It was time to head to the elephant camp about an hour away. Our group arrived and was escorted to the platform used to seat people on the elephants. I won’t lie, I was nervous, but It didn’t take long for those nerves to go away. The trainer directed the giant creature in a smooth fashion. We walked down to the lake, then took a few pictures. It was as if the elephant was posing for the camera. About halfway through riding, the trainer looked at me and said “you come down here?”. Initially, I’m like “nah man I’ll stay up here on the actual seat.” He insisted. So, I said forget it, I’m on the other side of the world on an elephant, I may as well take this opportunity. I did. 
I was amazed at how smart this elephant was. All I could think about is how big of brain he must have. The trainer was nice enough to record videos and take pictures of us. Later I would find out that he expected a tip. At the end of the elephant ride, I took care of him and threw him some extra Baht. Once the last elephant made its way back to it’s area, our cohort was escorted to the edge of the river where the handcrafted bamboo rafts were waiting to be occupied. A young man tossed everyone a life jacket, then we walked across the home made dock to get to the rafts. Another young man who couldn’t have been any older than 13 removed the rope that was connected to the dock and we were off. It looked like a scene from the 1997 movie “Anaconda” featuring JLo and Ice Cube.
The ride didn’t last long. By the time I knew it, we were back at the dock preparing to make the 3 hour trip back to Bangkok. This trip was just as long and uncomfortable as the first trip.
MyMelaninJourney 