On Friday morning, we met with our co-ordinator, Tuk, and she drove the six of us in the truck to the village where the elephant sanctuary is. We were all super excited and kept our eyes peeled for elephants en route. A short one hour drive and we were all gasping and squealing at the sight of so many beautiful elephants. We walked around and stroked them and took photos before the wedding parade began. As it was Valentine's day, the elephant sanctuary allows couples to get married on the elephants. There were so many couples all dressed up beautifully and on decorated elephants, awaiting their ceremony. They were of all ages and different backgrounds. The ceremonies were in Thai so we didn't understand it but it was interesting to watch nevertheless.
After a spot of delicious lunch at a cafe, we went to see the elephants perform. This was so much fun! Elephants are very smart and so cute. They were doing tricks like the hula hoop with their trunks and playing football and scoring goals. The elephants could also play basketball, dance and bow down! When they asked for helpers, my friends all shot their hands up! They were asked to lay down and the elephants gave them massages by stepping their feet on their bums, backs and legs. This was absolutely hilarious and the crowd loved it, especially as the helpers getting massages were all 'farang' meaning foreigner. My friends loved the experience and being applauded.
After the show, we headed to our home stay. It was a beautiful house in the village. We relaxed and napped a bit before Tuk made us some delicious Thai dinner. Home cooked food is so lovely and it was the first time I had any home cooked Thai food. After dinner we helped clean up and went for a walk around the village. The villagers enjoyed seeing us and smiled and waved. As it got dark, we headed back. We enjoyed some card games before having an early night.
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