We travelled for 10 hours overnight o a bus up to Chiang Mai in the north of Thailand. It was a pretty easy journey and we slept most of the way, even though the lights inside were pink, making it feel like a bus from the red light strip in Amsterdam. We got to our guesthouse and later that night went on a Dinner boat cruise so we saw the city all light up at night, it was erally lovely, a very romantic setting for the 3 of us!

The main event was our trip to the Elephant Nature Park - OMG it was AMAZING. Without doubt the best experience of our trip so far. Thank you Charlotte for recommendig it!!! We were there for 2 days, we got to feed the elephants, wash them in the river, hug them (well hug their legs as i think we were only as tall as the front legs!). The lady who started the sanctuary is a huge inspiration. She has now rescued 35 elephants from the cruelty that face by being made to work in Thailand in the tourist or logging trade. A lot of them have horrible injuries, many have stood on land mines in Burma and now have deformed hips and cannot walk properly. Some are still very nervous but there is one herd that are so friendly and happy to be around humans- this was the herd that we could feed and bathe in the river. It was fascinating to see that although many of them are not blood related they have formed 5 seperate herds, basically familes. They also form friendships, the most heart warming story is of one elephant who has a very bad infection in her feet from not being looked after by her owners. She has to stay away from the elephants in a seperate section, her best friend for the last year never leaves her side. there is nothing keeping her in that area but she never leaves the poorly one, wherever the poorly one is taken her best friend follows! There are also babies there, it was amazing to wtch them play in the mud pit. We watched a heart breaking film where they showed us how people take baby elephants from their mums and put them in a small wooden cage which is the same size as them or smaller, they beat them and poke them for days until they learn to stop fighting back and stop reacting. Its called 'Breaking the Spirit' and is horrendous to see. They abuse them constantly and deprive them of sleep for about 4 days. they then let them out of the cage and continue to beat them and make them learn not to react and to do whatever the human wants. This is what has happened to every single elephant that you see people having rides on, at festivals with decorative head dresses, and every elephant that works taking logs up mountains. We will never look at them in the same way now, those poor animals, forced into being submissive to humans from such a young age when they should be with their mums. The sadest story we heard was of one elephant who worked taking logs up mountains, she was heavily pregnant and made to work constantly, she gave birth to her baby at the top of a mountain, it rolled down the hill, still in the sack and clearly died. The mother was never the same again. She was then sold and forced to become a baby making female where she was strapped up and a male bull elephant was put behind her until she became pregnant again, during this the male elephant broke her hip and she now struggles to walk. The woman who owns the sanctuary stumbled accross her one day and rescued her, paying the owner to buy her off him.

It was amazing to see all these rescued elephants happy and free to do what they like in this amazing sanctuary. You really can see them smile! They are such special animals and develop relationships with each other just like human families. The females even get jealous when a new female is close to their man! We met the lady who started the sanctuary and i just hpe she can continue to rescue these elephants and change the way they are treated. They should never be seen on the streets begging for donations for their human owner, they shouldnt be taking humans for rides through the jungle and they shouldnt be working in the logging industry. When all of these have been taken from their mums at an age too young to know how to cope and abused until they learn to be submissive. We are so glad we did this experience and will never forget it, beautiful giant animals!

xxx