiest mud I’ve ever come across.
The elephants loved it, but I wasn’t quite so keen; mud wrestling has never been high on my list of possible hobbies.
After the mud, we washed them in the most beautiful clear water – well, it was clear before the elephant washing began – in the pool beneath a waterfall. The water was freezing –
and the elephants – sneaky rotters – kept sucking up trunkfuls and spraying it all over us –
I was not amused …
But I managed to get my own back by feeding them their medicine –
which they weren’t too keen on – even though he does look as though he’s smiling in this photo.
After that it was a quick shower with a bar of soap under the power-shower waterfall to try and get rid of the worst of the mud
and then back into town, upskilled and upbeat. What a great day!