Hectic Daily Schedule

       Crawling up an elephant is just as difficult as it sounds. When I grab Boonme's ear, she lifts her leg for me. I step on her foot, then her knee, then her shoulder. Then I grab her neck and shimmy up the rest of the way. Getting her to go forward involves gutteral grunting, which I will let you assume is very attractive. She sometimes listens, but not when there is delicious food to be eaten in that particular spot. Getting down is much simpler. I swing my leg over, search blindly for a leg I hope is raised, and drop.

        Elephants take down everything in their paths, so when riding, it is sometimes necessary to tuck my legs up or duck down to avoid being swiped off the top by a tree. They don't realize that their dimensions change when someone sits on top.

       Today, Boonma and I practiced color names and fruit names. I can now say "red banana," because at the moment, I cannot for the life of me remember the Thai word for "yellow." If you'd like, I can also offer you a blue mango. Hopefully I am a better teacher than I am a student.

       Our routine is quite simple, really. I ride, he walks or rides, and we let Boonme wander, looking for the tree or bush whose leaves interest her most. Sometimes we direct her to the shade or to a tree whose fruit we can pick for ourselves. I balance sitting up, or I lay down on her head. She's now heard the greatest hits of Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra. I think it's important for her to hear the real classics, and she still sways as if she's dancing.

       After lunch, I sit in the shade with the women from the village. The baby girl smiles and waves at me now, and sometimes, I eat ice cream from the shop across the street. It's slow-paced and peaceful, and I forget that life goes on in the busy world outside of my bubble. I'll rejoin it eventually, but for right now, I'll just sit next to this fan and drink my twice-daily cup of coffee.

She's just like me, always searching for food.

Elephants everywhere!



Hello there.

I Never Lie

June 19, 2012 (Date)

My dear students, (This is the greeting, remember?)

(Now, here's where you start the body.)

       You may not believe what I am about to tell you. However, you know that I never lie, so this must be true. Today, I ate a red ant. It's true. My elephant, Boonme, was ripping the leaves from a tree as I sat on top of her neck. The tree was covered in the ants, and they were crawling up her skin. My mahout, Boonma, told me to eat one and showed me how. He said, "No die, no die," so I was fairly certain that I would survive the ordeal. I hesitated as it squirmed in between my fingers, and then I went for it. It popped in my mouth, and, I kid you not, it tasted like lemon. Do not try this at home unsupervised.

       Other things happened today, but after hearing that I ate an ant, who really cares, right? In that case, I will write more tomorrow. Just remember, if you ever decide to eat an ant, its family will get back at you. I have the bites to prove it.

Sincerely, (This is the closing.)

Miss Ross

(I'm going to make you remember what this last one is called all on your own.)

Sleeping. No, just kidding. We were talking.

Shower time!

She's reaching for food that we pulled from the trees.

The Elephant Experience

       Words cannot describe this experience. However, I promised I'd write, so I will attempt to explain. My arms are covered in scratches from carrying pineapple leaves. The mosquitos have made it look as if I've contracted smallpox. I appear as though I have been sitting in the rain, even when the sun is out. Those things could not possibly matter less when you spend the day with your elephant and mahout.
       The camp is rustic, but the people? They are kinder than any others. The elephants tower over me, but they nudge me gently with their trunks. My mahout and I speak half English, half Thai. He wants to learn, I want to learn. We point, we exchange words, we laugh. Thailand is truly "The Land of Smiles."
       Lunch was a stressful experience. I ate my sticky rice, worried about the impromptu surgery at the camp. My elephant stepped on a bottle, and I learned that big things that seem indestructable can be brought down by small things, in this case, a piece of glass smaller than a penny. However, a mahout is an owner, a trainer, and a vet, and many together can repair an injury.
       Then, we sit on a wooden platform, not talking, not working, just watching. My elephant is a picky eater, abandoning half of the plant, only to eat it later in the day. I can hear a rumbling in her trunk, and she sways back and forth, almost as if she is dancing.
       To ride is, at first, a precarious experience. You must balance, tucking your legs behind the giant, flapping ears. Soon, it is second nature. I sing some Etta James to her, and she grazes. I lay down on top of her head and mutter things to her. She may not respond to my commands yet, but it's important that she hear my voice. Soon, she will know me, and that is unreal.

She could eat all day.

Big Scratch!

It's love.

The view from above.

Thai Floating Market

The floating market

 Feeding the fish

Authentic Pad Thai

Thailand

        Time gets distorted when I fly. Technically, my day started 18 hours ago in Beijing, China when my plane arrived at the deserted airport. I have not slept since that flight, and in that time, I have lived enough to fill several days.
        In the moment when I thought I had broken the law by leaving the terminal without proper visa paperwork, I found out that Chinese customs officials are quite friendly. I also came out on top during my first language miscommuication when, instead of asking for the check to pay for my coffee, I ordered a second one. No harm done there as far as I am concerned.
        Another flight later, I found myself in a taxi headed for Pattaya, Thailand. I was relieved when we didn't hit the cow running across the toll road to reach another cow grazing along the shoulder. I marveled at the passengers sitting in the beds of speeding pickup trucks. I reminded myself how lucky I was to enjoy air conditioning.
        Tomorrow brings a visit to the water market and the first meeting with my elephant's mahout, but until then, the breezy porch is calling my name. There are books and soft chairs there. I will be there momentarily.

Ready...Set...

       It is time. I have checked off the last item on the various lists of things to do, except for the things that I can still do in the car. Or at the airport or on the plane.
       So, it seems that I am still not ready.
       For some strange reason, it has not registered that I am flying to the other side of the world today. I slept in this morning, casually packed things into my bags, responded to e-mails, and wandered around the house. Not the typical pre-vacation routine. However, I will have plenty of time to let it sink in. My total travel time from take-off in Chicago to landing in Bangkok is 26 hours. I have a nice 10 hour layover in Beijing during the middle of the night. That will be fun, and when I say "fun," I mean "long."
       People have asked me if I'm nervous, and maybe I should be more. Perhaps I'm not, because I haven't really thought about all of the things that could go wrong. Here are my biggest concerns as of right now.

       1. I will not have access to coffee.
       2. It will rain a lot.
       3. I will not have access to coffee.

As you can see, I have really prepared myself for the worst case scenarios. This should be interesting.